Abstract
Meetings are considered by many people to be a waste of time. However, many experts suggest that this is because they are not planned or organized effectively, and that, in fact, meetings can be an essential tool for the dissemination of objectives, values, culture, and other important information throughout the organization. The key is to be able to manage meetings so that they generate the maximum possible benefit. Therefore, the present chapter is presented, with the main purpose of understanding how a meeting should be managed. With this in mind, it is essential to understand the most and least common types of meeting, the roles that each participant can adopt and, among other aspects, the appropriate structure of a meeting. But, above all, this chapter offers some essential advice for meetings which take place at the international level.
TopWhat Is A Meeting?
In its most basic form, a meeting is a forum constituted by a group of people with a common goal, which allows participants, either face-to-face, over the phone or through the Internet, to share information and opinions and express ideas. The meeting also an opportunity for social interaction for the different people who participate in it, generating, in some cases, the so-called work teams, in which participation, commitment and a sense of belonging, among other values, are fostered.
In your organization, it is more than likely that most people see meetings are one of the main thieves of their time, and that when they come to the end of a strenuous day of meetings, they return to their jobs to “work for real”. And they may not be mistaken. Companies dedicate more than 25% of their time to meetings, and the larger the company, the higher this percentage. Of that time, about one third is devoted to preparation, and the other two thirds to the meeting itself.
What does our staff think of these meetings? According to data collected by Workmeter (2015):