Getting the most out of team meetings

What do your team meetings look like?

A monologue from the leader to a room of disinterested attendees?

Or a vibrant exchange of views where the leader updates the team and gets their opinions of how to carry out the upcoming work effectively?

Has this changed with the advent of more virtual meetings? It certainly has made things different.

Does your team find it difficult to speak up during meetings? Many people don’t like to speak in meetings, or would prefer to make them short so that they can get back to work. They see a team meeting as a necessary evil that needs to be endured but kept as short as possible.

With virtual meetings, these feelings are even more accentuated:-

• It’s harder to read physical and social cues. In-person, it is easier to figure out when to make a comment and how it has been received as you can read the body language and hear the minor murmurs of agreement. However, this is difficult online, and many people who are reluctant to speak in normal meetings are even less likely to do so in a virtual environment.

• For someone who may have recently joined the company, they may have not even met their new colleagues. They may feel especially reserved around their new teammates or senior colleagues.

• Hierarchy can be intimidating. Team members don’t want to be seen as uninformed or foolish in front of their leaders.

• People also fear that the rest of the team might feel their ideas are still half-baked and won’t be seen as valuable. This often occurs when brainstorming and there is less time to consider the contribution.

Finding the courage to do speak up is critical to your success, as well as to the success of your team and your organisation. The team performance will benefit from the unique perspectives and will ensure growth of individuals and the team.

Remember the following, when holding and participating in your next meetings:-

• Your idea, whilst it may not be fully formed, may be the source of someone else’s bigger idea.

• Your silence is not helping the team grow.

• Your idea may be unique and may benefit the team and even the wider organisation

• There is no such thing as a “stupid” question. Whilst we might not some things, others don’t know everything that we know.

Leaders need to overcome the fears that reside in the members of the team so that nobody feels:-

• Ostracised

• Embarrassed

• Receive negative feedback from others

• That the meeting doesn’t have time for their input.

• That their ideas and opinions are any less valuable than any other member of the team.

Develop an environment that makes the team feel like a team. Have a sense of Purpose and Belonging. Trust and Unity.

To do this; encourage the team to:-

• Speak out when they have an opinion

• Ensure that input is phrased with a positive slant

• Talk about possible solutions rather than problems.

• Provide feedback of others ideas in a constructive way.

• Talk about the idea and not personalise the response.

• Be part of the solution and the team, rather than looking to shine as an individual and stand out above the others. It’s about belonging rather than individual glory.

Contact InteChange for more information on People Focused Leadership and the benefits of a psychosocially safe workplace.