Becoming a Change Agent: Mastering Meetings

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Becoming a Change Agent Mastering Meetings
Developed by Kit Alvarez, CRYROP

• Everything is in a state of flux, including the
  status quo.
• (Robert Byrne)

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What do Administrators do all day long?

• A. Play 9 holes of golf?
• B. Talk on the phone?
• C. Shuffle paperwork?
• D. Give orders?
• E. Ride the meeting merry-go-round?
• F. Visit classrooms?
• G. Gossip with office colleagues?

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The number one answer is??????

• ATTEND MEETINGS!!!!!!

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Five Ws of Meetings (foundation of good
meeting planning)

• Who
• What
• Why
• When
• Where
• seems simple enough.

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WHO???

• Give careful consideration to who is asked to
  attend.
• Everyone with direct responsibility for items
  under discussion should be represented.
• Those affected by the meeting are secondary
  choices.
• Dont forget that staff means both certificated
  and classified.

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WHAT???

• Information that cant be covered in writing
  conveniently or economically.
• Decision making which requires input or a vote
  from all.
• Management decisions that would be facilitated by
  observation, feedback, person to person
  communication with the staff.

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WHY???

• To bring the entire staff together periodically
  for information.
• To conduct the business of the school in the most
  expedient way.

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WHEN???

• Schedule staff meetings on a regular
  predetermined basis. If one isnt necessary,
  then cancel it.
• Rule of thumb as few as possible, rather than
  as many as possible.
• Have a meeting only when it is necessary.

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WHERE???

• Location, location, location!
• Convenient, comfortable.
• Appropriate for accomplishing the tasks at hand.

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Tips for Planning Meetings

• Schedule all staff/faculty meetings with agenda
  topics in advance, for the year if possible.
• Publish meeting dates and major topics for all to
  view in advance, using a meeting calendar if
  possible.
• Remember, planning is a prerequisite to leading.
• Experience reveals that the quality of decisions
  rises with the reduction of meetings.
• Plan meetings based on the tasks to be achieved.

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Meeting Room Arrangements Dos and
Donts

• Avoid rectangle rooms
• Avoid over crowding
• Avoid brightly colored rooms
• Never use theater style seating
• Speaker should never be more than 25 from
  audience
• Dont use raised platform or a lectern
• Dont place objects between the speaker and the
  audience

• Select a square room
• Large room
• Windowless to avoid distractions
• Horseshoe seating for 25 of fewer
• Circular tables for small groups
• Walk among the audience
• Use a small table for the speaker
• Try to get the most comfortable chairs available
• Make sure people can see

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Group Dynamics

• To make groups effective in meetings, begin
  teaching the characteristics of an effective and
  constructive group.
• Develop a safe atmosphere for work.

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Group Dynamics

• All contributions are viewed as belonging to the
  group, not the individual.
• Suggestions do not have to be defended of owned
  by the group.
• Ideas can be used or not used without hard
  feelings or punishment.

• Individual ideas are not to be micro-evaluated,
  but viewed as a concept and a possibility.
• All members participate, in a variety of ways.

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When groups have trouble, STOP, and find out why!

• Sample problems
• repeating points over and over
• lack of participation
• ideas being attacked
• 2-3 people dominating
• personality conflicts
• Stop the work, and shift the discussion to the
  problem.

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Discussing Group Problems

• Always stop and discuss, never ignore and push
  ahead!
• Explain that conflict is inevitable, and often
  will help to clarify the issues, and provide
  opportunities to explore all sides of the issue,
  and reach creative solutions.
• If conflict is open, it is subject to group
  control management. If it is disguised, it is
  out of control!

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Practicing Consensus

• Consensus exists in a group when every member is
  willing to go along with the decisions of the
  group even though it may not be everyones 1st
  choice.
• Make everyone aware that nothing can be decided
  without consensus.
• The purpose of consensus is to produce decisions
  that most members will actively support and that
  no member will intentionally sabotage.

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Consensus-continued

• Total group participation in decision making
  always helps produce feelings of satisfaction,
  responsibility, and commitment toward group
  efforts.
• One techniques is to pose a solution, and
  everyone makes a comment about it. The decision
  gets modified until everyone can go along with
  it.
• Key modifying positions until agreement is
  reached.

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Setting the tone for effective meetings

• Appearances do count your attitude and behavior
  influence the meeting climate.
• Be organized, prepared, and ready to start
  meetings on time.
• Rehearse what youre going to say with
  assistants. Their input is valuable. Once
  something is said, it cant be taken back.
• Knowledge and efficiency are exhibited through
  preparation which helps to build trust and
  confidence in your leadership.

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Leadership dos

• size up mood of staff
• show concern for comfort of staff
• let people stand and stretch during meeting
• be considerate
• dress in an executive manner
• start and end meetings positively
• explain why you think something is important
• thank the attendees

• check meeting room in advance
• check seating
• have refreshments
• have materials ready and in place before meeting
• use A/V aids as much as possible
• greet people by name
• share positive things you have heard
• be enthusiastic

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Leadership donts

• complain about your day
• write on a board while talking
• pass the buck
• glorify the office
• think that you always have to make decisions
  immediately or publicly before a meeting ends

• minimize anyones problems
• tense or criticize
• show displeasure
• be late
• wear casual clothes
• tell jokes
• swear or use slang
• pat yourself on the back

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Managing Late Meeting Arrivers

• Recognize that chronic lateness may be motivated
  by a desire for
• Power
• Attention
• The appearance of being important or very busy

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Strategies

• Continue with the meeting and encourage tardy
  participants to wait until the end to get caught
  up
• Find other ways to meet the attention seeking
  needs of late arrivers
• Ask them to make presentations at the beginning
  of future meetings
• Arrange for them to lead discussions in their
  area of expertise early on the agenda
• Provide assistance to those who really have
  difficulties with organizational skills

• Dont note the late arriver or take the time to
  repeat this interrupts the meeting and
  multiplies negative impact of tardiness
• Repeating wastes valuable time, and offers
  reinforcement to attention seeking behaviors

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Tip, tips, and more tips...

• Set time limits on your meetings - stay on time
• add a little formality to your meetings, i.e.
  adopt the agenda, make special
  introductions,etc...
• take attendance
• encourage discussion
• summarize results of your meeting /recap
  accomplishments
• record minutes, number items for easy reference,
  and distribute immediately.

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If the organization is changing, you probably
need to be changing too.

• If you have always done it that way, it is
  probably wrong.
• Charles Kettering