As Project Managers, our mission is to make our meetings the ones everyone wants to be on. At the heart of our meeting schedules is the regular Project Progress Meeting (PPM). Whatever the frequency you decide to have it, whether weekly or fortnightly, if set up properly, run well, and well recorded, the PPM will serve as a perfect audit trail of your project from start to finish.
Generally, people do not pay enough regard to meetings. They are frequently thrown together as a matter of first resort (i.e. if in doubt, let’s have a call), rather than a last resort after all other methods of communication have been exhausted. As a result, people’s diaries get filled up with meetings that they don’t want to be on, have little interest in and where they are neither engaged nor productive.
Clearly, running a meeting is not as simple as it may at first seem! But there are some simple tactics that anyone can use, and which can transform any meeting into a positive, information sharing, action driven event.
And remember, this is your meeting. You are in charge. You are responsible for getting it going, keeping it going, shutting it down, and issuing a record of the meeting. This is what those attending will be expecting, as a minimum. Most attendees only have a partial interest in the actual content of the meeting (and will be on their computers doing other things) but start and/or finish late or let the meeting drift and you will soon have a rebellion on your hands!
So, here are some tips to help run the perfect Project Progress Meeting. They are simple and easy. They are proven to work and guaranteed to make your project meetings more focussed and productive and ultimately will make it easier to deliver successful project outcomes. And, hopefully, you may just find they become a lot more enjoyable to run!!
- Be the first on the call
If you can be, be the first one on the call. Not always easy with back to back calls. If you are not, then you are on the back foot from the start. As the host it is never good to start with, I am sorry I am late. You are going to be under pressure and flustered. Not good! - Start on time
Always. So much time can be wasted at the beginning of calls. If 12 people are waiting for one person for 5 minutes, then that is a total of one hour lost. Of course, it is a judgement call, if that one person is key to the meeting and you can’t start without them. But, if you get a reputation for starting on time, people will soon know to join on time. - Do a roll call at the Start
It is a matter of courtesy to welcome people. It is a bit different now we have Zoom, and the roll call is less necessary because we can all see each other, but you should always call people out who are not there. On telecon calls you should always do a roll call, so everyone feels engaged, welcomed and part of the meeting. - Have an Agenda
Always. The purpose of the Agenda is to set out clearly the purpose of the meeting. It doesn’t always have to be written. In the case of a recurring meeting the previous meeting minutes are the agenda for the next. The agenda can be in the meeting invite. And, in the absence of all else, if not written down, talk through the agenda at the start of the meeting. The point is, somebody (you) has taken the effort to think through the meeting, what is important, what is not, and has a structure in place to achieve the outcomes required. People will always welcome this effort. - Stick to the Agenda
In the half hour you have for the call, you will have to stay focussed to get through all of the points. If anyone on the call wants to take it off course, step in and stop it. You will simply not have the time. Don’t be afraid to politely call people out. Most people will appreciate your challenge. Even if they don’t, everyone else will! - Stay on Subject
Never be tempted to rebrand the PPM just because something may be more prevalent at the time. (i.e Design sign off, for example). The PPM is the consistent heart of the project, don’t tamper with it. It is the one point in the week when anyone and everyone can join and know what to expect. Keep it that way!! If somethings else needs to discussed in detail, call a separate meeting. - Do a roll call at the end
Unless you have really large numbers of attendees, it is always good at the end to go around the table asking for any final points from each individual. Most people will have none, but they have been asked, and they will feel engaged. For some people, this may be the only time they talk and make a contribution to the meeting. They will feel welcomed. Of course, for bigger meetings this may not always be practical. Anything over about 12 attendees and it becomes an overly extended process, so a judgement call to be made. - Finish on Time
Just as we start on time, you should always aim to finish on time. People have busy diaries with back to back meetings and we need to respect that. On occasion there may be a cause to ask people to stay on a bit over time, but always ask first. - Issue Minutes within 24 hours
If you have gone to all the bother of setting up and running a great meeting, don’t lose its impact by issuing minutes late. Stick to the 24-hour rule and get them out. If people have actions, they need to be held to account and complete those actions, so give them as much time as possible ahead of the next meeting. Never leave it until just before the next meeting to issue the minutes. You will lose your audience. - Keep Minutes Action Focussed
Our project outcomes are built on actions, not talk. So, you should view your minutes as Action focussed minutes. We are not interested in he said/she said. What the minutes need to show under each relevant heading is – what is the item, what is the action required, who has the action, when the action is planned to be done by. That’s all we need to know. There is a standard Minutes template which will assist with this.
Bryan is a highly trusted and experienced Programme and Project Manager in the world of corporate office relocation. Bryan has worked with some of the best names in the industry, both individually and through the major property consultancy CBRE.