Exercise - Reviewing the cost, benefit and effectiveness of meetings

The exercise

Read the 'Running effective meetings' Overview page. It gives detail on the topics covered below.

Discuss the following questions with the team, with the aim of coming up with improvements or even scrapping the meeting altogether.

1. Cost –what is cost of the meeting?
   
   1. Hourly salary cost
   2. Venue cost
   3. Travel / accommodation costs
2. Benefit
   
   1. Is the purpose clear?
   2. What benefit / value is the meeting supposed to achieve?
   3. Are the benefits achieved?
3. Effectiveness
   
   1. Are the right people invited?
      
      1. Do the people in the meeting have the necessary authority, power and influence to deliver on the decisions made in the meeting?
      2. Are there too many or too few people in the meeting?
   2. Are papers (if necessary) clearly marked: items for discussion, decision or information?
   3. Allocated time for the meeting – is it the right length?
   4. Is the venue fit for purpose?
   5. Does the meeting have agreed ground rules for acceptable behavior?
   6. Are the meetings well chaired?
   7. Are actions / outcomes agreed, with clear timelines, responsibilities, appropriate delegation?
   8. Are actions followed up and outcomes tracked?
4. Conclusion: What is your overall assessment of cost vs benefit vs effectiveness? Do you need the meeting?
5. Improvements: What can you improve? How?