The good old 4-H motto of “learn to do by doing” will be familiar to most readers of this article. For many of us, it was a particular project that developed skills and knowledge in a hands-on way. In addition to that, we learned the ins and outs of how a meeting should be conducted following Robert’s Rules of Order. It is immediately evident when those running a meeting don’t have that background or experience. Whether that skill is taught anywhere else I don’t know.
Formal meetings are not only for the organizations we belong to, but as I have mentioned before, are an important part of communication and business management in our operations.
Read Also
A strategic approach to risk on the ranch
Given the increase in the value of livestock and the market volatility, we need to cover our risks. First,…
I was recently introduced to a different approach, called the “delegated meeting process.” It was developed by Alain Cardon, a French business and leadership coach. He leads the Metasysteme Coaching and Consulting Network and has been a master certified coach with the International Coach Federation since 2002. The process is structured so key roles rotate. At some point, everyone will have a chance to be in each of the roles. It is intended to improve decision-making, involvement, leadership skills and team building. It is useful in specific contexts and particularly tailored to develop efficiency with intact team meetings. It works well with established teams of five to 15. However, a different approach would be better for crisis situations. This process is not to be used simply to share information but is instead focused on decision-making and generating ideas.
The roles are as follows.
Facilitator. The moderator or facilitator is responsible for the flow and energy of the meeting. They are like the conductor of the orchestra. They can help keep the group focused and participating. Often, they would be at the front of the room using a flipchart. This person also participates and shares some of their own ideas but does not become dominant. They will also be the scribe unless that role is complicated and then another person can document the ideas.
Decision maker. This member is focused on provoking and recording decisions. They will also help the facilitator keep things focused and may ask questions such as “Are we close to a decision here?” They also ensure there is a thorough and clear understanding of the decision and the accompanying action steps and timeline. Some groups use a template with the important categories to record the information.
Pacer. This person is the timekeeper and reminds the group where they are with the time allotted for the whole meeting. This helps to avoid rambling in the first part of the meeting, resulting in a rushed decision as the group runs out of time. The pacer must work with the facilitator to develop the agenda and appropriate timelines.
Advisor. The role of the advisor is like that of a coach who provides “feed-forward”, as opposed to feedback, at the end of the meeting during a designated time slot. The concept behind feed-forward is for participants to receive coaching and suggestions on how things could be done differently next time. Some knowledge of impartial coaching skills can be helpful.
Host. This role is not always used but if the location is in an unfamiliar place and there are several logistics to be sorted out, one person can take on those tasks.
An integral part of this process is the rotation of duties. As developer Chardon says, “The planned rotation process is paramount to developing total team co-responsibility for all the processes.” The meeting becomes a way for individuals to learn and build skills but also develop the team as a whole. In the case of an inexperienced chairperson in some of our typical meetings, one is fully aware that the next time there will be a different facilitator, and at some point, that will be “me.” The perspective of the meeting would likely shift with the different process. It could minimize the negative effects of the “meeting after the meeting” that we have all experienced. Sometimes those impacts are because people did not feel comfortable speaking up, or maybe they ran out of time to discuss the most important topics.
Attention is placed on collaborative agenda development by the facilitator. Suggestions for agenda items are forwarded to them and once the agenda is developed it is distributed to everyone ahead of time for additions or updates. So, all participants play a role in agenda development.
Keep in mind this process is just a tool that is available to us from myriad items in our “toolboxes.” It is not the silver bullet that will solve all issues but is an interesting way to improve collaboration, effective decision-making, communication and organizational effectiveness. As with many other tools, it should be adapted or modified to fit your specific operation. It will take some practice to get comfortable. One thought in the initial stages is the roles be filled with members who have some experience and are comfortable with them, as opposed to throwing in people who are unfamiliar.
No matter how you set up your organizations and meetings, we should strive for them to be effective ways of communicating, skill-building and continuously improving. Not something where people leave saying, “Well, there goes two hours of my life I am not getting back.”
