There are many types of meetings. Most meetings fall into the non-participatory category, where attendees are informed of new information rather than asked to participate in the meeting process. The best meetings are highly participatory, where everyone in the meeting contributes to the purpose of having the meeting. When scheduling a meeting, ask yourself “What type of meeting or approach best suits the purpose and attendees of the meeting?” This will help determine if more than one meeting type needs to be held, or if a mix of meeting types is possible. Consider the definition and common uses for the different types of participatory meetings; such as decision making, list generation, problem solving, project planning, or strategic planning. Then, determine which best fits the purpose and engagement needs of upcoming meetings during the planning stage.
Decision making the meetings review different alternatives and decide on the best alternatives to select for implementation within a specific time frame. This type of meeting requires key decision makers to attend and should be held if the group is required to make and then support or carry out the decision. The most used tool in decision making is a list of pros and cons. However, for a very complicated or technical decision, a criteria table may give a better result.
List Generation meetings will create a list of ideas, alternatives, solutions, problems, etc. For discussion. After the list is created, a discussion can follow to narrow the list down in the same meeting, the list of items can be prioritized or voted on, the list can go to someone else to work on, or you can continue planning of another kind meeting for using the list. Brainstorming is the easiest and most popular tool used for list generation. Diagramming tools such as mind maps or fishbones can also be used, as they use specific categories to focus list generation.
Problem resolution meetings are used to resolve business and process issues or to determine potential problems and how to handle them. These issues could refer to production, quality, services, or other things. For problem solving to work, those closest to the problem must participate, that is, the representatives of each area affected by the problem must agree that there is a problem and participate in the search for the solution. It is rarely a single meeting, as a series of meetings is typically needed to move through the process that includes problem definition, research, analysis, solution selection, testing, and implementation. Problem solving requires a defined process and method to root out the real problem and then find the best solution. There are many excellent tools for this purpose under the heading of quality improvement.
Project planning Meetings focus on a certain task, job, or project and span through project planning and implementation from project opening to project completion. These meetings work best when they are made up of project team members, leaders, and sponsors or clients. Additional project-related meetings may be for project plan updates, problem solving, budget review, celebrating milestones, and risk assessment. Tools used in project meetings will include the project schedule listing phases and milestones, as well as many of the same tools typically used in list generation, problem solving, and decision making.
Strategic planning Meetings are usually held annually to determine the strategy of a group or organization. The results of such meetings are usually the vision, mission, goals, business, and future direction. The strategic planning meeting can be one long meeting or several meetings spread over a specific period. After defining the strategy, a communication plan or implementation plan is developed. Future meetings are usually plan compliance status, problem solving, or other necessary reviews of the strategy and are therefore no longer called strategic planning but change management. One tool that often comes in handy in this type of meeting is a SWOT analysis about the group’s or organization’s business efforts, products, or services. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
With an understanding of the definition and common uses for the different types of participatory meetings, it should be easier to determine which one best suits the purpose and participatory needs of upcoming meetings. It is important to remember that the best meetings are highly participatory, where everyone in the meeting contributes to the purpose of running the meeting. So, always before scheduling a meeting, ask yourself, “What type of meeting or approach best suits the purpose and attendees of the meeting?” Determine whether the purpose of the meeting is decision making, list building, problem solving, project planning, or strategic planning, and then select the type of meeting and the best tool to achieve the purpose of the meeting.
NOTE: The meeting types listed in this article and their definition are adapted from the book “RA!RA! A Meeting Wizard’s Approach.”
