PowerPoint Presentation

How to Run an Effective Executive Committee MeetingDiana Stegall, CSP, CFPS, ARM, ALCM, CPCURVP Region 5 - Northwest Chapter President 2013-14United Heartland Loss Control Technical Consultant

Andrew WilsonETC Chairman Georgia Chapter President 2012-13Duke Realty Corporate Safety / Risk Control Manager

1Understand executive committee meeting basicsReview Roberts Rules of OrderDiscuss what makes committee meetings go badLearn best practices for successful meetings

AgendaOur agenda for todays session are very simple.

READ the bullets as they come out bullets are animated click to add each one

So thats our objectives for todays discussion, lets first focus on understanding the basics of executive committee meetings and review Roberts Rules of Order2Whats the purpose?

Executive committee meetings are held so elected members of a board can make decisions regarding the direction of the Chapter

Whats the basics of running a meeting?

Executive Committee MeetingSo whats the purpose of an executive chapter committee meeting?Click to advanceREAD BULLET

So tell me = whats the basics of running a meeting?

Before you answer that question, lets make this a little more interactive. In your table groups, take 5 minutes to discuss the basics around running an executive committee meeting. Answer these two questions:

How do you know when a meeting is running well? Or what are the good traits or skills you need for a successful meeting.

How do you recognize a meeting is failing? Or what are the bad traits or skills you see show up in a meeting gone bad.

Please give everyone at your table a change to share, appoint a spokesperson to highlight your groups feedback. 3BEFORE the MeetingSecure meeting location and facility accommodations

Schedule and announce meetingTypically before or after Chapter member meeting

Develop and send out an agenda and pre-read documentsEnsure you cover all Society and Chapter required topics Work off your previous meeting minutes & your strategic plan

Arrive early to set up room start on time

Executive Committee MeetingBASICSThat was good feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of what you have seen in Executive Committee meetings, lets talk about the basics and look at what we should do BEFORE DURING AFTER the meetings to make them successful

BEFORE THE MEETING READ and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate4DURING the MeetingStart on time end on time

Ensure meeting minutes are being maintained

Roll Call - Quorum must be in place for voting purposes

Stay on track work off your agendaReview & approve meeting minutes from last meetingReview & approve Chapter financesCover all Chapter & Society requirements

Delegate - assign action items with completion dates

Always follow Roberts Rules of Order

Executive Committee MeetingBASICSDURING THE MEETING READ and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

NOTE: Regarding MEETING MINUTES there are guidelines for meeting minutes on Officer Central.

Heres an example of what we used in our GA Chapter show word file with example 5Purpose: Create Fair and Orderly MeetingsProvides common rules and procedures for deliberation and debate in order to place the whole membership on the same footing and speaking the same language.

The conduct of ALL business is controlled by the general will of the whole membership - the right of the deliberate majority to decide.

Provides for constructive and democratic meetings, to help, not hinder, the business of the assembly.

Roberts Rules of Order

Quickly lets review the purpose and reason why ASSE endorse Roberts Rule of Order for our chapter committee meetings

READ and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

6Roberts Rules of OrderREVIEW Diagram add examples or stories as appropriate

7Roberts Rules of OrderHeres some quick reminders on motions8Roberts Rules of OrderREVIEW Diagram add examples or stories as appropriate

9AFTER the Meeting

Leave facility in good shape

Ensure minutes are completed and sent out in timely fashion

Follow up with individual officers or chairs on open issues

Track progress of key initiatives

Executive Committee MeetingBASICSAFTER THE MEETING READ and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

10Meetings gone badNo agenda - lack of goals or objectives

No minutes - lack of continuity or ability to follow up

No facilitator lack of focus on key topics and / or inability to deal with super strong personalities

No start and end times established waste time and aggravate your volunteer committee members

No delegation lack of progress or too much on one personREAD and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate Use examples brought up by class during opening group exercise reference notes on flipchartsNot preparing an agenda beforehand. Not preparing a meeting agenda in advance can lead to a meeting that lacks focus. With your goal in mind, prepare and distribute an agenda with the objectives outlined to the participants of the meeting. Request them to read this in advance. This makes the most efficient use of time as they dont have to skim through the agenda in the meeting itself and it also gives them a chance to think through and make their own individual preparations ahead of time.Lack of a goal or objective. If youre unclear on what you need to achieve in the meeting, the end results of the meeting will also be loose-ended. Establish a purpose or objective for the meeting. This way you know what to expect as a proposed outcome. Clearly identify the issues you want to resolve or discuss and what you want to achieve.No facilitator and note taker roles assigned. Without someone to lead the meeting and someone to take notes, the meeting can go in any direction and waste precious time. Many meetings deviate from the agenda and focus on other issues. Although those issues might be equally important, its the facilitators job to stick to the agenda and keep the meeting on track. ADD ROLE PLAYS: side bar conversation & STRONG personalityNo start and end times established. A meeting can go on for hours if you dont set a fixed time for it to finish. Respect those who got to the table on time and start (even if others are late). Dont start over when others arrive, and end the meeting on time. Not assigning deliverables and following up. Failing to recap and assign responsibilities at the end of the meeting makes the entire goal of the meeting pointless. Follow up by sending out the minutes of the meeting with the assigned deliverables and timelines. 11BEFORE the Meeting

FIRST THINGS FIRST - Pick the Right committee members

Give new committee members a complete orientation

Be flexible with meeting times and locations (consider conference calls)

Schedule & announce meeting with an Outlook invitation convenience & verification of quorum

Ensure your agenda tracks open items and incorporates your annual strategic plan

Arrange tough topics in the middle of the agenda

Best PracticesREAD and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

Pick right committee members - The easiest way to avoid crazy in the committee is to not let crazy onto the committee. A formal process to elect officers / committee members will weed out inappropriate prospects, before they become inappropriate committee members.

New committee members it only makes sense to orient committee members & officers its good for companies as well as ASSE

Flexible meeting times & locations Conference calls cant always work, but you can use them once a quarter or once in a while when the PDC or some other major event gets in the way of your scheduled meeting

Use Outlook we live in an on-line, highly automated world who in this room doesnt have a smart phone and use their calendar to keep up with their schedule

Agenda if you dont know where you are going any road will get you there. There are static and dynamic issues you want on your agenda static are your typical reoccurring chapter requirements, dynamic are those unique projects. Take on your tough topics after you get some momentum early in the meeting. Dont get bogged down in one discussion for the entire time allotted.

12DURING the Meeting

Stay on track Remind committee on how much time left

Facilitate & stimulate discussion Keep FocusSometimes its best not to make a decision

Delegate - assign action items with completion dates Look to get prospective committee members involved with small projects or helpers / assistants

Organize future events look ahead in strategic planBest PracticesREAD and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

Stay on track you may not enjoy interrupting the group as they discuss the topic, but as the facilitator thats your job to track time and the agenda

Keep focus - If everyones in charge, no ones in charge. Know when its time to table the discussion until another meeting.

Delegate every good action item should have a Who a What and a When. If you dont you have subjective action items we want objective action item, otherwise we are likely to WAFFLE and never get anything done in a timely fashion. Look for ways to get prospective committee members involved to build bench strength for your future committee and officer assignments.

Organize future events dont get too caught up in the urgent issues and forget about strategic initiatives. Carve out some time in every meeting for long term future goals.

13AFTER the Meeting

Make sure you meeting minutes go out ASAP after the meeting to remind committee members to work on action itemsEncourage mini-project team meeting for big projects

Add to (or create) an annual calendar of repetitive key initiatives and annual projects

Communicate and celebrate your accomplishments with all your Chapter membersWebsiteNewsletterSpecial e-mailsGeneral meeting announcements

Best PracticesREAD and paraphrase bullets add examples or stories as appropriate

Minutes go out ASAP we are all busy in our work and personal lives and if you wait until the next meeting to share meeting minutes you are assuming that everyone took notes and is a self-starter. The minutes REMIND your volunteers of expectation. Follow up with your committee members and encourage mini-project teams for bigger projects.

Annual Calendar dont try to re-create the wheel every year. There are things your committee will want to repeat each and every year develop an annual calendar and use it throughout the year to remind you of past successes and failures.

Communicate and Celebrate Unless you tell your chapter members they wont know anything about what you are doing behind the scenes. They will focus on the training topic you offered this month, the room accommodations and the food you served. Use these forums listed to highlight your accomplishments and communicate your committee plans for the future.

14Questions?15