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Whether chairing a small staff meeting or a large conference, there are a number of subtle leadership behaviors that are essential to ensure that the gathering is successful in terms of obtaining the candid views of the participants, creating a sense of inclusiveness and participation, identifying the various strengths and weaknesses of the issues discussed and determining best courses of action. The above are achieved through specific and deliberate actions by harnessing the combined wisdom and energy of your team through your leadership skills.
The development and refinement of conference leadership skills are among the most critical skill sets for persons in advanced leadership positions. Most of us, myself definitely included, as new executives saw staff meetings as simple exchanges of information, the opportunity to “get the word out” and an excuse to get together for lunch. I look back on my early days with a combined sense of embarrassment and self-scorn, finding the only true sense of accomplishment being the development of painful lessons that I can now pass on to others. My early staff meetings were best characterized as freewheeling discussions based on the items I had placed in my “staff meeting” folder since the last meeting, and with only scant prioritization and time discipline. Sound familiar?
It is important for you as the leader to recognize that each person likely has valuable insight and information that should be brought out during the discussions.
Note: My early meetings were close to a waste of time. They were missed opportunities to avail myself and the organization of ideas and information that could have likely been helpful. They failed to seek and obtain a consensus of ideas and strategies, and to leverage the event as an opportunity to strengthen my leadership team. Quite frankly, they were a glaring example of my lack of leadership skills. While it is too late for me to go back and do it all over again, I hope that the information contained in this brief article will be beneficial to those who are following me in those leadership trenches.
Preparation for the meeting
Externally, the “back room” of a nice location with adequate, safe parking, where refreshments and a meal can be obtained (if such is the plan), is typically the ideal. Internally, comfortable chairs surrounding a conference table suitable for ease of participant visibility, notetaking and decent acoustics is the type of location likely to be the best environment. To the extent reasonable, staff meetings can and should be seen as a somewhat pleasant and productive gathering. One approach that I have found valuable is permitting the participants (when all are in the same command) to rotate location preferences.
Have a written agenda
It is absolutely essential to have a well-thought-out and prioritized written agenda for distribution at the beginning of the meeting, or even distributed in advance if most of the issues can be identified beforehand. This agenda, with adequate room for notetaking between topics, gives you and the participants an organized flow of the meeting and a “sheet of music” to follow. It also highlights the leadership skills of the leader and the serious professionalism of the activity.
Realities of the participants
Most leadership teams have a variety of personalities with various energies and organizational and personal priorities — again, sound familiar? You will have a person(s) who likes to talk and will dominate the gathering if given the opportunity, another person(s) who has strong opinions on just about everything, another person(s) who typically remains mostly silent unless prodded and other persons with a combination of all of the above traits. It is important for you as the leader to recognize that each person likely has valuable insight and information that should be brought out during the discussions. It should also be recognized that true leaders must avoid the human tendency to discredit someone’s value due to behavioral traits that we may find irritating.
Your mindset and demeanor
The goal should be to create a relaxed but serious environment where it is clear that you truly want the benefit of each person’s thoughts and that you will absolutely take seriously and appreciatively all that is conveyed. Further, a discussion where you recognize and support the expression that “the only dumb idea is the one not presented” is alive and well. It is appropriate at the beginning of the meeting to mention several situations of familiarity to all participants where suggestions that were initially seen as foolish turned out to be of significant value. Without a heavy hand, gently discredit statements from others that might suggest that the ideas of a colleague were foolish.
Dealing with disharmony among participants
You must not permit disharmony among members of your leadership team! Disharmony taints the discussion, impedes the flow and candor of information, reduces the likelihood of candor and innovation, and is a poor reflection on your leadership skills. Those in positions of leadership who feel that valid cooperation cannot be achieved are mistaken.
Realistically, it is often unlikely that goodwill, suggestions and cajoling will cause a couple of warring personalities to achieve harmony. This is where the heavy hand comes in! Take those folks aside, either individually or together, and make it abundantly clear, without any room for misunderstanding, that their lack of reasonable cooperation is detracting from the effectiveness of the organization, causing uneasiness among others, to include their subordinates, and is a clear dereliction of their leadership responsibilities. Consider suggesting that they go break some bread together and hash out their differences. Make clear that both have lost a significant degree of influence within the organization and that the disharmony will not be tolerated. Put the matter in writing consistent with the organization’s human resource guidelines.* While not pleasant and most often resisted by employee organizations, this type of “administrative sledgehammer” is most often the only technique that will solve the problem of a couple of hardheaded and strong-willed personalities. For a reluctant leader, I would remind them that all courage is not physical. Be assured that all of the subordinates of the warring factions, who are likely “caught in the middle,” will appreciate the courageous leadership.
*“Dealing With Chronically Problematic Supervisors and Managers” may be downloaded at no charge from KeithBushey.com. This booklet contains exemplars of potentially helpful documentation of the nature discussed above.
Subtle control techniques
Conduct structured and disciplined discussions from the agenda, being sensitive to time constraints and achievement of the desired goal of each of the items listed. It is essential to solicit involvement from those individuals whose actions are related to the item being discussed. Gently control the person(s) who is inclined to be repetitious and talk a bit too much, or who may be passionate about the issue, and draw out the person(s) who may be on the quiet side, and ensure that all who have an interest in the matter and may have something to contribute are given that opportunity. Strive for a resolution at the end of the discussion about each topic, which can take a number of forms such as a course of action, need for more information or deferment of the issue.
Follow-up documentation and actions
As soon as possible following the meeting, expand the agenda document to reflect the agreed-upon course(s) of action of each of the agenda items and distribute the document. If appropriate and suitable for distribution to the entire organization, post it. If the meeting takes place in a facility with word-processing capabilities, consider finalizing and distributing the finalized agenda before the participants even leave the facility.
Conclusion
Just about everything we do is important, but realistically, some things are more important than others. Prompt and accurate organizational communications are pretty darn close to the top of the list. The techniques and recommendations in this article will go a long way in the creation and maintenance of an organization where all members are aware of what is occurring, can see the actions of their supervisors and managers, have fewer rumors and uncertainty, and have an increased confidence level in the effectiveness and professionalism of the organization.
Keith Bushey
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