Chairing meetings - communication skills training

29
Chairing and facilitating working group meetings Communicating Europe www.communicatingeu.com

description

These materials come from a recent training session that involves group discussion on the factors that make these meetings more effective for members of trade associations.

Transcript of Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Page 1: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Chairing and facilitating working group meetings

Communicating Europewww.communicatingeu.com

Page 2: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

How we manage the business through working group meetings

The session will involve group discussion on the factors that make these meetings more effective for members

• Planning - business objectives, analyse audiences, tactics• Content - plan interventions, frame messages • Management skills - ability to chair, set direction, get to

decisions• Personal skills - assertive and inclusive communications • Behavioural competencies – communicating and influencing

Page 3: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Trainer - Andrew Manasseh• 25 years in training, business

development and staff management for British Council

• Management and communication skills training for corporate clients in Europe, Asia, Middle East

• Brussels Clients: CEFIC, EURIMA, EACB, European Climate Foundation, EWEA, European Investment Fund, European Investment Bank, AMCHAM EU.

Communicating Europewww.communicatingeu.com

Page 4: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

1. Planning

Set business objectives, analyse your audience, decide tactics

Page 5: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Questions - planning

• How do we plan the business of working group meetings and technical committees?

• What management tools can we use to plan successful meetings?

• How we can we monitor / evaluate our performance?

Page 6: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Example business objectives

Management Communication Trainingwww.communicatingeu.com

Page 7: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Audiences – analysis and planning

Page 8: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

What do they care about?

Management Communication Trainingwww.communicatingeu.com

tactics

What do they think now?

What do they care about?

What do you want them to

think?

Page 9: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Is your audience with you?

Management Communication Trainingwww.communicatingeu.com

Positive but unfamiliar

Familiar & positive

Unfamiliar & negative

Familiar but negative

Page 10: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Personality traits drive us

Management Communication Trainingwww.communicatingeu.com

• Dominant • Influential

• Steady• Compliant

I want results

I want recognition

I want relationshi

ps

I want reason

Page 11: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Questions - planning

Task – in two groups, discuss one of the following questions and list your ideas

Group A What management tools can we use to plan

successful meetings?

Group B How we can we monitor / evaluate our performance?

Page 12: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Output 1 Planning

What tools can we use?

How do we measure performance?

Page 13: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

2. Management Skills

Ability to chair, set direction, get to decisions

Page 14: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Facilitating meetings

Objectives• Be able to facilitate team meetings to achieve

positive outcomes

Output• Develop an appropriate agenda and structure

for a meeting and manage group dynamics to achieve positive outcomes

Page 15: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Management of meetings

•Moderating skills – introduction, framing the discussion•Set the big idea and make clear the objectives•Set the house rulesKick off•Review and check concepts and understanding•Ensure participation and manage the floor•Get to decisions and agree on actionDuring•Know when to conclude and how to wrap up•Acknowledge contributions•Emphasise the “take aways”Wrap up

Page 16: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Questions – Managing meetings

Task – in two groups, discuss one of the following questions and list your ideas

Group A What factors make a difference during the meeting?

Group B How do we conclude and follow up so that members

are more actively involved?

Page 17: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Output 2 Management

Group AChecklist for managing

the proceedings

Group BChecklist for follow up

Page 18: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Good team leaders have a structure to meetings

• Are clear about their role• Lead confidently• Set the stage with context• Introduce panelists• Keep precise timing• State house rules to audience

Page 19: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Manage the meeting

• Make your greeting professional• Refer to the agenda• Remind speakers of scope and timing• Take notes and summarise contributions• Seek decisions from discussions• Control the questions and answers

Page 20: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Control the debate and questions • Know when to assert

control• Don’t let people dominate• Keep interaction lively• Summarise and probe• Keep on track

• Involve all participants• Let them address each

other• Summarise main point of

agreement• Field questions• Ensure that there is broad

agreement

Page 21: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Closing the meeting

• Know when to conclude• Summarise what has

been agreed• Agree on follow up• Show appreciation

• Distribute minutes within 2 days

• Acknowledge contributors

• Follow-up decisions• Put unfinished business

on next agenda

Page 22: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

3. Personal Skills

Assertive and inclusive communications

Page 23: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Effective communications• Structure and style of communication is appropriate for the situation and context

and takes full account of the needs/perspective of the audience.• Communication is concise, structured and focussed on key messages, and adds

value.• Complex issues are explained clearly, including under time pressure.• Listens carefully, checks out understanding and provides information wanted. Open

to others’ views and being persuaded.• Prepared to give unpopular messages and defend own position in face of

opposition, when required.• Well prepared for meetings/negotiations; anticipates problems but also able to

respond to the unexpected.• Persuasive: combines logic and reason with interpersonal sensitivity to persuade

others. • Seeks to create solutions which offer mutual benefits. Focuses attention on those

aspects which can be influenced.

Page 24: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Questions we ask to help us assess performance

Skills & knowledge• Do you have the required

knowledge of regulatory affairs?• Are you up to date?• Do you know how to construct

clear messages for your members?

• Do you analyse the needs and attitudes of your members before designing your communications?

• Do you have the language skills to present and write clearly?

Behaviours• Do you have the self confidence

in your ability?• Are you in your comfort zone or

not?• Are you a specialist who is now

expected to be a grand communicator?

• Are you disciplined, organised and compliant?

Page 25: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Verbal skills

Management Communication Trainingwww.communicatingeu.com

•Enunciate vowel sounds•Consonant sounds – voiced / unvoiced

Speak clearly

•Give the audience signals•Help to plant your messagesIntonation

•To emphasis key words / phrases•Louder, higher, slower!Stress

Page 26: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Clear, precise messages

• What precisely is the central issue?

• To what degree does the audience understand the issues and terminology?

• What are the main ideas that need to be expressed and which issues can be left out?

• How do you structure the session?

Page 27: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Personal communication skills

Watch the video

What techniques does he use to manage this difficult intervention?

Page 28: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

Management Communication Training

Next steps

What are you going to take away from this training?

1. What tools or practices will put in place?2. What skills will develop further by yourself?3. What skills will you ask support for?

Page 29: Chairing meetings - communication skills training

For more information about our training courses

[email protected]

http://communicatingeu.com/

www.linkedin.com/A Manasseh

twitter.com/andimanas

www.communicatingeu.com