How to Create a Meeting Agenda That'll Make Employees Actually Want to Attend Most of us dread going to meetings. But there are some simple things you can do to the agenda that will actually attract people instead of repel them.
By John Boitnott Edited by Jessica Thomas
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One thing will always be true: As long as there are businesses, there will be meetings and events — and boring agendas. Why not take a different approach and create a meeting or live event that people will be raving about long after it's over?
To accomplish that, you'll need a fresh mindset and a new focus on the team members who will be attending. Consider your attendees as honored guests. Look for ways to shift the focus from ticking off a checklist of discussion items to making your participants more comfortable and engaged in the proceedings. Getting creative with your events helps your brand make a bigger splash and accomplish your goals.
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Ask your audience
Start by bringing those participants into the planning process. Asking them for their input will give them buy-in and a sense of ownership, and it could result in a crowd-pleasing event.
Create surveys ahead of time to find out what topics are of most importance to your attendees. Email employees with the survey link in plenty of time to create and adjust your agenda accordingly. Use ranked-choice questions so that respondents can communicate their order of preference in panels, formats, topics and other aspects of your meeting or event.
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Use technology to improve the user experience
Consider your event's user experience when you're creating the agenda and planning the event.
For example, integrate a chatbot system to answer the myriad questions your attendees will inevitably have. Give your attendees immediate answers to their questions and they'll feel more valued. As a result, they'll have more positive feelings about the event.
Also, incorporate note-taking and messaging apps to help share the results of the meeting's discussion and talking points to your attendees throughout the day. That way, everyone can stay on top of the developments and correct any mistakes on the spot.
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Pay attention to the food
Sure, you can simply throw together a coffee station and some pastries that'll go stale by lunch, then provide cold cuts and bags of chips for a midday meal. But why not make it special instead?
Look for ways to incorporate locally sourced and healthier options. Invite your food vendor to design a menu that can be prepared or plated by chefs in front of the attendees to add some pizazz and trigger some engaged conversation.
Finally, consider dietary needs and restrictions. Ask about allergies or other requirements ahead of time, then provide plenty of options to cater to everyone. Ensure vegans and vegetarians have some choices beyond a salad. And provide plenty of water and other healthy beverages to make sure everyone stays hydrated during long sessions.
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Make your event interactive
Nothing's less exciting than the thought of being stuck in an overly air-conditioned and crowded hotel ballroom, passively watching PowerPoint presentations. Shake things up by creating ways to get your attendees involved. Create a "fireside chat" environment for one or more presentations. Semi-circular seating around the presenters helps everyone feel involved and engaged in the resulting discussion and provokes a greater degree of interactivity.
If the circumstances and setting allow, schedule a "walk-and-talk" session after lunch. Taking a stroll through a wooded park or along the beach can help attendees fight off the post-lunch craving for a nap while simultaneously helping everyone de-stress and relax. Alternatively, offer a short meditation and relaxation session at some point during the day.
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Design a space and agenda that encourage participation
No one looks forward to spending a day in a boring, beige cube. Why not explore ways you can divide a large room into smaller, more personal spaces? If your venue offers portable walls you can use to reconfigure the room, you can offer both large group and smaller breakout sessions to help break the monotony and engender more constructive discussion.
The ability to carve up a large space for smaller groups can help you expand your agenda through a tighter focus. Instead of one large session that discusses all the pertinent agenda items, you can create smaller working groups to address specific issues, then bring everyone back together at the end to summarize the day.
Smaller sessions also help you provide more personalized experiences for your attendees. They can focus on the information that's most relevant and interesting to them, and the quality of those sessions will also improve as a result.
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Watch the time
For productive meetings and events, you'll want to watch the clock like a hawk. It's not unusual for events to go off schedule within the first hour, thanks to a late start or an audience that's slow to get settled. Devise a silent system for presenters to know when their time is almost up and designate someone to act as an emcee to help keep things on track.
By the same token, resist the urge to allocate too much time to each presentation, panel or session. Meeting agendas almost always expand to fill the time allotted, but the reverse is also true: Restrict the time allowed, and your meeting might run much more efficiently and smoothly.
Get creative
No matter if you're dealing with a purely virtual meeting or a live-and-in-person event, you can still break free of the constraints imposed by the staid, captive-audience approach. Look for ways to make your attendees feel valued, welcomed and appreciated in both the environment and the meeting or event sessions.
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