If you’re the owner of any business, then you know that effectively managing your talent is one of the most important things that you can do. Part of that is recruiting and retaining folks who fit your needs and your vision—they are the lifeblood of any successful organization.
Beyond that, you need to know how to get the best out of them once they’re through your doors and working for you. One great way to keep everyone focused and energized is by creating engaged meetings, which can be a tricky concept to master.
Read on for some more tips about how your regular gatherings with the team can be enjoyable and productive:
- Keep it focused and directed: One of the top complaints that you’ll hear from employees regarding meetings is that they can just seem to drag on and on at times. Eventually, you’ll cover what you wanted to cover, but some people’s minds might have wandered to their unanswered emails and delayed projects. If you want to create engaged meetings, then make a clear and direct agenda that sets time expectations—and then stick to it.
- Make it fun: While some people can roll their eyes at the prospect of fun meetings, it’s still possible to spruce things up. Give away fun prizes for humorous happenings during the preceding week, for example, or just do something as simple as providing coffee and some sweet treats. These small gestures can go a long way towards creating engaged meetings that keep people locked in and working hard.
- Rotate facilitators: Even the best employees can eventually tune out the same messages from the same people over and over. Combat this by having the people who run the meetings rotate on a regular basis. Even if they usually follow the same agenda (a good idea in and of itself), your team will benefit from hearing fresh voices.
- Involve everyone: Traditional meetings tend to trend towards one dominant voice speaking almost the entire time. Modern workplaces require more democratic settings, and the most engaged team meetings will see a variety of folks being asked for their thoughts on the issues at hand. If your team feels like they’re being given the chance to speak and be heard, then they’ll be much more likely to stay engaged and involved.
- Get visual: Not everyone learns and processes information the same way. If your meetings are entirely verbal, then you’re far more likely to have some folks just tune out. Instead, create engaged team meetings by incorporating dynamic visuals that will appeal to everyone. Use different-colored markers, or utilize Post-it notes to draw feedback from everyone.
Maintaining talent is largely about empowering your employees to do their work well and letting them know that their voices are heard, and creating engaged meetings can go a long way towards those goals. It’s also about accommodating their human resources needs, which is the best way of letting them know that you care. Our team at Windsor HR Services, Inc. has been advising employers on a variety of human resources needs for over twenty years, and we’d love to earn your business next, so call us today.