LEADERSHIP
The Meeting Before The Meeting Is The Secret To Value Creation
By Dr . Kellen Kiambati
Most of my friends in leadership positions have admitted that meetings are not their favorite thing because most of the times the expectations are very high but the results turn out to be terribly disappointing . Most of the times , as the meetings are going on , people have to keep inspiring others that intelligence is no substitute for information and enthusiasm for capacity with the hope that the meetings will be meaningful . One of the characteristics of an unsuccessful meeting is when the outcome of a meeting is to have yet another meeting . To be a good leader , one must have what it takes to make meetings effective . The secret to effective meetings is to have a very clear agenda and to ensure other people in the meeting do not sneak their own agendas . The agenda must clearly indicate the information items , study items and action items .
Having the meeting before the meeting ensures that the leader has figured out the key people who must attend and had conversations with them individually or in small groups beforehand to be sure everybody is on the same page . Meetings are not about pulling a group of people into the boardroom so as to deliver a particular message at once . I am sure at this point you are wondering why meet before the meeting ?
Buy-in
The human nature is that when they receive surprises , their first reaction is often negative . Surprises to people attending will be influenced by the most vocal and influential in a negative way . The vocal people can easily bring the meeting to a grinding halt and that is why it is important to have their buy-in ahead of time .
Perspective
People naturally see things from their own perspective and not from the leader ’ s perspective . Therefore , leaders should take time and be intentional in helping people to see things from their point of view . Leaders should target the vocal ones and the influencers to see things from their perspective and in turn they will spread the word . Otherwise , people will dig in their heels and stop moving forward .
Influence
As we know from the traditional definition of leadership , it is the ability to influence followers . To gain influence , leaders must invest in them by giving them time . If the time invested is only during meetings and it is at that time they are expected to support
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The meeting before the meeting provides an opportunity not to be blindsided . Sometimes , intangibles like morale , momentum and culture can be missed by leaders and the meetings before the meeting can easily provide information to avoid making big leadership mistakes . the agenda , then it is an exercise that is bound to fail . It is not possible to build positive relationships during meetings and also that kind of behavior sends a message that the leader does not value them .
Trust
The most difficult thing that all leaders do interalia , is to implement small or big change . This is because change is premised on trust . The meeting before the meeting helps build trust because of opportunity to answer questions , share motives and most importantly tailor the message to the individual based on many factors like personality .
Insight
The meeting before the meeting provides an opportunity not to be blindsided . Sometimes , intangibles like morale , momentum and culture can be missed by leaders and the meetings before the meeting can easily provide information to avoid making big leadership mistakes .
In conclusion , good planning always cost less than good reacting . So if a leader cannot have the meeting before the meeting , then there is no need to have the main meeting . If they do have the meeting before the meeting and it does not achieve what we have discussed above , then they should not have the main meeting .
CS , Dr . Kellen Kiambati holds an MBA in Strategic Management from the Kenya Methodist University and a PhD in Business Administration with a focus in Strategic Management from JKUAT . She is a member of the Institute of Human Resource Management of Kenya . She can be reached via : Kellenkiambati @ gmail . com .
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