Dr. Ram Charan's Column: Meeting is also a skill, work on it properly

Meetings are held in all the institutions of the world, but it is not hidden from anyone that a lot of time is wasted in meetings. This makes people frustrated. Get bored. There are repeated discussions on the same topics, which do not reach any conclusion. It is also a waste of energy over time. And this has a negative impact on the mindset of the people. How to solve it? In this age of digitization, notifications are available directly to you in the format you want them in. AI has made this possible. In such a situation, you no longer need a meeting physically. Don't even wait to travel around the world. Today all the information is available at your convenience, at any time, in any form. In such a situation, we need meetings for joint exercises – to arrive at some decisions. I call these joint practice sessions. The most ancient attempts at mutual cooperation by humans are sports. Information flows continuously in sports and there is complete transparency. The players train together physically to prepare for any match. They make decisions in an instant. Repeated practice develops in them the instincts and intuition of how to cooperate. The purpose of the meetings should also be to conduct joint exercises on an issue, question or challenge. Their agenda should also be decided accordingly. The meeting should have a leader – someone who has the skills to conduct it. The information should be analysed in advance. Consider a few simple things: Why has this issue come up? What are its alternatives? What are your ideas for this? What are the risks? Lead the input you get from people, address their concerns, and decide how to move in a certain direction. The first rule is that there should be complete clarity about the issue, question or challenge on which the decision is to be made. Secondly, there should be the right number of people in the meeting-room. No more, no less. But variety is very important. Third, ensure that people look for both far-reaching and immediate options. Expand their thinking. Take the help of visuals, write on a whiteboard or flip chart, repeat it. This will increase the capabilities of the people. Then you will decide which option is better and why. And what are the difficulties in putting it into practice? Record in writing what options were considered, who was chosen, why they were chosen and what agreements were made. All of this should be in writing before concluding the meeting. People should be assigned clear obligations as to what they will do and how further action will be ensured. As you practice these joint practice sessions, the number of meetings will decrease. You will practice in your own ways. And more importantly, your abilities will increase. Any institution with more than ten people holds a variety of meetings. Meetings are held to resolve problems. Meetings are held to review projects. There are board meetings. Meetings are held to review performance. There are one-to-one meetings. There are meetings for appraisals. Some meetings are related to a specific crisis. Some are linked to long-term strategic plans. Every type of meeting requires a different approach. Informality is crucial for brainstorming meetings. I see people from the business world in Mumbai going on morning walks together and discussing business — that too is brainstorming. Look at who the people attending the meeting are, the level of informality, and who is conducting it. But there should be a captain in every meeting. That captain should be clear as to what the outcome of the meeting should be. It is his responsibility to prepare, create the right structure, set the agenda, gather the necessary information, direct the conversation and integrate the ideas. I like to call him Captain because he is responsible for both the mood and timing of the people present. Keep the language of the meetings simple. Keep clear. If there is no clarity, repeat your point. Improve your meetings. Your organization will be stronger than that. The purpose of the meetings should be to conduct joint exercises on an issue, question or challenge. Their agenda should also be decided accordingly. It is important to have a captain in the meeting – who has the skills to conduct it. (These are the author's own views)