13 Apr Corporate Business Meetings and How Managers Can Shine in Them?

“Meetings move at the speed of the slowest mind in the room.”-Dale Dauten

Whether you are holding a meeting with your small team of colleagues or the entire organization, there are two choices in front of you. You can be a part of the furniture, or you can grab the opportunity and make yourself stand out. You may think it’s just another routine meeting, and there are other voices in the room much eager to let themselves be heard, so you don’t have much of a chance when it comes to getting noticed.

Top-level managers around the world agree that business meetings are a great opportunity for you to demonstrate your passion, dedication, and eagerness to learn more. A recent survey revealed that Executives perceived 67% of meetings as wastage of time and money. Also, in the same survey, 92% of employees admitted to multitasking during meetings instead of paying attention to what was being discussed. But majority of them will remember an impactful and productive meeting. Let us talk about how you can shine during a meeting.

The Preparation Phase

“Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity.”-Lucius Annaeus Seneca

There is an agenda for every meeting, whether they are in email format or the form of a document. You should use the agenda to build a list of questions you can ask during the meeting. If you are not sure about a particular portion of the meeting, you should note down your questions. You can ask the speaker these questions as the meeting goes on, or after it has ended.

Mid-level managers spend approximately 35% of their work time attending meetings, but many often feel that these meetings are not productive enough. I believe that mid-level managers should express themselves more in meetings and let their voices be heard. If there are people in the room you’re not familiar with, take the time to introduce yourself. This creates a personal connection with other participants in the meeting and makes you stand out.

In case you are attending a large meeting where all of the top executives are present, let everyone know your name and your designation before the meeting begins. While being confident, you must make sure that you don’t sound cocky, as you let the upper management know what you bring to the table and who you are. In a survey, it was revealed that 44% of employees blamed poorly organized meetings for time crunches, while 43% felt that when the meeting agenda isn’t clear, there is widespread confusion.

During the Meeting

“Are your people uncomfortable during meetings and tired at the end? If not, they’re probably not mixing it up enough and getting to the bottom of important issues.”-Patrick Lencioni

I have noticed that many mid-level managers are not confident enough during meetings and it is evident from their body language. The way you carry yourself and your posture tells a lot about you, and you should take care so as not to send the wrong signals during an important meeting.

During a meeting, you should keep an eye on your physical presence. Are you slouching? Are you fidgeting in your seat too much? All these things are important if you wish to make a good impression on upper management and your team. Sitting up straight makes you look confident and makes others more eager to listen to what you have to say. Maintaining eye contact while addressing others is also vital, but you should also pay attention to how you behave while you are listening. Be comfortable in your own space, and do not be afraid of talking animatedly.

In today’s world of technological advances, there is no shortage of distractions. You should not check your phone during a meeting, or do anything else, for that matter. Even if what is being discussed in the meeting doesn’t directly concern you, you should respect the other participants in the meeting.

Furthermore, you can provide them with an outside perspective that could potentially grab their attention. A great way to show others that you’re listening is to repeat an idea someone mentioned earlier on in the meeting. But it is not enough to blindly repeat what others had said, and you must share your ideas as well.

There are a lot of ideas discussed in a meeting, but very few are implemented. It is a good idea to identify which items need to be acted upon before the meeting ends. If you have no action items in your basket, you can always offer to help others with their tasks.

After the Meeting Is Over

“The majority of meetings should be discussions that lead to decisions.”-Patrick Lencioni

After the meeting is done, you must follow up on the items that require action from you. You could send a note to the person who organized the meeting, as this will keep everyone in the loop and they will trust you to complete your tasks on time. Following up on your action items will make others see you as a proactive member who takes the initiative in matters of importance, rather than sitting back and letting others do the dirty work.

It is a great idea to show your appreciation to the meeting organizer, as this helps you stand out in the crowd. It helps in building interpersonal relationships, so that next time you are making a point in a meeting, no one would interrupt you and you get to finish your point. You might also send a note to the meeting organizer afterward mentioning how the meeting helped you learn new things.

Top-level managers agree that sending a thank you note after a meeting sets you apart, and people start to notice you from the next time onwards. Every successful professional knows about the power of gratitude and how interpersonal relationships are key to success.

A business meeting is no place to be a wallflower, and mid-level managers should remember this before entering the meeting room. What seems like simple common sense, is not followed by many professionals, which ultimately leads to unproductive meetings that waste time and money. You have worked hard for your company, and meetings can be used as a platform to showcase your achievements.

I would like to encourage every mid-level manager to be more proactive in meetings and share their ideas, no matter how irrelevant they might seem, at first. Meetings can be used to present innovative ideas and a clever professional never lets such opportunities pass. Being confident and attentive during meetings is essential to boosting your career growth.

Closing Thoughts

Meetings are a place for open discussion and presentation of ideas. In today’s business world, where organizations follow a flat hierarchy system, everyone has the opportunity to present ideas that drive change through the organization. Meetings are a great way to do just that.