Here is another valuable Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review. To sign up for a free subscription to any/all HBR newsletters, please click here.
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Most meetings have too many people in them. Deciding who to include can be tricky, but don’t default to inviting everyone on the team. To have the right people — and only the right people — in the room, you have to know specifically what you’re going to address.
o Create a clear agenda and then ask yourself: Who must be present for this discussion to yield results? Who would you cancel the meeting for if they could not attend?
o Start with this core group. Add more people only if you think they will add value to the conversation or gain value by being there.
o To avoid irking those who weren’t invited, share the criteria you used to decide. For example, perhaps you focused on who has the most knowledge about the topic or who will be involved with the implementation.
If you still get complaints, let people ask to be included next time, and then err on the side of granting their request if they present a solid reason for attending.
Adapted from “The Most Productive Meetings Have Fewer Than 8 People,” by Paul Axtell
Here’s a direct link to dozens of other Management Tips.