Be Judgemental: How to Design an Effective Post-Meeting Evaluation Process

A well-crafted evaluation process can be an invaluable tool in the drive toward continuous improvement. Even an internal event that only involves participants from your own company can benefit from a post-meeting evaluation process and provide insight for future meetings. Below are six tips for crafting effective post-meeting evaluations.

1. Focus on multiple aspects of the meeting.

Have attendees offer feedback on all aspects. These inputs will allow you to customize your future meetings to better meet the attendees' needs and preferences. Some of the areas of inquiry include:

• Overall satisfaction with the meeting
• Did the program meet or exceed expectations? If not, why?
• An assessment of satisfaction with all aspects of the logistics and suggestions for improvement (i.e., facilities, food, etc.)
• An assessment of satisfaction with the speaker or meeting leader and suggestions for improvement
• A question about what the participant would've liked to have seen done differently
• A question about whether or not the participant would be inclined to attend similar future meetings if given the choice
• A question about what the key takeaway message was for the participant

2. Offer multiple ways to evaluate the meeting.

Rather than just circulating a hard copy of the evaluation form, offer a variety of ways to make it easy for each person to submit an evaluation. For example, you can distribute a hard copy of the evaluation form at the meeting and follow it up with a link to an online version. If you don't get someone's feedback, you can still follow up with a phone call and ask for it verbally.

3. Offer an incentive for people to participate.

If it's really important to get feedback, such as for a company-wide annual meeting, staff meetings, etc., offer some incentives. For example, give all participants a gift card good for one cup of coffee from a local coffee shop, an entry into a drawing for a larger prize, or an extra-long lunch break.

4. Remind attendees several times to complete an evaluation form.

This could be done at the start and end of the meeting, in a subsequent e-mail message, or by a staff person who stands at the back of the meeting room and reminds people as they exit.

5. Let people see or know about the response to their feedback.

Once you receive and incorporate the feedback in your future plans, let people know what has been changed as a result of their input. This gives everyone a greater incentive to give feedback next time they're asked.

If it's not practical to follow up on a particular suggestion, tell the person who made it why not. To follow up and reward participants, assure that people put their names on their evaluation forms. If someone has especially sensitive feedback to give, make sure they know they have the option to talk to you confidentially and directly. Some people are not comfortable putting criticism in writing.

6. So they can learn and grow, give speakers/meeting leaders their personal feedback.

Finally, if you receive feedback about someone, you must share it with them for their benefit. But, first, carefully review the feedback and consolidate it into a usable form that will be constructive without hurting their feelings. Deliver negative feedback in person and accompany it with positive suggestions. That way, the person receiving the input knows what to change in the future.