The Insider’s Guide to Meeting Planning

It may not be your job to conduct a meeting, but more than likely, it's your job to plan it. Everyone seems to have an opinion on what tools one should be used to plan a meeting and what resources might help, but that doesn't cover practical procedures that have been used time and time again. So rather than go a general route, I thought I'd offer my own experiences as an insider's guide to meeting planning.

Let's assume that your boss has asked you to set a meeting with a client. What's the first thing you want to do? Well, you're probably going to pick up the phone to call that client to schedule a date and time. You should know how to conduct a phone call by now, but as soon as you schedule that time you should put it on the calendar. Immediately after the client agrees on the meeting, I schedule it in Outlook; in both my calendar and my boss's. I also set a reminder. I schedule one for a day in advance and one an hour prior to the start of the meeting. This is of course coupled with my verbal reminders as well. It's also a good idea to call and confirm the meeting with the client the day before. This is a helpful reminder and allows the client to make any changes at that time.

Before the meeting, spend some time with your boss to get an understanding of what he/she will need from you. They may require you to gather materials. If this is the case, be sure to document your process exactly. Make lists and notes of any other companies you may use as well. For example: if you've used a printer in the past that's done a great job, add them to a list of preferred vendors. You will refer to this list the next time a meeting or event needs to be planned. Even if you're not required to use the services of those outside of your own company, you'll still likely have to pull records, compile paperwork or make other inside preparations in which a list of procedures will come in handy for later projects. Write down each and every component and make lists of materials used. In many cases, the process will be the same for each client so this will prove to be a huge help down the road.

When the client walks in for the meeting, it's time to put on a show. Become the nicest and most accommodating character you can muster up. Greet the client with a smile and be sure to ask them about anything important in their lives. General questions that aren't perceived as prying work best:

• How are the grandchildren?
• How was your trip to Spain?

I don't have much use for this in Florida, but you should always offer to take their coat as well. Next, offer them a drink, instruct them to have a seat and explain that your boss will be right with them.

I don't know how many times I've been called into a client meeting to either answer a question or retrieve some more documents or just be of general assistance. That's why I think it's imperative to make sure you're around throughout the entire meeting. It's not the time to go chat with someone in a different department or take your lunch break. Make sure you're readily available to both the client and your boss.

Once the meeting is over, you'll want to focus on the most important part of planning: evaluation. You'll never improve your skills if you're not sure where mistakes are being made. It's not always appropriate to bother your client with a cumbersome survey, but try asking for some input from your boss. You can use our meeting evaluation template to give to your boss to fill out. Then prepare an action plan for the next meeting based on your lists, procedures and the feedback from your boss. Before you know it, you'll be planning perfect meetings.

I'm not a professional meeting planner. Everything I've learned, I've done through trial and error and even a little luck. It takes a lot of time and experience to get anything perfect but we all have the ability to grow from our mistakes. The easiest way to do this is to keep running tabs on what happens and how to improve the situation. Keep your mind and ears open, and continue to strive for excellence. Eventually you'll get there.