Running effective meetings

Successful meetings can boost morale and productivity, enhance reputations, and build relationships within your team.  Ineffective meetings can lead to frustration, a lack of motivation and damaged relationships or conflict. 

In this section there are resources to help you to: 

• Rethink the purpose of your meetings 
• Adopt good practice with meeting agendas 
• Try new ways of approaching meetings to make them more efficient

Use the following resources and advice to plan and create positive outcome from your meetings, be they with the whole team or individuals: 

• For detailed generic advice about effective meetings, take a look at our Tip sheet - Ten tips for running effective meetings (pdf).
• Advice sheet - effective PhD supervision meeting agendas (pdf) describes the different elements that should always be discussed at your meetings.  You can then Download our PhD supervision meeting agenda template to use straight away.
• For your research group or other collaboration team meetings, download and adapt our Research team - Collaboration meeting agenda template (doc).
• If your meeting doesn’t have a clear purpose that everyone is aware of and contributing to, then why are you holding it?  Make sure your meetings always adhere to one of these five reasons to have a meeting. 
• Are your meetings too long and formulaic?  For your research group meetings consider shaking up the format.  Many PIs have found that using ‘agile’ approaches very effective.  Learn more about the ‘Scrum’ approach to meetings that can keep everyone focussed and efficient. 

Related topics 

• Understanding and managing communication and work style differences.