You know the drill. A team meeting is called to make a decision on an important issue, but only the usual suspects participate. All the rest keep their mouths shut and their ideas and opinions go unheard. Afterward, the water cooler gets the feedback. Too bad the tape is not running.
Yet the participation equation is obvious: meaningful participation equals meeting success. So here are four tips for getting full participation of your team members.
- Agree on meeting objective. Why was the meeting called and what do you expect out of it? State the objective of the meeting. “What I expect from this meeting is. . . . Are you all in agreement?” Take a few seconds to eyeball the members one by one. If someone speaks up, great. If not, then take silence for agreement. In any instance, you’ve clarified the meeting objective and this places the burden on the team members.
- Monitor individual airtime. This not only gives everyone an opportunity to speak up, but also conveys that everyone’s ideas are valuable. When one person has spoken enough, eyeball others and say, “I appreciated what Joe had to say, but now I’d like to hear from the rest of you.” Turn your body away from Joe, and focus on other team members.
- Restate important points. By restating or paraphrasing what each person has said, you demonstrate the value of a person’s input. Thank people who are usually reticent to speak up.
- Ask directly. Although some don’t like confrontation, I’m not especially fearful of the direct approach. Besides, after you’ve used that approach at two or three meetings, you’ve raised the bar and let everyone know that dead wood won’t be tolerated. Say something like, “We’ve heard from Jean. Now I’d like to hear what the rest of you think.” Count ten seconds silently, and if you get no response, then say, “George, we need your input on this. What’s your thinking?” (Slowly count to ten thousand, “one thousand, two thousand, three thousand, etc.”) Silence can be a highly effective means of getting others to contribute. Then slowly go around to the rest of the team members. They’re liable to hitchhike on what George has said, so be ready for that. If someone says, “I agree with George,” you might ask why or how they’ve come to that conclusion.
Although this reads hard-nosed, over the long term it’s highly valuable. It doesn’t sound nearly as hard-nosed if you smile when you ask your questions and paraphrase what each person has said. People are valuable commodities, and if a person doesn’t learn to add his or her intelligence over the long term, it’s time for a “come to Jesus party,” or time to consider that person’s real value. Furthermore, the process often illuminates the ideas of some very gifted people who haven’t learned how to publicly contribute. These people can make a significant addition to your business success.