4. Send out announcements, invitations and reminders for the meeting
• Invite guest speakers to present on special topics/issues
• Send general and personal invitations early, send reminders
• Circulate agenda, minutes and background information in advance
5. If networking first, give three minutes notice of starting time.
Many meetings have a pre-meeting period of mixing, networking, getting coffee, or other
unstructured activities. The transition to structured meeting necessarily takes a few
minutes for people to finish their conversations and take their seats.
6. Start on time.
If you wait for late arrivals, regulars will start to expect that you will wait, and over time the
meeting will start later and later.
• Set a welcoming tone: introductions (ice breaker)
• Engage all participants during meeting. Everyone should have something to
contribute. If not, let uninvolved participants know why it was important for them to
be at the meeting.