5 tips for conducting effective meetings on the jobsite
5 Tips for Conducting Effective Meetings on the Jobsite
Table of Contents
1. Come prepared and organized
Make the most out of every meeting you hold on the jobsite. By preparing ahead of time and organizing direct subject topics to cover during the meeting, you put your own time and your employees time to good use. When conducting meetings, try to avoid getting off topic or sidetracked from the main points you addressed. This should be an easy task to do if you prepare for meetings prior to conducting them. This way, your employees will take a serious and respectful approach to every meeting you conduct.
Organizing meetings efficiently could include bringing visuals such as charts or graphs to get your point across. Another tip would be sending out an email the night before a meeting that includes all the topics that will be discussed, this way employees are given a heads-up for what to expect before a meeting and also gives them a chance to prepare questions or comments if they have any.
2. Set the right tone
Setting the tone of a meeting emphasizes the mood you want to create is important because it defines how your employees are going to approach what you have to say. Conducting fun, not-so-serious meetings are just as important as a serious meeting with important topics. However, the tone of these meetings is completely different.
Having a balance of both is a healthy way for your employees to build respect for you as well as truly being able to enjoy working with you. Depending on what topics you are covering during each meeting, decide what tone would be the best suited to make it a successful session.
3. Listen to feedback from everyone
Communication between all employees is crucial, regardless of who has the most authority. Being effective in communicating with one another is extremely important to the success of any construction project and the overall atmosphere of the workplace.
Taking time to effectively listen to thoughts and feedback from employees during meetings is important so that everyone knows their roles and responsibilities in completing the project at hand. Create an atmosphere for employees to feel comfortable asking questions, or share their thoughts and ideas with the group. Being an active listener to others when they have the floor will cause others to attentively listen to you when you are giving important instructions or discussing meeting topics.
Make sure there is no uncertainty when concluding a meeting, this saves time having to email clarifying emails later on to those who were not completely understanding of the topics discussed.
4. Deal with conflict appropriately
Conflict can be avoidable in many cases; however, it is important to be prepared for it when a problem arises during a meeting. Conflict can be caused by many different reasons, sometimes conducting a meeting means having to deliver bad news. It is important to not appear fazed by conflict in a situation where it may arise.
A good approach to conflict is emotional sensitivity and empathy, as every person responds to conflict differently so it is always best to handle conflicting issues in private with the employees involved. If in a situation where an argument escalates, try to give all involved parties time to cool off before calmly addressing the situation and finding a solution to the problem.
5. Create a penalty for absence
Meetings are important because they establish what is expected of all employees on each project. If someone skips out on a meeting, it may result in them slacking on their responsibilities. Others should not have to pick up the slack of those who are not clear of their objective. Whatever penalty you choose for those not attending meetings, enforce these penalties by stating them clearly in an email to your entire staff as well as including them in the general job requirements. Penalties for absence is not strictly meant to punish, it drives motivation for all employees to attend meetings and take them seriously.
Sources
Tips for getting the most from construction meeting minutes
5 Tips for Effective Construction Communication
