How does an effective leader behave in meetings? Here are some tips to get you started…
First, let me share a story…
I recall being in a meeting a few years ago with the chief technology officer for the firm I was working at. It was a meeting his team had set up with a technology vendor and people from several other teams across the firm (thus my presence).
From the start of the meeting, the CTO was present but remarkably silent. He didn’t set context for the meeting (relying on a member of his team to do so) and didn’t add much in the way of commentary.
As the meeting went on, questions came up around the strategic direction of the technology initiative. Eyes turned to the CTO.
He said nothing. His team tried to come up with answers but fumbled a bit and there was no clear resolution.
As you might expect, the meeting didn’t go fantastically well, but more than that, the CTO’s leadership was called into question.
A couple days later the CTO mentioned to me that he had wanted to see how his team would handle the question and deliberately backed off.
-While that no doubt gave him some insight about his team, it did nothing to increase his perceived value (or perceived efficacy) as a leader.
I share this story because it brings out a few lessons that all leaders should bear in mind when at a meeting:
Set Context for the Meeting
Setting context is absolutely critical and can literally determine the success of the meeting. If you are the most senior person and your team has set up the meeting, it is up to you to set context.
It may be that someone on your team will provide the details of the meeting, but your presence speaking up will add weight and emphasis to the meeting.
In other words, even if someone else will provide the detailed context, it is up to you to welcome everyone and share why what you are doing is important.
Stay Engaged During the Meeting
One of the worst things you can do as a leader is be disengaged at a meeting, reading through email, etc.
While some leaders like to do this as a power move (i.e. I’m more important than what is going on in this room), in my opinion it is never justified.
The truth is that people will sense your boredom, be frustrated, and see you as disengaged and ineffective.
If the meeting is not going well, call people out and be tough on them through direct questioning, or if you must, just leave… but don’t take the passive aggressive approach by checking your email periodically.
Participate
One of the challenges leaders face is knowing when to speak up and think for their team and when to let their team share ideas and come to conclusions themselves.
When leaders are looking to develop the decision making skills on their team, often the trend is to back off and remain silent. However, as you saw in my story above, this can make you look ineffective.
If you are looking to your team for answers, it can be helpful to openly direct questions to specific members of your team (e.g. “Mark, what’s your opinion on that issue?”).
Note that it is okay to have a clear agenda/direction/decision for your team and provide it at the meeting. In fact, you can do this with no degradation in team motivation (See Executive Coaching: The Unnecessary Meeting).
The key point is that you must stay actively engaged.
Take a “Yes and…” Approach
Often in meetings we find ourselves faced with an idea that we believe just won’t work. While the temptation is to blow someone out of the water with, “we tried that last year and it doesn’t work,” that answer immediately puts someone on the defensive.
A better solution is to say yes to the intention of the idea and then add to it.
For example, if someone thinks that offering more overtime will solve your production difficulties, but you disagree, you might say:
“I agree that if we could get more productivity out of each employee, that would solve our problems, and I wonder if there might be another way to solve that such as…”
Or perhaps:
“I advocated for that approach a couple years ago and it didn’t work, but what if we…”
The point is to honor the original point and the person who made it.
Little Changes, Big Differences
I have often observed that the differences between the most senior executives and those below them are often very subtle.
Often the differences in experience or intelligence are negligible. Instead, subtle differences in interpersonal style can make huge differences in career trajectory and influence.
If you want to really up your game, I would recommend the following. Think about who the most effective leader you know is and then note how they act and what they say in their next meeting.
- How do they set context?
- How do they draw out participants?
- How do they disagree with others?
Pay attention to these subtle differences and then take the time to try them out yourself.
You will be amazed at the difference some small adjustments can make.
If you have questions about executive coaching in San Diego and beyond, please let me know.