Making Meetings Work
How to Get Started, Get Going, and Get It Done
- Ann M. Delehant - Delehant and Associates
Foreword by Stephanie Hirsh
Are you attending more meetings and getting less done?
Even with our busy schedules, meetings can be a productive use of time when we follow some simple guidelines. Based on her work with thousands of educators, meetings expert Ann Delehant's indispensable guide is packed with tools, strategies, tips, and ideas that fit the unique context of schools, learning communities, and instructional leaders.
Offering step-by-step planning processes designed for principals, teacher leaders, staff developers, and trainers, this book provides guidelines for determining whether to have a meeting, helping groups work together to make decisions, and developing action plans. Demonstrating how effective meetings can sustain commitment and support, this excellent facilitation handbook covers:
- Planning a meeting and building the agenda
- Considering innovative alternatives to traditional meetings
- Using energizers and other ideas for engaging and motivating groups
- Determining "who" gets to make "what" decisions
- Establishing norms and procedures for efficient use of time
School leaders, school improvement and grade-level teams, and school boards will find this a dynamic resource to help groups work toward collaboration and change the environment and school community culture for the better!
"Helps individuals who value people’s time and wish to apply effective management skills to meetings. Identifies the critical issues to consider when convening people for the purpose of working together. Offers an introduction and explanation for each issue and brings the explanation to life through case studies, and by providing ready-to-use tools and strategies to promote implementation."
"When I need a resource to make my meetings more productive, I go to this book. The stories and tools help me understand and implement processes that make a difference in the work that we do as colleagues and that ultimately affect student learning."
"Ann Delehant's work offers structures and tools that ensure that meetings are productive, respectful of people and their time, and result in high performance for staff and students."
"Delivers just what the title promises; it is a comprehensive guide to planning and delivering meetings and evaluating their effectiveness. The depth of the explanations and direction of the book underscores the importance of really thinking about what we want to get out of a meeting and how to get there in an intentional way."
