Team Practices Group/How to run a good meeting

Planning a meeting

 * Understand the reason for the meeting
 * Meetings can share information, solve problems, or make decisions
 * Generally, each meeting should only do one of these functions at a time
 * Have an agenda
 * Include the agenda in the invitation
 * State the purpose and/or desired outcomes
 * Choose a meeting format based on the purpose
 * e.g. "Go-around" (where everyone speaks), vs. Presentation vs. Discussion
 * Estimate the time each agenda item might take
 * For longer non-recurring meetings, consider building in a very brief (e.g. 5 minute) in-meeting retrospective
 * Was the meeting effective? How could it have been better?
 * Invite the right people
 * Require key stakeholders
 * Use "optional" where appropriate
 * A meeting that is generating ideas or collecting information can proceed even if missing some key people; a meeting that shares information or makes decisions cannot.
 * Choose the meeting day and time
 * Use the "Find a Time" feature in Google calendar
 * Be VERY aware of time zones
 * Encourage everyone to use the Google calendar feature to warn about creating meetings outside your working day
 * Also be aware of daylight savings differences
 * Choose the meeting duration
 * Use the Google Calendar "Speedy Meetings" option
 * Half-hour meetings end after 25 minutes
 * Longer meetings end 10 minutes early
 * Make the meeting editable by all attendees (checkbox in Google calendar)
 * Set up note-taking
 * Include a link to the notes (minutes) in the invitation
 * Create an etherpad or google doc, which serves as both Agenda and Minutes
 * Note that etherpad is PUBLIC and anything entered CANNOT be fully erased
 * If a google doc, share it ("Can Edit") with whoever is appropriate
 * For non-sensitive topics, sharing with WMF is usually fine
 * For sensitive topics, share only with the attendees
 * Reserve a room if necessary
 * Appropriate size (not too big, not too small)
 * With screen/camera/speakerphone if needed
 * One person often doesn't need a room--can use ad-hoc space
 * Engineering admins are available to help
 * Can schedule the meeting, negotiating availability of people and rooms
 * Give them all the information they need to create the invitations
 * Meeting title, who to invite (required/optional), duration (specify that you want "speedy"), preferred dates/times, brief description including links to agenda and/or minutes
 * Ask them to make the meeting editable by all attendees

Preparing for a meeting

 * Before heading to the meeting, remind yourself of the purpose and agenda
 * Prepare any necessary materials (e.g. slides, images)
 * Be aware of any major political or interpersonal issues that might arise

Starting a meeting

 * If in a room, arrive at least 5 minutes early
 * If the room is still occupied 5 minutes before the meeting, let them know you will need the room soon
 * And consider evangelizing "speedy meetings" to the organizer (later)
 * Start the video call before the official meeting start time
 * If the video call won't start, try the other browser (Firefox vs. Chrome)
 * Sometimes rebooting also helps
 * Explicitly set the speakers/microphone (sometimes it is automatic, sometimes not)
 * Click the Gear in the hangout, and set speakers and mic to the specific device (e.g. Chat-150 or Jabra)
 * Open the chat panel (by clicking the icon at the top of the left sidebar)
 * If the keyboard/mouse batteries are low, email techsupport

Attending a meeting

 * If remote:
 * Use a headset
 * Choose a quiet environment
 * Choose a non-distracting background view
 * If at home, make sure others know if they might be on camera
 * Consider muting whenever possible
 * If bandwidth is poor, reduce video quality
 * Click on the 5-bars icon at the top of the hangout
 * Open the chat panel (by clicking on the icon at the top of the left sidebar)
 * If you type something important into the chat panel, make sure someone noticed it
 * If in the office but not using A/V equipment
 * Use a headset
 * Don't have the call at your desk--move to ad-hoc meeting space
 * Always speak slowly and clearly
 * Language barriers, poor audio, or both, can be a problem
 * Don't dominate the conversation
 * Seek first to understand, then to be understood
 * Speak up when you have something relevant to say
 * Stay focused on the meeting (minimize emails/IRC)

Facilitating a meeting

 * Start the actual meeting on time "as a courtesy to those who were punctual"
 * If key stakeholders are missing, decide whether to proceed or reschedule
 * Remind everyone of the purpose, and quickly review the agenda
 * For recurring meetings, start with any issues left over from the previous meeting
 * Be especially aware of when remoties want to speak
 * Boldly (but politely) ask if deep discussions and long tangents should be taken outside the meeting

Notetaking

 * Make sure someone is taking notes
 * In some cases, "everyone" can share note-taking, but the facilitator still needs to monitor
 * One person taking notes is usually better
 * Can be the facilitator, or rotating attendee, but whoever takes notes will be distracted
 * For recurring meetings, don't make the same attendee take notes every time
 * For important meetings that require intensive facilitation, consider bringing someone in just to take notes
 * If using etherpad, don't enter anything that is private
 * Security vulnerabilities
 * Vacation/travel schedules, health stuff, family details
 * Passwords
 * If notes will be copied to wiki later, enter them in wiki format to start with
 * == and === and ==== surrounding headings
 * * and ** and *** for bullets
 * Write any dates unambiguously (such as the ISO format: YYYY-MM-DD)

Ending a meeting

 * Start to wrap up a few minutes before the official end
 * For a speedy meeting, remember the earlier end time
 * Summarize key decisions and next steps
 * Agree on who will post the notes, and in what form
 * Have a plan for any open items with no clear next steps
 * End the meeting on time (or early)
 * Don't let the meeting expand just to fill available time
 * Ending early is a Good Thing(tm), as long as the agenda was covered
 * If appropriate, offer to set up a follow-up meeting to continue the conversation

After the meeting

 * Copy meeting notes to a wiki page
 * If in doubt, get permission from attendees first
 * Scan for anything that should NOT become public information
 * Circulate a link to attendees
 * Make sure people follow up on their action items
 * If a recurring meeting, set up the next meeting's notes
 * So people can immediately start adding to the next agenda