1.5 - About University

11.7T HE C HAIRPERSON’ S O PENING R EMARKSInspired by Roger Mosvick and Robert Nelson.Meeting leaders often rush directly into discussing content or topic items, leaving participantsvague as to why an item is being discussed and what outcome is expected from the discussion.Making a brief introduction—3 or 4 minutes at the beginning of a meeting—is one of a leader’smost important responsibilities. Done well, the introduction yields a number of positiveresults:✔✔✔✔It orients the group to the purpose of the meeting, and clarifies the context for themeeting.It enables meeting participants to sharpen their focus, and thus helps shorten meetingtime.It provides an information base for the meeting.It clarifies meeting process and minimizes unrelated discussion during the meeting.The chairperson’s orientation can be prepared in five steps.➊ReviewMeetingPurposeandProcess➟❑❑❑Restate the purpose for the meeting.Review the specific outcomes being sought from the meeting (e.g., “At the end of this meeting,we will have in place…).Ensure that participants are clear about the meeting process and their role in the meeting (e.g.,agenda, participation requested, ground rules).➟ ➟➋Provide theMeetingContext➌Set theMeetingBoundaries➟➟❑❑❑❑❑❑❑❑Provide all meeting participants with the same facts, trends, and evidence (e.g., briefly reviewhistorical facts).Review the present status of the problem. (“Why are we talking about this now?”)Review what’s known about cause(s) of the problem. (Distinguish fact from conjecture, and noteprobabilities.)State the consequences if the problem goes unresolved (the urgency of the problem).Define a problem frame. A concise, well-organized problem definition will help a group to movequickly into working the problem.Set clear boundaries for the discussion. Maintain focus and insist that some issues be discussed inother settings.Don’t dwell on past grievances. Focus on finding solutions to the present problems.Define the criteria for an effective solution. Set out constraints and decision rules (i.e., time,money, resources, policy, and so on).➟356 SECTION 11 TOOLS FOR LEADING MEETINGS