How to Ensure Regular and Effective Review Meetings?

• Every progressive company must have a defined calendar schedule of regular review meetings.
• The participants must align their own calendars to accommodate these reviews in their own schedules.
• Such review meetings can be at three levels:

1. 1. The business leaders and individual department heads (one-to-one) or entire department teams
   2. The business leaders and all department heads together
   3. Intra departments (which work together)

• The agenda of each meeting must be decided carefully in advance and must be made known to all those participating in the meeting.
• The review agenda points must be designed in such a way that the status of various activities or projects and any exceptions must be highlighted quickly.
• Depending on the nature and importance of the review, its frequency must be decided (i.e. daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly etc.).
  • E.g. for some urgent projects or critical assignments, some quick daily review meetings may be necessary.
  • For long term projects weekly or monthly reviews may be fine.
• In addition to the agenda and frequency of the meeting, the company must also decide the following:
  • The intended purpose and outcome of the review meeting
  • The format of the review meeting (The details to be included, the participants and the duration.)
  • The place where the review meeting will be generally conducted
  • The persons who will present the details in the meeting
  • The persons who will review the information being presented
  • The person who will note down action points, minutes of the meeting etc.
  • The post-meeting briefing, if any, which will go to all
• The review must happen at a specific time and must end in the specified time period. Ensure that meetings don’t drag forever. If meetings take longer than they were scheduled, all the participants will be delayed in attending their regular work. That is bad for the productivity of the company.
• End each meeting with an action-list with clear responsibilities assigned about who will do what and when.
• Begin every meeting with a status review of the action-list of the previous meeting.

If the person who regularly presents at or attends the meeting is absent due to any reason, ensure that her deputy or proxy comes to the meeting and plays the same role. Somehow, ensure the continuity of such reviews, as far as possible. This is necessary to establish the significance and seriousness of such a practice.

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