The Effect of Meeting Design on Boardroom Dynamics

Question 1

INTRODUCTION TO MEETING DESIGN - THE CHALLENGE OF MEETINGS

The board meeting is the centre of gravity of all board life and the arena within which board dynamics plays out.

What are 5 common problems of meetings that Romano and Nunamaker (2001)’s study found?

Allen and colleagues 2012 study found that productive meetings are influenced by what 4 factors?

Answer 1

(1) getting off topic
(2) having no goals or agenda
(3) being too lengthy
(4) poor or inadequate preparation
(5) being inconclusive

whether:
(1) the information is relevant and/or important
(2) the information is interesting and enjoyable
(3) the meeting is timely or punctual
(4) whether people feel they are prepared for the meeting

Question 2

INTRODUCTION TO MEETING DESIGN - THE CHALLENGE OF MEETINGS

What are Ray Dalio’s 11 principles for effective meetings?

Answer 2

1. Emphasise the meeting’s purpose
2. Be as precise as possible in meeting communication
3. Establish the type of meeting you are holding (e.g., educate, discuss etc.)
4. Be assertive and open-minded
5. Keep track of the progress made
6. Try to avoid ‘topic slip’
7. Remain calm and analytical at all times
8. Be clear in assigning responsibilities
9. Utilise the ‘two-minute rule’ to avoid introduction interruptions
10. Reach a conclusion
11. Figure out if the meeting was effective

Question 3

INTRODUCTION TO MEETING DESIGN - BOARD MEETINGS - DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS

Setting a meeting up for success through design characteristics is strategically effective.

Design characteristics usually satisfy what 3 criteria?

Answer 3

(1) they are generally under the control of the meeting organiser = cosec
(2) they are related to the meeting’s conduct, composition or setting
(3) they can be thought through and planned in advance or initiated at a meeting such that they influence perceptions of meeting quality

Question 4

INTRODUCTION TO MEETING DESIGN - BOARD MEETINGS - DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS

Cohen’s 2011 study identified 18 design characteristics that could potentially affect perceptions of meeting quality. What are the 21 factors?

What are the 4 categories they are grouped into? (4,8,7,2)

Answer 4

TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS = relate to how the meeting time is used
(1) Meeting length
(2) Promptness of start and end
(3) Use of breaks
(4) Time of day

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
(5) Lighting
(6) Noise
(7) Temperature
(8) Refreshments
(9) Meeting space
(10) Technology use
(11) Seating dynamics
(12) Meeting space arrangement

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS
(13) Meeting goals
(14) Agenda use
(15) Pre-meeting talk
(16) Visual displays
(17) Meeting agreements
(18) Minutes
(19) Meeting recorded

ATTENDEE CHARACTERISTICS
(20) Number of attendees
(21) Presence of a meeting facilitator

Question 5

TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS

MEETING LENGTH

How long should a board meeting be according to good practice? Why?

What is the key factor?

PROMPTNESS OF START & END

Cohen et al.’s (2011) research found a clear correlation between what?

Being on time was seen as what? (2)

Answer 5

MEETING LENGTH
3- to 5-hour range is more likely to produce better perceptions of meeting quality in attendees than a longer meeting

Key factor = quality over quantity

PROMPTNESS OF START AND END
between promptness at the start and end of the meeting and perceived meeting quality

seen as both an example of good temporal courtesy and less disruptive

Question 6

TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS

USE OF BREAKS

What are the 4 benefits of thoughtful scheduling of breaks?

What is the ‘Pomodoro Method’ of focused work time-boxing?

To regain mental clarity and concentration fully, it is recommended that what?

TIME OF DAY

Different people have different chronotypes. In simple classification terms, what are the 2 types?

Many studies have shown that concentration and decision-making quality follow what pattern?

What conclusion can be drawn (unless individual cronotypes are known)?

Answer 6

USE OF BREAKS
(1) to ensure that all attendees can maintain mental performance throughout the meeting, (2) to enhance relationship-building through small talk, (3) to facilitate insight when conversation becomes stuck, and (4) to allow emotions to settle

method suggests a rhythm of 25 minutes work followed by 5-minute break for 4 cycles, followed by a longer break of 30 mins

that breaks do not include other work and instead include some light physical movement

TIME OF DAY
Larks = perform better in the morning
Owls = perform better later in the day

Pattern = strength in morning, lull in afternoon, and rebound in evening

Board meetings should be held in the morning

Question 7

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS - LIGHTING, NOISE, TEMPERATURE, & REFRESHMENTS

Regardless of how much these basics may influence meeting attendees’ emotions and concentration, there is evidence to suggest that the most important psychological principle is
what?

How should lighting be in a board meeting?

Does noise and temperature matter?

How can refreshments influence meeting behaviour? (3)

Answer 7

to give attendees control over these characteristics

Appropriate as not to strain, and there is strong evidence of positive psychological benefits for natural light through windows

The amount of outside noise that might cause a distraction was not found to correlate with meeting quality perceptions

Temperature being just right did correlate with perceived meeting quality

(1) complimentary refreshments = good hospitality = creates better feelings of comfort and positivity
(2) appropriate refreshments for personal well-being may have a positive impact on participants’ ability to focus (caffeine and minimise sugary snacks)
(3) consuming refreshments during a meeting may have an unexpected psychological benefit e.g. holding warm drinks = encourages cohesiveness

Question 8

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

MEETING SPACE

What 4 factors should be taken into account regarding the meeting space?

Answer 8

(1) large enough
(2) uncluttered to minimise distractions
(3) overall cultural symbolism (Sainsburys use photos of employees on walls to remind of key stakeholder)
(4) office location choice for a board meeting = off-site could be better for further and strategic thinking or taking executive directors away from day-to-day distractions

Question 9

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS - TECHNOLOGY USE

What are 2 downsides of virtual teams?

Therefore, if virtual board meetings are to be employed, what 5 things may be important?

Should mobile phones be out during a board meeting?

Answer 9

(A) virtual teams find it much more difficult to build trust than face-to-face teams
(B) virtual teams suffer when they are required to have conversations that need greater interaction and are more creative and strategic

(1) Directors have face-to-face meetings first to build a personal relationship. level of mutual understanding and some rapport
(2) Virtual meetings are used as an ad hoc addition built around more predictable face-to-face meeting patterns
(3) Include some more socialisation at the start of the meeting
(4) Ensure video use to be able to see people as well as hear them to emphasise and humanise
(5) Agree specific ground rules around virtual meetings that may be different from face-to-face meetings e.g., individuals flagging when they want to add to the discussion, recording consent etc.

No = can reduce levels of trust and concentration

Question 10

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS - SEATING DYNAMICS

What is seating dynamics?

What are 6 generally agreed principles of seating dynamics to encourage specific outcomes?

Answer 10

= the art of seating people in certain positions according to their purpose in communication

(1) to encourage participation = seat the other party next to you so facing the same direction
(2) to facilitate direct and open communication = seat the other party at a right angle
(3) to take a competitive stand against someone = position that person directly across the table from you
(4) to block two meeting attendees from being disruptive = sit one either side of the chair to block their interactions
(5) to stop conflict and tension = ensure they can’t have eye contact (side by side)
(6) to create different perspectives = position individuals in different seats each time the board meets and/or keep 1 or more seats free to represent key stakeholders

Question 11

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS - MEETING SPACE ARRANGEMENT

What are 2 important principles for meeting space arrangement?

Why does table shape matter? (rectangular, circular, and curved)

Answer 11

(1) ensure that the space is as flexible as possible so that it increases participants’ feelings of control and enables changes to suit a board meeting’s different ‘gears’ of monitoring/mentoring, strategising and decision-making e.g., stand-up around a whiteboard
(2) ensure all attendees can contribute = disability taken into consideration

Rectangular = denotes status differentials, can create adversity, and make it difficult for directors at the longer sides to have eye contact with those on the same side as them

Circular table = improves cohesion and reduces status

Tables with soft and curved lines = tend to create a space that feels more pleasant and attractive

Question 12

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS - MEETING GOALS

What can have a significant impact on meeting effectiveness?

What is a key design distinction that will enable better board outcomes?

Answer 12

Providing goal or theme clarity before, during, and in reviewing the meeting

being clear on the purpose of a meeting, or an agenda item, in terms of ‘decision or discussion’

Question 13

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS - AGENDA USE

Cohen and colleagues’ (2011) research found that having a formal agenda with prior access was correlated with positive meeting evaluations.

What 7 things does a board agenda typically include?

What 2 things are important?

Answer 13

(1) administrative matters such as the approval of minutes
(2) routine approvals, such as committee assignments or previous meeting actions
(3) financial review
(4) committee reports
(5) CEO report
(6) a business review, for example, an operations review or perhaps a review from a specific business group
(7) strategic matters, such as new ventures

(A) Design of agenda = company secretary to help determine what is on it
(B) Those producing information in support of that agenda to do so in as concise and usable way as
possible

Question 14

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS - PRE-MEETING TALK

Creating the time, space, and opportunity for pre-meeting small talk is a significant predictor of meeting effectiveness.

What did Allen et al. (2014)’s study find?

How may cultural differences of individuals and personality types impact effective discussion?

Answer 14

found that the impact of small talk was even greater for those who had an introverted personality type

In some cultures, the formal meeting is the coming together of pre-discussed and largely agreed ideas, with the meeting formally ratifying them

In others, the purpose of the meeting is to share and discuss all ideas, whether they have been pre-discussed or not

An individual who has been pre-conditioned to the former may find a highly discussive meeting, with no pre-meeting discussions, to be disconcerting or ineffective, and it may take some time to recognise, value and contribute to this alternative form of meeting, and vice versa

Question 15

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS - VISUAL DISPLAYS

In order to best capture the content and flow of meeting dialogue it is recommended that what?

Why should individual preferences of attendees be taken into account in utilising alternative use of data and visual displays?

The chair and company secretary should establish standards for what?

Answer 15

that visual displays be used to allow attendees to organise information and retain collective memories more effectively

because being able to support all attendees and their preferences is a balance to ensure that the full board contributes (chair, cosec, those preparing reports for a board pack should be mindful of)

for most individual preferences and group expectations in preparation for meetings and review these periodically

Question 16

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS - MEETING ARRANGEMENTS

Meeting arrangements are a vital tool to support effective meeting functioning. What do they include?

It is important that a meeting agreement is what?

Ensuring that the director behaviours are on the same page from the start of the meeting will likely what?

Ariely’s research shows that there are what 3 factors that decrease the likelihood of dishonesty in people, which can be applied to meeting behaviour?

Answer 16

Board meeting ‘ground rules’, which govern the meeting’s allowable behaviours, types of interactions, topics and how the meeting is conducted

is discussed, mutually agreed, committed to, formalised, regularly reviewed, and repeated at the start of each meeting

save considerable time and reduce potential conflict

Dishonest behaviour can be reduced:
(1) when people are asked to provide a pledge or sign to confirm their honesty = initial verbal or physical ‘signing in’ to the meeting agreement at the start of the meeting
(2) when moral reminders are used at the time they are required = chair/cosec may voice a director’s responsibility when a key vote is being made
(3) through supervision = invite stakeholders, publish minutes as appropriate etc.

Question 17

PROCEDURAL CHARACTERISTICS

MINUTES

From a board perspective, the preference of the company to have detailed full minutes or brief minutes may be what?

Each attendee should be what?

MEETING RECORDED

When may board meetings be recorded? (3)

Answer 17

MINUTES
may be static for all meetings or may be agreed at the outset depending on the type and purpose of the meeting

be prepared to review draft minutes to ensure that their points were captured

MEETING RECORDED
(1) as part of board evaluation
(2) as a record for information purposes for board directors
(3) for cultural transparency purposes, e.g., when an organisation is fulfilling a public service = NHS England live stream board meetings

Question 18

ATTENDEE CHARACTERISTICS - NUMBER OF ATTENDEES

What are the 2 downsides of a greater number of attendees?

What are the 2 ways round these issues?

What should the chair be cognisant of? Why?

Answer 18

(1) As the size of a meeting increases the participation per director is naturally likely to decrease and therefore more time will be needed to involve all attendees

(2) research indicates that perceptions of meeting quality do go down when more attendee participation is designed into a meeting

(A) be clear when inviting participants as to why they are there, and whether their participation is more for observation and informational reasons than for them to be a full member of interactions

(B) have additional attendees for part of the meeting = enables the input of external experts to contribute to specific discussion topics

the balance of members versus invited attendees, to ensure that board members remain as the driving contributors and decision-makers

Question 19

ATTENDEE CHARACTERISTICS - PRESENCE OF A MEETING FACILITATOR

Who is usually the meeting facilitator?

Who else may be? When?

What is the advantage of an external facilitator?

Answer 19

The chair = controls the meeting flow, assists in decision-making, and allays any significant derailment from the agenda

The cosec or someone external may be the facilitator when additional facilitation is needed (e.g., when the chair wants to take a more active role in discussions, or a particularly thorny relationship issue needs to be discussed, etc.)

Advantage = they have no view or connection to the discussion and can focus solely on the process facilitation of the meeting to ensure the most effective contributions by all attendees

Question 20

THE BOARD DESIGN CHECKLIST

The ‘board design checklist’ provides a timeline to implement the various design characteristics to ensure that the dialogue within a meeting is as cohesive and challenging as possible.

What are the 12 points in the checklist?

Answer 20

(1) Set the meeting date and co-create the meeting goal/purpose/theme focus and agenda
(2) Select minimum additional attendees to contribute (to minimise time requirement)
(3) Brief required personal on what board pre-information is required, emphasising the need for only concise and relevant details
(4) Select an appropriate meeting space based on purpose, location, symbolism, attendee numbers and technology requirement
(5) Circulate the confirmed agenda and timings (ideally morning, and three-to-five hours, with pre-meeting coffee time and breaks), along with board material, in good time prior to the meeting
(6) Evaluate and adapt the meeting room facilities, including temperature, lighting, visual aids and symbolism
(7) Arrange appropriate refreshments
(8) Assign seating if required and set up recording equipment as necessary
(9) Start of meeting = start on time even if attendees have not arrived; ensure refreshments can be self-served before/during the meeting; complete a meeting agreement on the tasks and behavioural ground rules
(10) During meeting = use facilitation and/or physical position changes as required for certain agenda items; record through minutes and electronically/live stream as necessary
(11) End before or on time (having reviewed meeting agreements)
(12) After the meeting = circulate the minutes