When was the last time your team skipped your team meeting because something perceived as more urgent or time-sensitive popped up? Did this happen one time or multiple times in a row? Or, is it hard to recall the last time you had a formal team meeting? This can happen when the team does not put the same emphasis on internal team meetings as it does on external client meetings. Both types of meetings are extremely important to the health of your business. Consider putting a team meeting strategy in place for your team.

Daily huddle meetings, weekly strategy meetings, and quarterly planning sessions are all a must. Also, consider implementing an annual offsite meeting which includes celebration of the past year and goal-setting for the upcoming year. If these meetings are on the calendar and each team member has buy-in as to their importance to the health and communication flow of the team, the meetings will happen with much more consistency.

This time as a team is crucial to ensuring that everyone is on the same page; understanding if a team member is swamped and needs help; hearing about current client situations; understanding firm policy changes; and any other current topics. If you commit to consistent, efficient team meetings, you'll find that you and your team look forward to these meetings and the time together will become an invaluable tool for the health of your business and your client experience.

Best Practices for Effective Team Meetings:

• Pick a consistent date and time for the regularly-recurring meetings and put them on each team member’s electronic calendar
• Execute the meeting even if all team members are not in the office. If 2 out of 4 members are available, then those two individuals should meet and discuss.
• Create agendas for each type of meeting and have that agenda present at each meeting
• Designate one member of the team as the “keeper” of the agenda