A More Effective All Staff Meeting
by Travis Norton, Pinnacle West Associate
We used to have an all staff meeting every month. About fifteen of us would sit around a table and take turns responding to our only agenda item: ‘What’s going on in your world?’ Some staff would answer quickly and move on. Others would tell stories of their weekend and personal lives. After about 30 minutes when only four people had shared you could see staff members checking out or having side conversations. Sometimes an issue that affected two or three staff would surface and the rest of us would listen in while they hashed out a solution. By the end of the 90 minutes or longer (often!) we were spent, unsure what was accomplished, lacking clarity on our next steps yet feeling stressed with all that was left to do. Clearly the meetings weren’t working, so we changed them.
We moved to an every week 30 minute tactical meeting followed by a 60 minute communication and special focus meeting. Rather than monthly we met weekly, but only for 30 minutes. I rummaged through the youth game closet and found a 90 second timer and told the staff they had until the sand ran out to share what they were working on this week. No problems would be solved, only surfaced. When an issue that needed more attention came up we shouted “parking-lot” and wrote it down to determine later how to deal with it. The meeting became more interesting and focused. After everyone had shared we read through the parking lot to determine how those issues would be addressed—usually through offline meetings between one or two staff people. We also read through the parking lot from the previous week for progress reports and crossed off items that had been successfully addressed. The result is transparency, accountability and progress. Momentum!
During the parking-lot review we determine the focus of the 60 minute communication and special focus meeting (sometimes this focus has been determined ahead of time). Anyone who is not involved in that topic is dismissed. The 60 minute meeting then covers what needs to be communicated to the congregation in the current week and then whatever the special focus item is. The result is a more thoughtful meeting of stake holders getting on the same page and moving more complicated events and seasons of the church forward. Space and time is given to one topic which eases anxiety and allows us to get organized. We come out of that time with clarity that is a gift to all involved and most importantly a gift to the mission of the church.
Staff meetings are more interesting now. As the senior leader my time commitment has not changed since I attend both meetings, but the effectiveness of the meetings energizes me and the staff. I’m glad we made the change!
