How to get rid of boring meetings? The international author and one of the world’s first meeting design professionals, Eric de Groot, shared the three key questions with the attendees of HUONE Helsinki’s annual Administrative Professionals’ Day in April. Ask these from your boss!
The event – Kansainvälinen Assistenttipäivän seminaari in Finnish – is organized annually by HUONE to appreciate the work of the professionals in the field, share knowledge and network.
After the sumptuous and energising breakfast the seminar was kicked off by Evon Söderlund, the founder and group CEO of HUONE, who shared her view on the future of work, and what it means to us. The global trends show that there’s a growing tendency to buy meeting rooms on demand. Simultaneously an increasing number of result-driven meetings and events are arising. HUONE as a pioneer in the field has considered all these aspects at one go.
We in HUONE understand that every meeting and event has a purpose, and thus, we focus on maximising the meeting experience of our customers and helping them to achieve a more positive outcome at HUONE, explains Evon Söderlund
How to say no to boring meetings?
The day’s international keynote speaker Eric de Groot is one of the very first meeting designers and also the author of the book ‘Into the Heart of the Meetings’. His action-filled session, headlined ‘‘No more boring Meetings!’ started with saying goodbye by waving our hands (literally) to all the boring meetings gathered on a flipchart by the group.
After leaving boring meetings in the past Eric shared three key questions to ask before organising any meeting, in order to make it purposeful and not boring. These questions can easily be asked from your boss or the organizer, and when you do listen to the answers carefully and think about them when looking for space.
1. What should the meeting room stimulate?
All the spaces stimulate certain behaviour. You could almost think the room is there to participate also and plays a significant role in the whole purpose.
As an example, if the walls in the room are chalkboard, it already invites participants to be creative and get up from their chairs. Drawing and writing somewhere else than your laptop or piece of paper creates a whole different setting and level of activation. But if you want the group to be less and listen, this might not be the best choice.
2. What should the action be?
Things can be done differently. Do dare to push the limits and include some action in the meetings. It can even be fun and result in surprising things!
If you want the group to talk, there needs to be something that encourages the discussion. You could even make them to speed date with a certain topic to open up the discussion in a bigger group. Or in a smaller team, you can start with something else, like shaking your own mocktail for the morning, for instance, just to make them feel loose. Only your imagination is the limit!
3. To hear the third question see Eric’s video:
The morning concluded with a tour HUONE premises and everyone got to continue the day with a mind full of energy and takeaways. Can’t wait for the next seminar by HUONE!