Patti Cotton

Executive Coach & Career Strategist

employees

Five Tips for Taking Control of a Hijacked Meeting

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Taking Back Control of a Hijacked Meeting

You have called the meeting to order, and you have much to review with your staff. You’ve promised to adjourn at the top of the hour, so you dive in at a fast clip.

As you introduce the first topic, one of the meeting participants interrupts you in mid-sentence, and dives into active monologue about an unrelated subject. Someone else chimes in about her remarks, and others begin to enter in.

How do you take back control?

Here are five tips for establishing control, and for taking it back when disruption occurs.

  1. First, taking back control actually begins before the meeting starts. Craft a carefully planned agenda to set parameters. Pass out copies of the agenda at the beginning of the meeting.
  2. Establish your meeting leadership from the start. Call the meeting to order on time, and announce that since the time allotted for the meeting is limited, you will be sticking closely to the agenda. Share that you will take questions at the end, and if the ensuing discussions during Q&A become too lengthy.
  3. Nip subtle disruption in the bud. Do you have a distracted participant who is texting or otherwise multi-tasking? Is someone quietly holding his own conversation in the back? Pause immediately when you recognize this, to state that you need everyone’s participation, and ask people to put their cell phones in “meeting mode”, and to plan to catch up with colleagues on other issues at break time. Be sure your voice tone and body language convey your confidence, warmth, and engagement. Eye contact is important here – people cannot remain anonymous when their eyes meet yours, and it can draw people’s focus subtly back into the meeting.
  4. Contain dangerous meeting personalities. Know the personalities of your meeting attendees, and recognize those who crave the spotlight. These dangerous meeting personalities are usually the hijackers that will follow their own agenda, regardless of yours. Have a task in the meeting such as taking notes, or assign them with a high-profile role, so that they are actively involved – and contained – through focused attention to their charge.
  5. Request order quickly and boldly when things are clearly out of control. You’ve stopped talking, your eyes are fixed on the hijacker, and you are doing a “stare-down,” waiting for her to get the hint. She doesn’t, and keeps her monologue going. Call her by name calmly and repeatedly until she pauses, and ask her to please save her comments for the “bin list” – that list of topics that arise during the meeting, and which are not part of the agenda. Share that in the interest of making sure you get everyone out on time, you can meet with her post-meeting to discuss her issue. Also consider addressing items from your bin list regularly when you have a shorter meeting.

And a bonus tip: Just because you are leading the meeting doesn’t mean you are allowed to hijack airtime. You will need meeting participation by all involved. So, as you prepare your meeting agenda, also identify 1-3 talking points for each item. Shorten these to pithy sound bytes, making them impactful and effective to keep focus and attention.

When Your Star Employee Asks for a Raise

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When Your Star Employee Asks for a Raise

 

Keeping Spirits High When You Have to Say No

You have an excellent employee, Kathy, who is asking for a raise. How do you keep her motivated when you can’t give her what she is asking for?

You want to honor her request. Kathy is an excellent performer and someone you want to mentor for greater leadership. However, you’ve also just reviewed the budget and you know immediately that although she deserves a raise, the cash flow isn’t there to support it.

Be candid about the budget constraints, and tell her you still want to explore other options available right now, in order to recognize and reward her professional contribution.

Here are three tips to help you get creative in showing your support and vote of confidence:

  1. Think outside the box. Offer Kathy something else of value. You happen to know that Kathy values free time to spend with her family. What about additional paid time off every year, or an option to work from home one day weekly? Both of these are great benefits.
  2. Revisit her long-range goals and identify some short-term opportunities to help further these. Has she set her sights on a promotion or different role? You may be able to help more than you have thought. Identify a special project she can take on, or a taskforce in which she can participate, which will specifically help to meet her career aspirations.
  3. Build trust by flagging her request. Share that you will revisit a raise for Kathy with next year’s budgeting that reflects an additional bonus based on performance. And remember to make good on your promise by putting a tickler in your calendar at the appropriate time.

You may not always be able to say “yes” to deserving employees in the way that they request. However, you can acknowledge their value in some of these other ways that will build trust in you and keep a star performer’s motivation high.