22. BIG MEETINGS,
BIG DECISIONS
Leadership Summits, Kick Offs, Sales
Meetings and Annual Conferences mean
more people, more planning and more stress.
Top managers often have double roles. They
own the content and have the final say on
everything from the key messages to the
choice of the venue. The other role is of a
more practical nature, on stage, in the
spotlight.
Many books and lectures have focused on
presentation skills. In these ten slides we
wanted to lift the other aspect, the essential
importance of confident leadership as a
foundation for outstanding meetings.
Thank you for reading!
23. #1
WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DELEGATE, REALLY?
Don’t delegate things months in advance just to change everything the week before
because the people around you were bad at reading your mind.
Be clear on your key messages and make sure that the people you have put in charge
receive a good brief before they start preparing.
As the event approaches, keep cool and stick to plan.
24.
25. #2
CONTROL YOUR MANAGEMENT
Communication experts and consultants can only do so much to direct the C-suite.
Make sure that the people closest to you act in the interest of the whole company and
play the part required for the key messages to come across.
Sometimes it means staying off stage.
26.
27. #3
SHOW DON’T TELL
We’ve seen enough slides telling us to be passionate and to think outside the box.
If you want passion and innovation, create emotional experiences that inspire people to
be creative. While you're at it, make sure to spend the time you need to do it well.
28.
29. #4
BE BOLD
Time is running. When the business environment changes and you struggle with the
effects of digitization, keeping the protocol can be just as effective as it was on Titanic.
Creating change means changing behaviors. That means you need to reach both the
hearts and the minds of the people, two organs that are common all over the world,
regardless of the title on the business card.
Meetings don’t flop because they’re different. Quite the opposite!
30. TYPISK VIKTNING I KOMMUNIKATIONEN
95 5
Kotter: The Heart of Change, Harvard Business School
31. OPTIMAL VIKTNING I KOMMUNIKATIONEN
40 60
Kotter: The Heart of Change, Harvard Business School
32. #5
INVOLVE
Do you want listeners or participants? People will surely like to hear your views and
opinions but are you equally curious about what they have to say?
Use workshops to start the engagement instantly and give people a chance to transform
the overall strategy to a personal agenda.
Good meetings are a two way street.
33.
34. #6
BE REAL
Set your meeting off in total transparency. If your employees are worn out, if your
customers complain, if your owners are concerned, put a camera in front of the
strongest voices and capture it on film.
You need a sense of urgency to keep the meeting alive. To hide the problems is contra
productive.
Nothing inspires people more than being part of a solution!
35. #7
PLAY
Asking people to change and do things differently is always a bit frightening. To ask
them to perform from the start will block them totally. But that’s nothing you can’t fix with
a little playfulness.
Playing is the most basic forms of learning, practiced by both children and kittens. When
the seriousness of performing is lifted out, the mind opens and embraces new things
more easily.
Ready for some serious fun?
36.
37. #8
GET SOME SPACE
This might look like something you can delegate but before you do that, make sure to
give your meeting planner a good brief.
The most cost effective way to gather a thousand people will always be in a cinema
seating. This solution doesn’t give you room to do anything out of the ordinary. In other
words, this might just be the most expensive saving you ever made.
Get the space you need to meet for real.
38. #9
THINK PROCESS
Avoid that your big meetings become time bubbles, where you gather to pick up the
conversation you had last year.
How can the meeting connect to other events that happen before and after. How can it
connect to the questions discussed on the Intranet and other internal channels?
You don´t make changes by taking large steps once a year, you change by taking small
steps every day. Your big meeting might just be the place where you adjust the direction.
39. #10
BE A THOUGHT LEADER
A few one-liners that might come in handy:
̶ Fifteen minutes? That’s too much, I think you can tell this much better in five.
̶ I understand this presentation is your script, when can I see the slides you plan to
show?
̶ Do we have enough breaks? People need oxygen and time for a chat too.
̶ We need to trust our colleagues. I would like to hear what they think. Can we
make time to let them discuss it?