Read the sample conversation and act out dialogues of your own.

 

Sample Conversation: Are You Free on Wednesday? Ann: Jack, we need to discuss the new advertising campaign. Jack: When would you like to meet? Ann: Are you free on Thursday evening? Jack: Thursday evening is no good for me. I have a job interview. Ann: Then how about Friday around lunch? Jack: Friday around lunch works for me. I am free from 11:00 till 2:00. Ann: Let’s meet at 11:00 then.

8.You need to discuss several important issues with your partner. Using the dialogue above as a guide, arrange a meeting for each of these issues:

– the new product design

– the 4th quarter budget

– the recent flood of complaints

You already have several appointments scheduled so you are busy at those times (Student’s cards below).

STUDENT A

 

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Time
doctor’s appointment		meeting with a client			9:00   10:00   11:00   12:00   2:00   3:00   4:00   5:00
			meeting with the CEO
	meeting with a supplier

STUDENT B

 

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Time
			meeting with potential investors		9:00   10:00   11:00   12:00   2:00   3:00   4:00   5:00
meeting with a client		dentist appointment
				meeting with the board of directors

UNIT 4

MEETINGS AND NEGOTIATIONS

MEETINGS

Warm up

1. Discuss the following questions:

a) What are the main reasons for holding a meeting?

b) What is the role of the chairperson?

c) Why are so many meetings unsuccessful?

d) Describe a meeting that you have attended recently. How effective was it and why?

Vocabulary

 

2. Complete the following sentences with appropriate words from the list:

agenda     casting vote   consensus   minutes   circulate chairperson  items             arising        conduct   apologies

 

a)In all formal meetings and most informal meetings, there is a... whose job it is to... the business of the meeting and to ensure that the meeting's objectives are achieved.

b) It is helpful in both formal and informal meetings to have an... listing the points that are to be discussed. It is usual to... this in advance so that participants can prepare adequately for the meeting.

c) If there are too many... on the agenda, it is inevitable that the meeting will be over-long and so less effective.

d) After formal meetings the secretary writes up the..., an official record of the discussion that has taken place.

e) If you cannot attend a meeting, it is customary to send your... to the chairperson, who reads out the names of any absentees at the beginning of the meeting. After naming absentees, the chairperson may ask if there are any matters... out of the minutes of the last meeting.

f) When decisions must be taken, the chairperson hopes there will be a... on what should be done. Otherwise, a vote must be taken and sometimes the votes for and against are equal. If this happens, the only way to break the deadlock is for the chairperson to give his or her....

Reading

3. Before you read the text, look at the title. What do you think the article is about?

How to Waste Time at Work

(by Nancy Roman)

“Meetings are indispensable

when you don't want to do anything.”

John Kenneth Galbraith

Many people don’t understand the value of wasting time at work. They’re afraid of getting caught or fired for being too slack, so they work diligently through the entire workday.

Now, there’s a more effective way to waste your time and your team’s time without getting into trouble. Call a meeting. Meetings are the perfect place to waste time. Be sure to take full advantage of this opportunity.

1. Meet whenever you want

Team meetings should be held whenever a team member has new information to share (or wants to catch up on the office gossip). These meetings should not have a purpose or an objective to achieve, and should not be used for decision-making and problem-solving. If you decide to use other forms of communication, such as emails or memos, remember that you will be cutting down on the time wasted during meetings.

2. Include everyone in the meeting

Team meetings should follow the saying, “the more, the merrier.” All team members and anyone else who wants to participate, should be invited to each meeting (especially those who tell great jokes and make the meetings entertaining). Try to avoid including team members who will help achieve the meeting’s objective; therefore, wasting less time during the meetings.

3. Agendas are not needed

The problem with using an agenda is that it lets team members know the following:

- The time the meeting will begin and end: If team members know the meeting times, they will help keep the meeting on schedule.

- The location: If you tell team members where the meetings will be held, they will know the meeting place and will arrive early, causing the meeting to start on time.

- The purpose of the meeting: If team members don’t know what the meeting is for, they will most likely attend out of curiosity, increasing the amount of participants and causing chaos.

- The issues to be discussed: If team members know what will be talked about during the meeting, they may come prepared to focus on those issues. The lack of an agenda will lower team member’s expectation for what will be accomplished during the meeting, and will ensure a relaxed pace that can waste additional time.

If you do decide to distribute an agenda, do not hand it out before the meeting or team members will come prepared. Be sure the outline is unclear, and supply a limited amount of copies so only a few participants know what’s going on during the meeting.

4. Start the meeting late

Team meetings should not start on time. If you begin a meeting on time, you risk ending on time, thereby wasting less time. Team members should not be expected to arrive prior to the start time, so it is important to wait for all members before beginning the meeting. The longer you make the prompt team members wait, the more you encourage them to arrive later and later; therefore, wasting more time during meetings. This courtesy will create positive feelings about meetings in the future.

5. Avoid meeting roles

To avoid having team meetings run effectively, stay away from assigning meeting roles and responsibilities. The following could diminish the time wasted during your meetings:

- A team leader would ensure the agenda and correct meeting processes were followed.

- A timekeeper would keep the meeting on schedule.

- A gatekeeper would keep the team focused on the topic at hand.

- A scribe would write down all agreed-upon decisions and actions, and would record target dates and who is responsible.

- A recorder would write out all brainstorming ideas on a flip chart.

The less you involve team members in the meeting process, the less structure there will be, thus more time will be wasted.

6. End the meeting late

Ending team meetings on time causes you to have to go back to work. The longer the meeting, the later the meeting ends, the more time you waste.

7. Do not post meeting minutes

This last step is easy. If you don’t write down the action items during the meeting, you won’t have minutes to publish afterwards. In addition, if you didn’t have an agenda for the meeting, no one will expect minutes anyway.

Writing out and posting minutes reminds people of what they agreed to do in the meeting, which causes things to be done at work. Posting the minutes could also make team members remind and encourage each other to complete the activities.

Remember, everyone knows meetings are a huge waste of time, so use them often. With a little effort no one will ever know how little you do.

 

Comprehension

4. We hope you understand that the article you have read is humorous but it still gives food for thought.

Look through the article again and say what rules should be observed to make meetings more productive and efficient.