Termine

Time: 9:00am - 4:30pm

From faculty meetings to project meetings, research committees to team meetings - meetings are a regular feature of university life. Another typical task for academia is to chair a conference session at a scientific conference.

Inefficiently run meetings consume inordinate amounts of time and energy: Everyone has experienced the meeting that never seems to end or the meeting that appears to have no purpose. Given the committee-led nature of academic
institutions, the ability to manage meetings effectively and ensure focused outputs is vital to personal and organizational efficiency. Possible outcomes and efficiency depend highly on a well-prepared chairperson.

The Chairperson must ensure that there is full participation during meetings, that all relevant matters are discussed and that effective decisions are made and carried out. The role of a Chairperson is time consuming, with work between meetings (preparation, postprocessing); diplomatic, communicative and leadership skills are a necessary requirement for the job.

The workshop will cover the following topics:

• how to prepare for a role and the tasks of a moderator
  
• effective preparation for meetings (goals, agenda, "moderation-script")
  
• at the meeting: Keep focus and keep to time
  
• facilitation-techniques for specific topics: problem-solving, decision-making, information etc.
  
• visualization-techniques for meetings
  
• specific communication skills: how to stop chatterboxes, activate still waters, deal with conflicts etc.
  
• handling and respecting different levels of hierarchy
  
• prepare minutes of the meetings
  
• Follow up: Prepare for next meeting
  

Qualification objectives

By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to

• understand the roles and responsibilities of the chair (and the minute-taker)
  
• prepare effectively for a meeting (including creating an effective agenda)
  
• manage a meeting to ensure objectives are achieved
  
• ensure meetings and minutes meet the needs of all