How to Plan a Meeting

Have you ever been charged with planning an event or meeting for your organization even though it is not part of your primary job responsibility?  With a tight economy and limited resources, somehow the catch-all phrase “and other assigned projects” in your job description makes you a perfect candidate to take on this task!  There are certainly third party site selection services that can assist you at no charge with this kind of project if you choose, but sometimes you may prefer to do it yourself.

Hopefully, the following 20 steps will help you as you take on this endeavor.  First and foremost, however, one thing you should keep in mind is that the key to a successful meeting is in the pre planning.

1. Create Meeting Goals and Objectives – This is one of the most important topics to discuss and agree upon with the meeting requestor.  This is where the main communication message or messages expected to be retained by the attendees needs to be crystallized.
2. Develop Program Agenda – Based on the amount of content required to deliver the meeting message, you will need to determine who will be the meeting presenters, how much time will they need, and how will they present the material.
3. Create Meeting Theme – Message retention for any meeting is more effective if you can create a theme around the content.  Just like teaching a course in a particular subject, it is much easier to absorb, and more interesting for the audience, if everything ties into the theme.
4. Identify Attendees – It is important to invite the right people to attend a meeting.  The content must be relevant, useful, and essential for the attendees to know.  Inviting the wrong attendees will dramatically reduce your meeting success.
5. Assemble Meeting Requirements – Based on the goals and objectives, the meeting content, the desired theme, the number and profile of the attendees, you will need to itemize your meeting requirements.  Will you need a centrally located downtown hotel facility or a resort?  How many guest rooms will you need?  How much meeting space will you need?  What is your program agenda?
6. Decide on Geographic Meeting Site – Due to ever rising travel costs, many organizations like to choose centrally located destinations.  Others choose destina