During the meeting
A regularly scheduled status meeting should have four parts:
Welcome
Outstanding agenda items
New agenda items
Action steps and wrap-up
During the welcome, the meeting chair should convey any meeting logistics, introduce new participants, and provide some introductory points. If the group meets in the same place, then everyone probably knows the logistics, for example where the bathrooms are located. But for groups that rotate their location, this is important. In addition, for groups that meet infrequently, including a planned activity during the introduction to connect the participants is important.
Welcome activity for groups
Groups that meet quarterly or annually need a moment to reconnect before getting down to the business of the meeting. Think of reconnecting as being similar to a training icebreaker. The goal is the same: participants get to learn about each other and become comfortable with their surroundings.
The reconnect activity can be a traditional introduction...