1 What are meeting objectives and outcomes?

Meeting objectives and outcomes are specific and measurable results that you want to achieve from your meeting. To ensure these goals are met, they should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. Having objectives and outcomes that meet these criteria will help to align your meeting agenda, participants, and resources with your overall goals and expectations. Additionally, they should be realistic and attainable within the given time and resources while also being aligned with your team or organization's vision, mission, and values.

2 How to communicate meeting objectives and outcomes?

To ensure your meeting participants understand the purpose and value of a meeting, it's important to communicate your SMART meeting objectives and outcomes clearly and concisely. You can do this by sending a meeting invitation with a brief summary of the objectives and outcomes, sharing a detailed agenda with them as headings or subheadings, starting the meeting with an overview of the objectives and outcomes and how they relate to the agenda items, and revisiting the objectives and outcomes throughout the meeting to keep everyone focused and engaged.

3 How to measure meeting objectives and outcomes?

After the meeting, it is important to evaluate if your SMART meeting objectives and outcomes were met. This will help you assess the effectiveness and impact of your meeting, identify any gaps or issues, and plan for any follow-up actions or improvements. You can measure your meeting objectives and outcomes in various ways, such as collecting feedback from the meeting participants, comparing the actual results or outputs of the meeting with the expected ones, reviewing the meeting minutes or notes to highlight key achievements or challenges, and calculating the return on investment (ROI) or value for money (VFM) of the meeting.

4 How to follow up on meeting objectives and outcomes?

Finally, it is essential to follow up on your SMART meeting objectives and outcomes to ensure that they are implemented and sustained. This will help maintain accountability, transparency, and collaboration among your meeting participants, as well as track and celebrate progress and achievements. To do this, you can send a thank-you email or message with a summary of the objectives and outcomes, including any action items or next steps. Additionally, you can schedule a follow-up meeting or call to review the status of the action items or next steps. Furthermore, you can share the meeting outcomes with relevant stakeholders or audiences using reports, presentations, or newsletters. Lastly, recognize and reward the meeting participants or contributors for their efforts or contributions.