If you have been a participant or organizer of a meeting, you may have taken time out to ask yourself, “How do I hold a productive meeting?”– one that starts on time, ends on time, and accomplishes its purpose.

Here are are 9 key steps to holding a productive meeting.

Select the place of your meeting (if in-person) and be certain to reserve the room. It’s frustrating to plan a meeting and then when everyone arrives, there’s already a group in the meeting site.

Select a meeting time that works for your attendees. If you’re a Microsoft user, the Scheduling Assistant provides a view of your participants’ schedules so you can find a time that works for everyone or most everyone.

If possible, choose a time that’s not too early or too late. These tend to be problematic for attenance.

Set an agenda. Outline objective of the meeting as well as any key information needed to move forward. A short PowerPoint presentation is an effective way to visually convey this.

Establish a meeting time keeper. This person’s job is to remind the group when there’s 10 minutes left in the meeting. Virtual meeting programs have this feature available too.

Start with the most crucial information first. That way, if the meeting goes long, you’ll have accomplished the most important parts and the rest can be revisited.

Keep the discussion on task. If attendees begin to get off-topic, don’t be afraid to redirect. You can use a phrase like, “Let’s get back to the focus of today’s meeting and we can address that offline or in an0ther meeting.”

At the 10 ninute warning, start to recap and make any post-meeting assignments. If there are assignments, remember to establish the due date and where to submit the work.

Send out a recap to the group via email so everyone in attendance and anyone who declined. This creates a record of the meeting and it serves as a reminder for any additional work needed.

If a follow-up meeting is required, it’s wise to schedule it with everyone present. With everyone present, calendars can be easily checked for a new date.

At Office Furniture EZ, we believe a good meeting starts around a proper meeting table. One that has plenty of space for everyone, comfortable seating, any power/digital hookups and a professional look and feel. We have a wide selection of conference tables and we invite you to shop online or in-store. Select your size, shape, color and extras. We also offer delivery and setup if needed.