In order to make effective decisions that will assist your non-profit organisation, it is vital that people are aware of how to best run a meeting. Here are 7 key steps that will assist this process:

Key Step #1 - Give Plenty of Notice to other Board/Committee Members

It is always a good idea to get as many of your Committee to the meeting as possible so that there is good debate about the motions or decisions that need to be made. Your constitution will state how much notice each person is needed to be given. Often it will say 'reasonable notice' or sometimes it will say at least seven days. It maybe useful to set the date of the next meeting at the end of the current meeting or to have your meetings on a set date and time each quarter/month/week/fortnight.

By giving adequate notice, not only will you be complying with your constitution but you will help avoid disputes about decisions being made without Committee Members who couldn't make it. They will also have had plenty of time to consider the issues so that the meeting doesn't go around in circles discussing things that pop up.

Key Step #2 - Distribute Meeting Papers and the Agenda at least a Week before the Meeting

Committee members will not be able to contribute effectively if they are given Board papers on the day or the day before. Most meetings will have a standard agenda which will contain things like Open and Welcome, Confirmation of the Previous Minutes, Treasurer's Report, Secretary's Report (Correspondence in and Out), General Business, Next Meeting and Close. If there is a good agenda that has been distributed in advance, Committee Members will be ready to better contribute to discussion and debate.

Key Step #3 - Keep Good Minutes

By keeping good minutes, motions discussed and decisions made will be accurately recorded. This will help avoid disputes at later dates as to what was actually decided. You may want to have a look at my other Ezine article "7 Key Steps to Keeping Minutes".

Key Step #4 - Appoint a President/Chair of the Meeting

Usually the President/Chairperson will start and oversee the meeting. If that person is not present, usually the constitution will state who will be the chair of the meeting or how to appoint the chair of the meeting (usually by vote of those present).

Key Step #5 - Have a Strong President/Chairperson

Whenever members are considering a Chairperson, they need to ensure that the person has strong qualities as this person will be responsible for ensuring meetings are run in an orderly and inclusive fashion. A good chairperson encourages input from all attendees and also steps in if discussions are getting too heated in a way that matters cannot be debated fairly or sensibly. If the meeting is not controlled in an orderly fashion, decisions will not be made equitably and there will be feelings of mistrust and anger towards dominant persons within the meeting.

Key Step #6 - Ensure a Quorum is Present

A quorum is the number of people required to be present in order for legal decisions to be made. It will be pointless to start the meeting if a quorum is not present. Should at any stage during the meeting, the quorum falls below the minimum number required, the meeting should be adjourned until a quorum is in place.

Key Step #7 - Don't let Discussions Drag On and Stick to the Agenda!

Whilst it is important to hear all points of view, the chair should ensure timeframes for the meeting are adhered to as far as possible. Once points are made during the debate, if someone in the meeting starts to ramble, the chair should politely remind that person that there are tight deadlines for all business to be discussed and move onto the next person/agenda item. The chair should also try and ensure that the agenda is followed in order as quite often people wish to discuss matters before they are due as they are influenced by emotion sometimes and can't wait for the item to be discussed. This will lead to a longer and less orderly meeting and people will start to dread attending them in future!

More information on this article can be found at http://www.mycommunitypoint.com or http://www.scolaricomerford.com.au

In this month's column, Michael C. Oldenburg shows you how to use your favorite Microsoft Office 2007 programs on your cell phone.

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I'm sitting in a small caf at night, notebook in hand, enjoying chai tea. It's busier than I thought it would be, with only a couple of vacant tables. I'm staring at the table top. It's one of those reflective, silver finishes that look as if it has three-dimensional ridges even though the surface is flat. It ought to have depth, but doesn't.

I'm reminded of the importance of depth, or rather digging deep to get the information you need when developing a proposal or report. It's very easy to sit back and simply scratch the surface of a situation. It seems very straightforward, that is until you start to probe beneath that surface. I know a senior executive who was appointed president of a company requiring a major reorganization. The firm I worked with was asked to help with the reorganization. The information we'd received from the vice president of human resources was that this reorganization, though tough, should go smoothly.

Wanting to be sure that there wasn't more to the situation, I probed deeper. I asked the president what he had found when first assuming his new position. This forced the president to think back and review the experience of taking over, especially the reactions of the company's executive and staff. It was very different from the initial information we had been given.

It's vital to get past the veneer. What you unearth may tell you a number of things:

1. The real situation may be different from what you think it is.

2. The real situation may be different from what the client thinks it is.

3. The real situation will no longer fit, or may not fit, the solution you had in mind.

It's important to have the client think through the situation. It's quite possible that they have not thought it through, or determined the impact of a particular course of action. One of the ways I like to probe is as follows:

Why do you want to do this? Client answers.

So that what happens? Client answers.

In order to do what? Client answers.

So that what happens? Client answers.

This kind of probing will often allow you to dig deeper, to get the real story or at least a much better understanding of what is going on, and therefore what the client needs. It's a solid basis for developing an effective report or proposal.

Neil Sawers develops books and e-books to help entrepreneurs, small business and students write more easily and effectively. Visit us at http://www.howtowriteproposals.com and download our free chapters containing key tools to help you get your message across in the way you want.

If security alerts from the Microsoft Office Trust Center appear when you open your presentation or click certain content in your presentation, read this article to find out how to resolve the issue.

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