Page 201 - Make Work Great

Leading Your Crystal

a meeting specifi cation like this one applies all of your new cultural
patterns to the context of effective group work.
Notice that in terms of overtness about task, this entire template
comes into play:

• The well-defi ned meeting objective represents overtness about
purpose regarding the meeting and its components. Also, the assign-
ment of specifi c roles to individual attendees—who will chair, moni-

tor the progress of the meeting flow, take notes, ensure everyone stays
engaged, and so on—gives those participants another overt expecta-
tion for what they’ll do with their time in the session.
• The set of expected outcomes for each agenda item supports
overtness about impact, or what will result from each part of the
meeting. If the agenda is well constructed, the relationship between
those impacts and the overall goal of the meeting should be apparent
to everyone in attendance.
• Listing that overall goal also supports overtness about incentive
for the attendees. It articulates the exact reason for the gathering, so
individuals can fi nd ways to relate that purpose to their own set of
incentives.
• The entire meeting fl ow section is a visibility system for the
meeting’s progress, because it allows everyone, especially the meet-
ing’s leader, to see at a glance whether the meeting is on track. To
make it truly useful, the schedule must be visible to all attendees at
all times, not just at the meeting’s start. In face-to-face settings, hand-
outs are a good option; if some or all attendees are remote, e-mail or
a shared fi le service may be used.
• The list of who will attend and who owns each item on the
agenda is a way of being overt about the resources required for the
meeting. Defi ning the meeting venue and agenda also highlights any
other resources needed, such as supplies or technology.
• Listing an item owner for each agenda item is also a way of
being overt about capability requirements; each responsible party
knows in advance what he or she needs to bring to the table for the

182