Meetings can be a difficult thing to do at work. If you are having trouble getting your employees involved and contributing then you are not alone. When your employees clam up when the meeting starts, nothing will be productive. You will end up talking and feel the resentment of the people in the room while you prevent them from doing their “real work”.

Here are some ways to increase meeting attendance:

Prepare your meeting in a clever way. Schedule a meeting for mid-morning, or right after lunch. If you schedule a meeting too early, nobody will have woken yet. But if you schedule it too late, attendees will be too tired or watching the clock.

Meetings should be as short and concise as possible. People cannot be held in attention for more than an hour. Divide the meeting up into small slots and do not dwell on any one topic for too long.

You don’t need to sit down for a meeting. Try a standing or walking meeting to encourage more participation. People will be more engaged in their environment. It’s okay to be a bit creative. It is important to choose the right environment for a meeting like Meeting Rooms Exeter. It is impossible to work in an environment that is too crowded, too hot or dark. For Meeting Rooms Exeter, visit Nettl.

Send an agenda to all team members in advance and assign a specific topic. Tell them what they can expect from the meeting and their role. This way, there are no excuses to not participate.

Visuals will help you to keep people’s attention. It will help to keep people’s interest. Use a combination of charts, slides or videos.

Ask for questions and queries during the meeting. Invite all participants to contribute. This will help to focus the group’s thinking and encourage participation by allowing questions and answers to flow naturally.