The Standing Meeting Copyright 1996 CAUSE. From _CAUSE/EFFECT_ magazine, Volume 19, Number 1, Spring 1996, pp. 49-50. Permission to copy or disseminate all or part of this material is granted provided that the copies are not made or distributed for commercial advantage, the CAUSE copyright and its date appear, and notice is given that copying is by permission of CAUSE, the association for managing and using information technology in higher education. To disseminate otherwise, or to republish, requires written permission. For further information, contact Julia Rudy at CAUSE, 4840 Pearl East Circle, Suite 302E, Boulder, CO 80301 USA; 303-939-0308; e-mail: jrudy@CAUSE.colorado.edu THE STANDING MEETING by David L. Smallen ABSTRACT: As our environments become more distributed and team-based, how can we foster staff "togetherness" and a more coordinated approach to delivering information services? At Hamilton College, the "standing meeting" has become a "standing" management practice that has helped to meet these challenges. Providing excellent information services has become an increasingly team-oriented activity--little can be accomplished by individuals operating in isolation. Rather, providing excellent services requires the coordinated efforts of many individuals, each contributing his or her particular expertise, talents, and perspectives. Teams change from day to day, and providing mechanisms so that these team members can maintain contact is a challenge. Even in small organizations, once the day begins everyone scatters around the campus, and maintaining contact, even electronically, becomes problematic. Also, individuals are often physically separated from each other, perhaps as a result of moving support personnel closer to the users, or due to a scarcity of appropriate office space, or because formerly separate organizations have been consolidated but not co-located. Whatever the reason, there needs to be a mechanism for keeping the entire organization moving in the same direction on a regular, consistent basis and facilitating team work. Part of a solution can be the "standing" meeting. This is a technique that I, and other colleagues who have tried it, have found to be an amazingly simple and effective means of building organizational cohesion and improving the delivery of services. Any organization--small or large--can do this! At Hamilton College, there are fourteen individuals who are collectively responsible for providing computing, telephone, networking, and institutional research services to the college community. Each morning at 8:45 our entire organization gets together for a meeting that generally lasts from five to fifteen minutes. The three main purposes of the meeting are: (1) to provide anyone with an opportunity to make an announcement, particularly about something that might affect others in the organization, (2) to enable any team of individuals to get together (generally right after the meeting) to plan the delivery of some service, and (3) to allow everyone to see one another at least once during each day. Announcements do not have to be profound or earth-shaking. Some recent examples included: computers were to be installed in a particular department that day; the power was off for a period of time over the weekend and everyone should be aware that people who forgot to reset their surge suppressors will be calling in with "computer" problems; or that the latest survey about the help-desk services was very positive. Announcing who is on vacation, or sick that day, is something that we do every day. Interestingly--and especially if this technique is used every day--there are many times in which there are few announcements. I sometimes have to prod people to announce something that they know, and that I think might be important to the group. Some of this reticence to speak comes from personality dynamics, which are always interesting to observe and which often change over time. Nevertheless, the most consistent value of the morning meeting is getting everyone in one room so they can find each other. Once the day begins, they scatter to their various responsibilities around the campus. Some Tips for Success Make sure the meeting is short. One way to accomplish this is to conduct the meeting in a place where all or most people have to stand (hence the origin of the term "standing" meeting). This reinforces the notion that this is not a meeting in which to relax or get comfortable, but rather to get geared up for the day. Encourage brief announcements rather than long pronouncements. Don't use this meeting to do strategic planning. If someone begins to go into great detail, suggest that he e-mail everyone, or arrange for another meeting time. This provides practice for everyone in organizing their thoughts in a concise manner--something that is valuable professional development. Encourage announcements that bring insight into services being provided, especially ones that will help others in the organization understand a service area that they are not generally involved in. Even in a small organization, it is easy for people to feel "out of the loop." Don't worry if there aren't many substantive announcements each day. The main purpose of the meeting is to get everyone together. This was an area that I worried about quite a bit when I first started using this technique. I was so concerned about information flow that I kept trying various ways to encourage it, for example, by having each person take turns telling about something they were working on. This was artificial and didn't take hold. Just when I was ready to despair, and considered dropping the whole idea, my staff pointed out that I was missing the most important part of the meeting for them--namely the opportunity to get together, get to know each other, and plan the delivery of services. Use the standing meeting to recognize birthdays and other special events. We have a cake for each person's birthday, and the standing meeting provides a reminder that the birthday person has to cut the cake before others can eat. However, the morning meeting shouldn't be a substitute for a party at other times. Hold the standing meeting regardless of who can make it. Vacations, illness, etc. will mean that not everyone can attend every meeting. The value of the meeting is for those who can attend. Knowing that this meeting will take place makes it possible for members of the organization to plan to get together each day. Schedule the meeting at the beginning of the day, before everyone on campus begins to request services. Regular activities should not conflict with this meeting. This is an important activity for members of the organization, and it should be possible for them to attend almost all the time. Variations on a Theme Colleagues who have tried this technique at other institutions have reported a very positive reaction by their staffs. Each site has modified the technique in some way, usually in the frequency in which the meeting takes place. Regardless of the exact implementation method, providing regular opportunities for all members of the organization to get together encourages teamwork, and teamwork is central to delivering excellent services. ============================================================= SIDEBAR: For Successful Standing Meetings: * Make sure the meeting is short * Encourage brief announcements * Encourage announcements related to services * Don't worry if there aren't always substantive announcements * Use the meetings to recognize birthdays and other special events * Hold the meeting regardless of who can attend * Schedule the meeting at the beginning of the day ************************************************************* David L. Smallen (dsmallen@hamilton.edu) is Director, Information Technology Services and Institutional Research at Hamilton College. In this capacity he is responsible for the planning and management of academic and administrative computing resources, campus voice and data communications, and institutional research.