Essential components of a general meeting are meeting procedure, written agenda and notes of minutes and presentation of financial statements. Ideally, roles within a meeting should be identified to progress matters with ease. Notice of meetings should be outlined in the Club’s Constitution and Regulations. This notice should be adhered to, and any items submitted after closing date postponed until a later time.
There are three main types of meetings:
- General meetings are usually well publicised with a written agenda. Minutes are taken during the meeting and the information is circulated at a later date to relevant parties, while a copy is kept for records.
- AGM’s are held in the off-season and as the name suggests, are held once per year. These meetings are open to all members.
- Special or Extraordinary General Meetings (S/EGM) may be held to deal with specific issues, such as a vital matter arising that requires urgent discussion by the whole group. These meetings may be held as and when needed and are open to all members.
These meetings are an opportunity for members to review the previous season and initiate proceedings or changes for the coming season, or address issues during the season. Clubs may vary the timing allocated for the meeting, persons eligible to vote, the election of officers and changes to the constitution, at these meetings. These specifics should be outlined in the Club Constitution.
At the AGM, the Annual Report is presented for adoption. All members should be given a copy of the Report in advance, with enough time to review it before the meeting.
a) Board of Directors / Committee Meetings
The Board of Directors or Management Meetings are places where both groups make decisions, involving elected or appointed decision makers. Both groups usually meet monthly.
The Board of Directors / Committee may review or prepare agendas to ensure all matters coming before the Directors / Committee are relevant and appropriate. The Committee / Board may also interpret policies to staff, oversee implementation of new policies or refer questions to other Sub Committees or the full Board of Directors / Committee Members.
b) Sub-Committee Meetings
Sub-Committees are designed to focus on a specific issue or task, such as finance, fundraising, marketing and so on. Regular reports by the Sub-Committee should be made to the Management/Executive Committee concerning progress and other activities. Regular reporting is also an important tool in keeping people advised of activities within other Committees. The recommendations and information reported by the Sub-Committees form the basis from which the Management Committee make decisions. That is, Sub-Committees do not have the power to make decisions, simply make recommendations to management.
c) Meeting Procedures
Structure is necessary within a meeting, as it improves the efficiency of business conducted. In addition, the rights of members present are protected, enabling everyone to have equal right to vote, make decisions, to be heard and have their viewpoint considered.
Simply by advising participants, meetings can be assisted by:
- Planning meetings at regular intervals so people can plan their attendance ahead of time
- Ensuring the group understands that the task and final decision are the joint responsibility of the group
- Welcome ideas from all members, treating them with respect
- Advise members how they are expected to contribute and why they are present
- Share responsibility
- Create a friendly atmosphere within the meeting
d) Setting the Agenda
Agendas allow meetings to run more efficiently as well as assist the recording of minutes. The way in which your Club’s agenda is decided will vary depending on the size of your Club.
Larger Clubs with more formal meetings structures may circulate the issues to be discussed as identified by the Secretary and Chairperson, ahead of the meeting to allow time for members to prepare their thoughts and arguments in advance. If members have issues to add to the agenda in this situation, they should notify the Secretary. Disadvantages of this approach in forming the agenda include people not being confident putting items on the agenda, as well as a small number of people dominating the agenda.
Smaller Clubs may take a different approach, the members being requested to place items on the agenda at the beginning of the meeting. In this way, items that are suggested at the beginning of the meeting will be discussed in turn. Although this approach may encourage greater participation, some people may find it difficult preparing their argument on the spot.
An alternative suggestion may be a sheet posted on the Club notice board – an ‘Agenda Sheet’- calling for items to be discussed at the next meeting.
The most important issues should generally be discussed at the beginning of the meeting.
e) Quorum
A quorum is the minimum number of people necessary to make a valid decision and is usually outlined in the Constitution. A meeting can be declared invalid if a quorum is not present or insufficient or incorrect notice of the meeting is given.
f) Motion
A motion is a formal recommendation put before a meeting for debate and consideration. They provide more structure for the meeting and generally increase formality.
Motions should generally:
- Begin with ‘that’
- Be specific and unambiguous
- Not be worded in the first person
- Not contain more than one sentence
- Not attempt to revive a motion previously rejected
- Be submitted in writing
An amendment is the process of altering or changing a motion, Constitution or Regulation. Amendments should be conducted along the same lines as a motion as mentioned above.
g) Reaching a Decision
The obvious purpose of a meeting is to reach a decision on matters or issues that are set on the agenda. The most common methods of reaching a decision are voting and consensus decision-making.
Voting generally assumes that the views of the majority should prevail. A simple vote occurs when general agreement is sought among the participants. Verbal voting, by proclaiming ‘yay’ or ‘nay’ or voting by a show of hands are common ways of reaching a decision in a simple vote.
However, some issues require a more formal method of decision making, such as individual and secret voting. Voting by proxy and postal voting may be required for more complex issues, to ensure all relevant people are included in the decision making process.
Consensus this approach assumes that decisions can be agreed or consented to by all members, with some form of cooperation between all. In a consensus vote, one or two people should be elected to direct the discussion, ensure no one is blocked from the debate, state the issue clearly and facilitate discussion. The chairperson makes suggestions but does not force a decision, asking at the conclusion whether everyone agrees on the issue stated.
If agreement isn’t reached, those who disagreed are asked to offer alternatives. If only one or two people are blocking consensus, they should be asked whether they are willing to stand aside to allow the group to go ahead in the action proposed. If the individuals decide to stand aside, they should not be expected to carry out any action associated with the decision, with their disagreement should also be recorded.
Terms that you should be familiar with:
- Reaching consensus – the group is willing to go ahead with the decision
- Objection – when a person is unwilling to stand aside to let the group proceed
- Reservation – when a person has a concern but will stand aside
- Friendly amendment – when a person agrees with the proposal but wants words, sentences or other points changed
h) Roles within a meeting
The Chairperson is responsible for directing business and conducting the meeting, allowing the chairperson relative power and authority. The Chairperson and Director of Administration should meet to discuss agenda items prior to the meeting and ensure that they are circulated before the meeting.
(i) Characteristics of an effective chairperson:
- Unbiased and impartial
- Familiar with the standing orders of the organisation and relaxed and tolerant when applying them
- Good listener and able to keep the meeting on track, ensuring it starts and finishes on time
- Refers items to a working group for a report at the next meeting if a decision is unlikely to be made at the present point in time
(ii) Roles of the Chairperson:
- Ability to delegate tasks to other members
- Prepare the agenda in conjunction with the Director of Administration / Treasurer
- Identifies who wishes to speak and indicates when they may
- Decides when discussions should be brought to an end
- Does not usually get involved in discussions unless their opinion is specifically sought and should summarise the issue being discussed so that a decision may be made
The Director of Administration / Treasurer holds a variety of tasks that take place before, during and after the meeting. They are usually the first point of contact for members to raise issues and coordinate links between key people.
(iii) Characteristics of an effective Director of Administration / Treasurer:
- Good communicator and a clear thinker
- Able to manage and supervise others whilst maintaining confidentiality
- Able to organise and delegate tasks
- Be familiar with the Constitution and abide by its policy
(iv) Roles of the Director of Administration / Treasurer:
- Prepare the agenda in conjunction with the Chairperson
- Organise meeting time and place, admission to the venue and use of its services
- Advise those concerned with enough notice of the meeting, its venue and other particulars
- Enclose the minutes of the previous meeting if they have not already been posted
- Take minutes from the meeting
(v) At the AGM, additional duties to the Director of Administration / Treasurer role may include:
- Collecting and collating reports from office bearers
- Advising members of the meeting within a specified time (as stated within the Constitution)
- Call for and receive nominations for Committees and other positions
- Arrange for the printing of the Annual Report
- Arrange guest speakers
i) Streamline Meetings
If your committee meetings run overtime, are dominated by a few people and resolve little – then take action. Meetings should be a key vehicle for running the club, but all too often they waste time and achieve little. The ‘must do’ items for effective meetings:
- A planned calendar of meetings
- Meetings run in an orderly manner, with contributions from all
- The Chair controls the meeting and fully understands his/her legal and procedural requirements
- An agenda is circulated, highlighting items for resolution and important information
- Board papers are precise, easy to understand and distributed on time
- Utilise Sub-Committees – not everything has to come to the committee meeting
(i) Minute Taking
The Director of Administration / Treasurer should do the following when taking minutes of the meeting:
- Follow the order of the agenda
- State the main issues, points of view put forward and decisions made
- Ensure the full text of motions is recorded
- Be alert to take extra notes that may be needed by the Chairperson
- Record attendance and apologies
- List accounts for payments approved, reports received, main points or answers required for correspondence
(ii) Between meetings, the Director of Administration / Treasurer should:
- Write up the minutes as soon as possible following the meeting
- Circulate the minutes to all members preferably within a week of the meeting
- Using the minutes, note the points of action that need to be followed up in the coming weeks
- Ensure all important arrangements are confirmed in writing with copies made and filed. Records of important telephone conversations are also recommended
j) Meeting Reports
Written reports should be encouraged by Committee and Sub-Committee members on a regular basis. The reports may be in the form of progress reports or project reports and often reduce the amount of time spent talking about the issue in the meeting. Written reports need not be read out to the meeting by the directors but read by those in attendance and any comments or discussion noted in the minutes. The report should be succinct, focusing on the details of ‘what, where, when, how and why’. The conclusion of the report should contain a recommendation or set of recommendations for a decision. The content of a report should be acknowledged as being received, noting the outcomes of recommendations.
k) Conflict in Meetings
Conflict is a natural often inevitable aspect of meetings and is generally covered in the Club’s constitution as to how conflict should be managed. Conflict in these situations is often perceived as negative, when in fact it suggests that members are actively taking part in discussion and are passionate about their involvement in the decision they are making.
Positive outcomes of conflict in meetings include the discussion of alternative viewpoints and the airing of hidden problems. These factors facilitate innovation and increase motivation and performance. Alternatively, negative outcomes of conflict include communication breakdowns, attention being diverted from goals, a shift to authoritarian leadership styles and narrow group perspectives.
Conflict may be managed by negotiating and bargaining, mediation, and arbitration, in addition to direct intervention by the Chairperson. The speaker may interrupt with the objection that it is ‘only fair everyone gets to state their case’ or ‘-, you are preventing others from hearing the case’ or the speaker may appeal to the Chair ‘if you and the meeting wish me to continue, I will do so if I can explain my case in full’, and so on.
Templates & Forms
LSV Meeting Agenda Template
https://lsv.com.au/wp-content/themes/abomb/pdf/members/c-development/Meeting_Agenda_Template.doc
LSV Meeting Minutes Template
https://lsv.com.au/wp-content/themes/abomb/pdf/members/c-development/Meeting_minutes_Template.doc