Where can I find innovative diagrams that show ways of containing strategic
discussions which tend to drift over broader issues to the one, two or
three components being focused on at the time?

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Request for Question Clarification by answerguru-ga on 02 Aug 2002 08:37 PDT

Hi Janis,

Perhaps it would be helpful if you could mention a few of the
components you want included in the diagrams...unfortunately
innovative ideas cannot be
mass-produced :)

Thanks,

ansewrguru-ga

In my opinion the need for such tools is obviated when the agenda is
clear, is distributed in advance, and some one person (whenever
possible, yourself) is granted power and authority to facilitate the
meeting. See http://www.eheadproductions.com/sem.htm, "Meeting
Planning"
/Eric

Dear janis,

Perhaps one way to look at your meeting problem is to try to answer
the question: "Why do the meetings get sidetracked"?

Some possible suggestions:
* Agenda may be too loose: perhaps a more detailed agenda or
discussion paper with more specific issues and decisions.
* Specific personalities? Adjust meeting participants.
* Insufficient guidance: Is more assertiveness on your part possible -
address the issue not the person.
* Insufficient facts: 

One general strategy I have found successful was to have
mini-communications or discussions with all the partipants to gain
their input, prepare a summarising paper with recommended solutions
which was distributed pre-meeting to allow for comment.

The meeting would then address any specific controversial points. In
practice, there were rarely controversial points because these would
have already been taken into consideration.... so the meeting was a
"rubber stamp" consensus and an opportunity for those who didn't read
the pre-meeting paper to catch up and have input.

Regards,