INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING AND

TECHNOLOGY , BHADDAL

REPORT ON MEETING SKILLS

SUBMITTED BY-
HARSH SHARMA
SUBMITTED TO- JAGDISH SINGH
MRS. GURPREET KAUR OM PRAKASH
 Meeting Skills

What do we use meetings for?

Meetings are very important for the
work of any organization. Good
meetings are important for collective
decision-making, planning and follow-
up, accountability, democracy, and
other practices that will help you to
build a good organization. If meetings
are used in the correct way, they can
help an organization to be efficient.
However, like all organizing tools,
meetings can be used badly and end
up not serving the purpose that they
are supposed to. Sometimes we
seem to attend too many long
meetings, which discuss the same
thing over and over again without
seeming to move forward. Meetings
can become places where conflict is
played out. Some people can also
see attending meetings as working
for the organization instead of seeing
it as a tool for getting work done. We
should try to make our meetings
places where we get democratic and
constructive participation and
involvement from our members.
 Important things to know about
meetings
The purpose of meetings
Most people do not like attending
meetings – especially if they are not
sure what the purpose of the meeting
is, or if it goes on too long and
achieves too little. Meetings must not
be too frequent or held just for the
sake of it. There must be a need for a
meeting. There should be decisions
about the different types of meetings
needed. For example, some
meetings could be to discuss policy
and others to discuss organisation
(practical work).
Wherever possible the members
must know what type of meeting they
are going to and what the meeting is
for – in other words, the purpose of
the meeting. Sometimes an
organization might call a special or
extraordinary meeting.
There are different types of meetings
and planning and it should take
account of this.
Different types of meetings
Most organizations will hold the
following types of meetings:
1. The general members
meeting: 
This is the most common
meeting, which usually
happens once a month or once
every two weeks. The general
members meeting should be
 the place where members are
informed of developments,
involved in decisions and given
education and information that
will help them to become more
active in the organization.
General meetings are usually
the places where decisions are
made and where the executive
reports on work they and other
sub-committees have done.
2. Special meetings: 
These can be called to discuss
specific issues, for example
preparing for a national
conference or work on planning
activities for the year. Any
members who are interested
should be invited to attend
special meetings. They should
 not be run like general
members meetings (with
minutes, reports etc) but should
only focus on the issues they’ve
been called to discuss.
3. Executive meetings: 
The executive should meet
more regularly than the general
members, and executive
meetings should have a more
business-like focus. The
executive has to plan
implementation for the
organization, monitor the work
that has been done, deal with
problems, and often (if you’re
part of a larger organization)
relate to other levels of the
organization. They should
discuss correspondence in
 detail and address problems as
they come up. The executive
should also keep an eye on the
finances of the organization
and monitor income and
expenditure. Every executive
meeting should have an item
on the agenda that plans for the
next general members meeting.
They should provide both
leadership and administration
to the organisation.
4. Annual General Meeting: 
Most organisations have an
Annual General Meeting laid
down in their constitution. The
AGM is the place where the
executive accounts to all
members about the activities of
the year as well as the finances
of the organisation. The AGM is
also the place where new
leaders are elected and are
given a mandate to run the
organisation for another year.
Most AGM’s need at least the
following two detailed reports to
the members:
 The secretary’s report that
lists plans of the
organisation, the actual
activities that took place that
year, the achievements of
the year, and the problems
experienced.
 The treasurer’s report: a
detailed financial report that
lists all income from
subscriptions, grants,
 donations, fundraising; and
all expenditure. This report
should also clearly state
what the balance is and
where that balance is held. It
is important to have a written
financial report at your AGM
but very often members find
financial reports difficult to
understand and you should
try and make it simpler by
putting the main headings on
news-prints and explaining it
to people in less financial
language.
Planning a meeting
Planning should improve participation
by ensuring that discussion is on a
single topic and that the members
are well prepared for the meeting.
This is the responsibility of the
Chairperson, Secretary and
Executive, depending on the type of
organisation.
Planning does not mean controlling
and directing the meeting in such a
way that it restricts participation
Planning should include the following:
Notification: It is the executive’s
responsibility to ensure that everyone
has been notified of the date, time
and venue of the meeting, as well as
the main issues to be discussed. For
many organisations it is a useful
practice to always have their
meetings on the same day at the
same time in the same place – for
example on the first Saturday of
every month at the local church hall.
If you do not money to always inform
your members of meetings then over
time this will help you to cut costs,
and to make sure that everyone
knows where they can find the
meeting.
Preparing the agenda: The agenda
is a list of the most important issues
for the members to discuss. It is
drawn from the Matters Arising from
the previous meeting and from the
discussions of the Executive or
Secretariat.
The agenda is the responsibility of
the Chairperson and the Secretary.
The chairperson should read the
minutes of the previous meeting to
familiarise him/herself with the
issues. This will for the basis of a list
of matter arising from these minutes.
Matters arising include:
Tasks – a report back must be given
Matters for which further information
was required for discussion
Matters that were deferred to this
meeting
There are standard items for any
agenda. These items should be
arranged in order of priority and time
should be allocated for each
discussion. Where possible, try to
familiarise yourself with each area of
discussion.
An agenda should include a last item
known as General or Any Other
Business to allow individuals to raise
short items not included on the
agenda.
How to run a meeting
The agenda
Open the meeting and welcome
everyone. Then go through the
agenda step by step.
Those present and apologies: The
apologies of those members not able
to attend the meeting are recorded as
part of the minutes. Send round an
attendance register if there are too
many people to just record it in the
minutes. Ask if there are any
apologies from people who are not
there.
Minutes: Minutes are accurate notes
of what is discussed and decided on
at meetings. Make sure that the
minutes of the previous meeting are
circulated to everyone or at least
read at the beginning of the meeting.
(See section on writing minutes)
Minutes must be adopted at the
beginning of a meeting. Give people
a chance to read the minutes or read
them out aloud. Everyone must agree
that they are an accurate record of
the last meeting. Members must be
given the chance to add where
item/points might have been left out.
Matters arising from the minutes:
This covers points that were
discussed at the last meeting, when
perhaps someone was asked to do
some work or there have been
subsequent developments, which
now need discussion. A list of these
points is drawn from the previous
meeting’s minutes.
Correspondence: This means all the
letters that have been received by the
organisation since the last meeting.
They can be dealt with in different
ways. If your group does not receive
many letters, they could be read out
and then discussed. Another way is
for the secretary to list them with a
brief explanation. The chairperson
then goes through the list and
suggests action. If the issue raised in
the letter needs decisive action it can
be more fully discussed.
Other items on the agenda: Someone
must introduce each item on the
agenda. The item introduced could
be either a discussion or a report.
If it is a discussion someone is given
the job of leading the discussion and
making proposals on that particular
item.
If it is a report, the person who is
reporting should comment on the
following:
Was it a task that was completed,
what were the problems and what still
needs to be done? (issue, facts,
options, proposal – see guide on
inputs and verbal reports)
Discussion should be to examine a
problem or discuss an issue in more
detail – get everyone’s ideas and
points of view on it, arrive at a
decision, delegate responsibility for
the completion of the task, and
follow-up to ensure that it is
completed.
Meeting Procedures
All members should know meeting
procedures. There are a number of
points that people use in meetings to
ensure that the meetings run
smoothly. Often members use these
points to assist the chairperson.
The following are procedural points
most used in meetings:
Point of Order:  
It should be used when a member
feels that the meeting procedure is
not being stuck to and s/he wants the
meeting to return to the correct
procedure or order. For example,
when an individual is speaking totally
off the point, another member might
ask on a point of order for the
speaker to stick to the agenda.
Point of Information:  
A member may raise their hand and
ask to make point of information (or
request information) when it is not his
or her turn to speak. This can enable
a member to speak (by putting up
his/her hand and asking to speak)
when it is not his/her turn to request
more information on the matter being
discussed, or to give more
information on a point being
discussed.
Out of Order:  
When an individual is not sticking to
meeting procedure, being rude,
interjecting or misbehaving in some
way, the chairperson might rule
him/her out of order.
Protection: 
A speaker who is being harassed
when he/she is speaking can ask for
the protection of the Chairperson.
Quorums:  
This is the minimum number of
people who must be present for the
meeting to conduct business and
take decisions. This minimum
number is stated in the organisations
constitution. The meeting cannot start
until there is a quorum. Always
ensure that you have this minimum
number of people at a meeting,
especially when decisions must be
taken. If you do not, and decisions
are taken, members who were not
present can request that it is re-
discussed, meaning that time was
wasted.
All these points are called meeting
rules or procedures, which are there
to try to make meetings more efficient
and effective. They should not be
over-used just for the sake of it.
c. How to take decisions in
meetings
Decisions are usually reached
through two main ways:
 Consensus
This means reaching decisions by
discussion and general agreement.
 Voting
People vote for a particular proposal.
Usually one person will put forward a
proposal, someone else will second it
and then people will vote. If the
majority of people accept the
proposal, it then becomes binding on
the organisation.
Voting can either be done by a show
of hands or secret ballot.
Show of hand
The Chairperson would call for a
show of hand when there is a
difference of opinion amongst
members when a decision needs to
be reached. S/he will call on
members to raise their hands to show
their support for or against a
proposal.
These votes are then counted –
majority would then ensure that the
proposal stands or falls away.
Secret ballot
Each person would be given a piece
of paper where s/he would write
whether s/he supports a particular
proposal or not. The votes would be
counted and the majority would
ensure that the proposal stands or
falls away.
It is usually better to reach
consensus than to vote. Reaching
consensus often means that there
are compromises from everyone but
it ensures that most people feel part
of the decision. Sometimes a vote
does need to be taken, for example
in elections or when the meeting
cannot reach a decision through
consensus.
Resolutions
These are formal proposals put
forward to the meeting, for people to
agree or disagree with. If some
disagree, they are voted on. If
passed, they become resolutions and
therefore policy of the organisation.
There should be a proposer and
seconder of each resolution.
Resolutions are a clear way to set out
the policies and decisions of an
organisation. Usually a resolution has
three parts to it:
We start the resolution by saying
that, eg: "The AGM of the Natalspruit
Women’s Organisation, meeting on
(give date) notes that: and then you
list the main issues that you are
concerned about, for example:
Noting:
1. the rapid increase in
crime in this area,
2. the devastating effects it
has on the lives of people in
this area,
3. etc.
The second part of the resolution will
then list the points that show your
understanding of the issue and its
causes, for example:
Believing:
1. that the increase in crime
is due to the failure of police
to effectively service our
community
2. that the high
unemployment rate is
forcing many of our young
people to take up crime as a
way of life
3. etc
The third part lists exactly what your
organisation has decided to do or
what its policy should be on the
issue, for example:
Therefore resolves:
 1. to actively participate in
the community police forum
2. to use all means possible
to pressurise the police to
perform their duty
3. to work with the local
council to ensure that
facilities and clubs are
supplied to keep our youth
off the street
4. etc
Amendments may need to be made
to resolutions, and these should be
accepted by everyone present. If
there is not total agreement on an
amendment, a vote should be held
and the chairperson should record
the votes of those for, and those
against, the amendment, as well as
those abstaining. If the majority
support the amendment it stands and
the original section of the resolution
falls away.
The Chairperson and members must
study the constitution of the
organisation to make sure they know
and understand all these procedures.
d. How to chair the meeting
The chairperson is the most
important person in the meeting. He
or she will set the pace for the
meeting, make sure that people stick
to the topics, ensure that democratic
decisions are taken, and that
everyone is on board with these
decisions. Chairing is a great skill
and it is important to teach members
to chair meetings and rotate the job
where possible so that more people
can practise this skill. However, it is
always good to have an experienced
chairperson for important meetings.
A good chairperson is an active
chairperson; it is not the
chairperson’s job to simply keep a list
of speakers and to let them speak
one after the other. The chairperson
should introduce the topic clearly and
guide the discussion especially when
people start repeating points. When a
discussion throws up opposing views,
the chairperson should also try to
summarise the different positions and
where possible, propose a way
forward. The way forward can involve
taking a vote on an issue, having a
further discussion at another date, or
making a compromise that most
people may agree with. The
chairperson should ask for
agreement from the meeting on the
way forward, and apologise to those
who still wanted to speak.
Here are the basic steps for chairing
a meeting:
 The Chairperson opens the
meeting and presents the
agenda.
 S/he should start a meeting
by setting a cut-off time
when everyone agrees that
the meeting should end. This
helps to encourage people
to be brief.
 S/he calls on individuals to
introduce or lead the
discussion of points on the
agenda and gives everyone
a chance to speak.
 S/he also ensures that no
one dominates discussion.
 S/he should try to
summarise the discussion
clearly restating ideas and
proposals put forward.
However, there is no need to
repeat everything that has
been said.
 S/he must be able to get
agreement on what the
decision is – s/he must
ensure that everyone
understands the decision,
 delegates to someone the
duty of carrying out the
decision, ensures that the
person given the
responsibility knows what
s/he has to do and when it
should be done and reported
on.
 S/he ensures that everyone
takes part in the discussions
and decision-making.
 S/he ensures that the date
for the next meeting is
always set at the meeting.
d. How to write minutes in
the meeting
It is essential that minutes are
recorded accurately. This not only
serves as a reminder of issues that
need to be followed up but also
prevents arguments about previous
decisions. Minutes are also a guide
for the secretary and chairperson
when drawing up the agenda for the
next meeting.
Minutes help the organisation to learn
from its past failures and successes.
This is done when the secretary
reflects on the minutes of the past
year when drawing up an annual
report.
There are three aspects to taking
good minutes:
1. Listening
This is a very important skill to
develop. You must not only listen to
what is being said but you have to
ensure that you understand as well.
Taking notes
Write down only the main points and
the decisions taken. It is impossible
to write down everything that is being
said.
 Always try to identify the
main points
What is the main aim of the
discussion?
What information is important?
Use your own words. If you do this
you will find that your minutes are
more accurate and complete than if
you try to jot down everything a
speaker says.
  Pay special attention to
decisions. If necessary, ask
for the decisions to be
repeated.
 Ask for clarification. Do not
hesitate to stop the meeting
if you are not clear about
any decisions or issues
being discussed.
Writing the minutes
The following information should be
included:
 Nature of meeting, date,
time, venue
 Names of those present
 Names of visitors
 Apologies
  Summaries of decisions
and discussions
This includes work to be followed up
and who have taken responsibility for
certain tasks. The minutes should be
written neatly in a special minute
book or file; avoid jotting down
minutes on scraps of paper. The
book or file should be kept safely and
always available for consultation at
any time.

Index Meeting skills   |  

Inputs and verbal
reports   |   Executive
portfolios   |   Conflict
management
Planning   |  
Understanding your
 constituency   |  
Recruiting members
|  Guide to
Constitutions
Guide to the
Nonprofit
Organisations Act  | 
Legal structures
commonly used   
Education & Training
guide

Meeting Management Key -

Stand PAT

I use a "PAT" approach to

meetings. A meeting has to
have: a Purpose, an Agenda,
and a Timeframe or I don't do it.
You should be able to define the
purpose of the meeting in 1 or
2 sentences at most. "This
meeting is to plan the new
marketing campaign" or "this
meeting is to review shipping's
new policy for handling returns."
That way everyone knows why
they are there, what needs to be
done, and how to know if they
are successful.

Set an agenda. List the items

you are going to
review/discuss/inspect. I like to
assign a time limit to each
agenda item (see below) and
identify the person responsible
to speak or moderate the
discussion.

Set a timeframe; at the very

least set a start and end time. I
also recommend setting a
duration for each item in the
agenda. These should total to
the overall meeting timeframe.

Don't Wait

Meetings need to start on time.

Don't wait for stragglers to show
up. When someone arrives late,
don't go back and review what
has already been covered. That
just wastes the time of the
people who showed up on time
for the meeting.

If the meeting organizer/sponsor

doesn't show up on time,
consider the meeting cancelled
and go back to work. How long
to wait for the organizer to show
up varies among companies, but
I wouldn't wait any longer than
5 minutes.

Keep and send minutes

Someone, other than the

meeting organizer, should keep
minutes of the meeting. How
detailed these are depends on
the nature of what is being
discussed and the skill of the
available note taker. If you set
an agenda in the first place, as
you should have, the note taker
can use that as an outline. The
minutes should record who
attended, what was discussed,
any agreements that were
reached, and any action items
that were assigned.

Soon after the meeting, usually

within 24 hours, the minutes of
the meeting should be
distributed to all who attended,
any invitees who did not attend,
and anyone else effected by the
discussion. Email is a great
vehicle for distributing them.
Distributing the minutes informs
those not at the meeting of the
progress that was made and
reminds everyone of their action
items.

Stay Focused

Every meeting should have a

"topic keeper". I like to ask for a
volunteer at the beginning of the
meeting. The topic keeper's job
is to interrupt whenever the
discussion strays from the topic
under discussion. These new
topics can either be tabled until
later or scheduled for their own
meeting. There is a fine line
between what are amplifying
remarks about the topic under
discussion and what is a
tangential topic. The meeting
organizer can decide. It never
hurts to say "let's take that up
off-line".

Be more productive

I believe these things will make

your meetings more productive.
If you have other meeting
management tips to share with
your peers, you can post them
on our Management Forum.

Outcomes
These tell you what the candidate
actually has to do.
Knowledge and/or skills
This section details the essential
knowledge and skills which the candidate
must attain in
order to achieve each Outcome,
combination of Outcomes or for the Unit
as a whole.
Evidence Requirements
Evidence Requirements can be written
for each Outcome, for a combination of
Outcomes,
or for the Unit as a whole. There is no
standard format for writing Evidence
Requirements. Provided that they state
clearly and unambiguously the type,
standard and
amount of evidence which candidates
have to produce in order to be judged
competent,
the Evidence Requirements can be
written in the format which will be most
easily
understood by users of the Unit.
Note: The national standard of
achievement expected, which was
previously specified as
Performance Criteria, is now stated in the
Evidence Requirements.
Where it is not possible to cover all the
items listed under knowledge and/or
skills through
holistic assessment, sampling can be
used as a method of gaining additional
evidence.
Sampling may also sometimes be an
appropriate method of assessing very
knowledgebased
Units. This type of assessment must
always be carried out in supervised
conditions.
Where sampling is used, the Evidence
Requirements must clearly state:
♦the standard of evidence required for
each knowledge and/or skills item so that
satisfactory performance can be judged
whichever items are sampled on any one
occasion
♦the proportion of knowledge and/or
skills which can be sampled
♦whether any item(s) must be included
in each assessment, ie if it is crucial to
the
achievement of the Outcome(s) or to an
embedded Core Skill
♦the fact that a different sample should
be chosen on each assessment occasion
to
prevent candidates being able to foresee
what they will be asked
♦the conditions of assessment

Assessment guidelines
This section should give guidance on
how best to conduct the assessment to
generate the
evidence required, eg recommending the
use of a particular assessment instrument.
It
should include guidance on how to
integrate the assessment of the whole
Outcome or, if
appropriate, how to link assessment
holistically with other Outcomes in the
Unit. Like
Evidence Requirements, assessment
guidelines can be written for each
Outcome, a
combination of Outcomes, or for the Unit
as a whole.
It is important to realise that it is up to
the assessor to judge when and if the
candidate has
satisfactorily met the standards. This
decision should be based on the quality
and correct
quantity of evidence collected, set
against the standards in the Unit.
The assessment instrument in this pack
should not create any unnecessary
barriers to
achievement for open/distance learning
delivery or candidates with special needs.
However, you may need to adapt it so
that you can assess candidates with
special needs
or candidates who are undertaking the
Unit on an open/distance learning basis.
Obviously, whilst taking into account the
needs of the candidate concerned, the
methods
of assessment you choose must still be
valid, reliable and practicable. If you
have any
questions or problems, or if you are in
any doubt as to whether or not the
alternative
assessment you have chosen is still valid,
please contact the Helpdesk at the
Scottish
Qualifications Authority on telephone
Assessment Exemplars for Higher

3 Assessment Exemplar
Assessment tasks
The table below summarises how each
Assessment Exemplar task relates to
coverage of
the Outcomes detailed in the Unit
specification. It also indicates the
evidence which
should be retained for external
moderation.
Outcome Suggested Task Suggested
Evidence to be
retained
1
2
3
Watch a video of a meeting and
answer a series of structured
responses in written or oral form
Participate in a formal meeting and
present an agenda item on a
complex issue
Prepare a Folio of meeting papers,
including agenda, notice, minutes
and presentation paper
All candidate responses
Videotape of meeting, checklist and
record of performance for each
candidate
Notice of meeting, agenda,
presentation paper and two
different formats of minutes
Conditions of assessment
Outcome 1
This assessment should be completed in
class under supervised open-book
conditions.
Responses may be written and/or oral.
Outcome 2
Candidates will have to contribute to a
formal meeting. They will have been
given the
agenda in advance and should have
prepared a presentation on an agenda
item involving a
complex issue. The meeting must be
recorded on videotape.
Outcome 3
Candidates may complete a folio of
written documentation in open-book,
unsupervised
conditions but arrangements must be put
in place to ensure the authenticity of the
candidates’ work. Candidates may
consult relevant notes/handouts.

Assessment task 1
Outcome(s)
covered 1
Information for assessors
Formative work in preparation for
assessment of Outcome 1 should provide
the
underpinning knowledge necessary for
the analysis of the meetings process. If
the Unit is
taught concurrently with HN Unit
Interpersonal and Group Skills,
candidates should
understand much of the theory of group
dynamics, advantages and disadvantages
of
group-decision making, different
leadership styles and the distinction
between task and
process, role and function. Candidates
should be aware of the range of meetings
types
and purposes.
Candidates should also understand the
skills required for effective
communication in
meetings, including chairing skills, oral
and listening skills and the impact of
non-verbal
communication including paralinguistics
and proxemics.
Much of the theory can be applied in
practice and reflection on meetings
conducted by
candidates and observed by others in the
group who should feed back on areas of
strength
and weakness, ie time-management and
clear decision-making. Candidates
should also
practise taking minutes to learn how to
summarise and identify key points
essential for
record-keeping and should take turns at
chairing to allow observation of effective
chairing skills.
The meeting video used for final
assessment should be sufficiently
complex for
candidates to provide evidence of the
knowledge and skills for Outcome 1.
Different
approaches to structured questioning may
be used, but assessors should provide
sufficient
questions to allow candidates to analyse
the meeting in the detail required.

Assessment task 1
Outcome(s)
covered 1
Assessment task instructions
Analyse the meetings process
Watch the video of a meeting and answer
the following questions. You may watch
the
video more than once, taking notes
before you begin the assessment.
Generic questions
1 Supporting your answer with detailed
reference to the meeting observed,
explain
two purposes of the meeting.
2 Select four procedures used during the
meeting, commenting on how typical of a
formal meeting they are.
3 Give two examples of functions
undertaken by participants.
4 With reference to at least three
participants, analyse the roles adopted by
each
during the meeting.
5 With reference to at least two
participants, comment on non-verbal
communication
and paralanguage and their effect on the
progress of the meeting.
6 Evaluate the performance of the
chairperson, making reference to the
leadership
style adopted.
7 Comment on the group dynamics of the
meeting.
8 How effective was this meeting in
terms of group-decision making? Refer
to any
techniques or processes which were, or
could have been used to facilitate
decision
making.

Assessment task 1
Outcome(s)
covered 1
Suggested solution and making an
assessment decision
There is a wide variety of types of and
approaches to formal meetings in
industry, the
community and other situations;
assessors should be aware of current
custom and practice
relevant to the candidates being assessed,
and the range of valid responses possible
in an
analysis. A traditional type of meeting
might provide responses which include
some of
the following suggestions:
1. Purposes might include:
♦sharing ideas
♦reaching a decision
♦reaching a common understanding
♦raising morale
♦encouraging ownership of decisions
♦reviewing progress
♦monitoring progress
♦introducing a change in policy or
operation
♦proposing an idea
♦enabling consultation and discussion to
take place
2 Procedures may include:
♦welcome members/convey
housekeeping arrangements
♦refer to apologies
♦refer to previous minutes
♦explain procedures, eg address through
chair
♦control and respond to contributions
♦use an appropriate language and degree
of formality
♦clarify responsibilities of those
attending
3 Responses may make reference to
chairing, facilitating, acting as secretary
or
treasurer or any other formal function.
4 Roles can include:
♦listening
♦affirming
♦dominating
♦mediating
♦facilitating
♦gate-keeping
♦providing information/feedback
♦blocking
♦reviewing and leading

Other roles are possible; and as a meeting

develops participants may switch roles
and patterns of interaction. Roles
generally fall into three areas of group
maintenance, task or individual focus.
5 Responses would take account of:
♦eye contact
♦facial expression
♦use of gesture
♦movement
♦posture
♦tone of voice
♦paralanguage
♦other aspects of non-verbal
communication used by the participants
6 Competent chairing will enable a group
of people to develop solutions to issues.
Responses could refer to:
♦organisation of the meeting
♦clarity of communication
♦adherence to procedures
♦control of agenda in terms of:
— time-management
— response to and valuing of
participants
and/or to techniques used:
♦summarising
♦reviewing
♦highlighting key points made and
decisions reached
♦clarifying information relevant to the
decision
♦reminding the meeting of key points
relevant to the point of the agenda
♦guiding members back constructively
to the key issues when necessary
♦using strategies necessary to reach a
decision acceptable to the group when
time is running out
Leadership-style should also be referred
to, ie:
♦autocratic
♦democratic
♦laissez-faire
♦the appropriate use of these or other
styles at particular stages of the meeting
The candidate should make reference to
the appropriateness of different styles for
different purposes, eg where time is
limited, an autocratic style may be
required to
move the meeting to a conclusion. Where
the purpose is to share ideas and to
generate information, a more democratic
style may be useful. Some of this
information may be relevant in a
response to Questions 7 and 8.
7 Some of the information on earlier
responses could be developed to analyse
the
complex social processes that occur
within groups and influence actions and
outcomes. Responses could also take
account of the stages of group-working
—
from pre-planning through stages of
dependency, conflict, cohesion,
interdependence and termination. These
are often called forming, storming,
norming, performing and adjourning.

8 The fit of the group to the task could be

a relevant observation, as well as its size
and the appropriateness of group
members. Techniques not used which
might have
improved group decision-making might
be suggested. The skills of the
chairperson
and impact of constructive or negative
individuals on group-decision making,
the
communication patterns used and the
ability to offer and respond to conflicting
views in a constructive manner could
also be discussed.

Outcome(s)
covered 2
Assessment task instructions
Contribute to a formal meeting, and
present an agenda item
You will be given an agenda for a formal
meeting and should prepare a
presentation
paper which you will present as one item.
Your contribution throughout the
meeting
should assist the advancement of
discussion, and the final outcome of the
meeting.
Provide your assessor with the
presentation paper you use for the
meeting. You may, if
you wish, use visual aids as appropriate.

Assessment task 2
Outcome(s)
covered 2
Suggested solution and making an
assessment decision
Presentation form for use by
candidates
You should attach this to the presentation
paper which you are using at your
meeting.
See sample form overleaf.
Scottish Qualifications Authority
Assessment Exemplars for Higher
National Units 14
Presentation form for use by
candidates
1. Meeting purpose
Sum up the main objectives:
2. Participants
3. Date
4. Time
5. Location
6. Agenda item
7. Intended approach
Describe the approach you will take in
relation to the purpose of the meeting,
eg:
♦to provide information to other
candidates ❐
♦to persuade other participants of your
point of view ❐
♦to make a convincing case in favour of
a decision ❐
♦to assist in decision-making ❐
And how you will do this:
♦use of non-verbal communication ❐
♦use of visual aids ❐
♦examples ❐
♦case studies ❐
♦evidence ❐
♦facts ❐

Assessment task 2: Observation

checklist for use by assessors
Name of candidate:
Meeting date:
Purpose of meeting:
Participants:
Satisfactory/
Unsatisfactory
Comment
Appropriate non-verbal
communication/paralanguage
Selection/edit/communicate
complex data
Positive contribution
Advancement of discussion
Provision of positive feedback
Justification of point of view
Adherence to procedure
Adherence to schedule
Effective presentation of agenda
item

Assessment task 3

Outcome(s)
covered 3

Information for Assessors

The notice and agenda should conform to
a recognised style and include all details
necessary, eg time, location, date and
reference to group who are meeting. The
agenda
must show awareness of order which
takes account of logical progression and
time
necessary for completion of items.
Minutes must accurately record the key
points of the meeting and include names
of those
attending, date of meeting, location —
narrative minutes should summarise key
points
and make reference to those contributing
to discussion. However the candidate
should
demonstrate skill in summarising
discussion and selecting key points or
issues as opposed
to recording every detail and statement
made by the participants. The narrative
minutes,
while lengthier than action or resolution
minutes, should still be concise and
emphasise
the main points and not additional detail.

Assessment task instructions

You should produce a folio of documents
for a meeting to include a notice, an
agenda,
presentation paper and minutes. The set
of papers need not be for the same
meeting but
you should produce two sets of minutes
in different formats. You may work with
others
in devising an appropriate meeting or
adopt a role for a given case-study;
however you
should produce papers to call, conduct
and record the decisions of the meeting.

Assessment task 3
Outcome(s)
covered 3
Suggested solution and making an
assessment decision
Example of Notice of Meeting
A meeting of the planning group will be
held at 2.00pm on Tuesday 12 March
2002
in room 211, Brown Building.
Example of Agenda
Meeting of the Planning group, Tuesday
12 March 2002
1 Welcome to members
2 Apologies for absence
3 Minutes of the last meeting
4 Matters arising
5 Planned activities for June promotions
6 Publicity leaflets — design
7 Any other competent business
8 Date of next meeting

Example of Narrative Minutes

Use your agenda as a guide for your

minutes.
Minutes of Planning group meeting
held on (day) 12 March (year)
(Location)
1 Present
Record of those who attended written in
a list or column, usually in alphabetical
order and with the designations, eg
Chair, Secretary, also against each name
if
relevant or appropriate.
2 Apologies for absence
Record of those who have been unable to
attend the meeting and who would
normally have given reasons in advance
of the meeting to Secretary or designated
person.
3 Minutes of the last meeting
Record of the previous meeting in the
form of minutes which will have been
circulated prior to this meeting often with
the Notice. Those attending will check
those minutes for accuracy and content
and a record made, eg ‘The minutes of
the
previous meeting were checked and
accepted.’
4 Matters arising
If anything has arisen or not since the
previous meeting this should also be
recorded, eg ‘there were no matters
arising’.
5 For each item on the agenda there
should be a summary of the discussion,
naming
those who agree to undertake
responsibility for any future action and
those
contributing to a decision reached, eg
‘Discussion followed on the best options
and
LJ Brown suggested a three way meeting
to clarify the issues. This was agreed and
T Newall will arrange.’
6 Other items recorded as above, in the
same narrative style and with those
participants contributing, named.
7 Under any other competent business —
record of other business raised but not an
agenda item.
8 Date and time of next meeting — this
is normally agreed by the group at the
meeting.

Example of Narrative Minutes

Minutes of Meeting of Campaign
Group held on Tuesday April 20 2004
in room 20,
Brooks Building
1 Present
T Maxwell; J Brooks; J Allen; T Park; F
Willis; R Stairs (Chair)
2 Apologies for absence
There were no apologies.
3 Minutes of the Last Meeting
The minutes of the last meeting,
previously circulated were taken as read
and
signed by the Chair.
4 Matters arising
There were no matters arising.
5 Proposal 1
T Maxwell proposed that a display and
exhibition be staged in the foyer of the
Brooks Building. The proposal included
a full rationale outlining the advantages
of the location and projected numbers for
the week of June 10 – 17 200X. The
proposal also covered details of the
display and exhibits and the number of
staff
required with a timetable of available
volunteers. Hospitality would be
provided
daily, but limited to coffee and tea.
6 Proposal 2
J Brooks proposed a competition for
Primary Schools focusing on art-work;
the
proposal included publicity materials in
draft form, entry forms and precise
instructions for completed entries. The
proposal gave full details on the link
between the competition and the stated
aims of the campaign and referred to a
range of potentially interested parties
willing to sponsor the competition.
7 Proposal 3
R Stairs presented a feature article and
proposed that a number of newspapers
and
magazines be approached for publication.
The feature could also be broadcast on
local radio. R Stairs gave full details of
circulation and listening figures for
publications with an appropriate target
readership and local radio stations in the
geographical area.
8 Discussion followed and questions
were put to the proposers. T Park and F
Willis
wished to have more detail on costs and
T Park wanted to see a floor plan for
Proposal 1. It was agreed that all three
proposals be accepted, as all were
feasible.
Due to available time however, the first
proposal to be carried forward would be
that of T Maxwell. This proposal had
more detail and the organisation and
implementation would therefore be more
manageable in the time available.

However, the other proposals would be

scheduled to follow and the proposers
agreed to continue the development of
their proposals.
It was agreed to hold a subsequent
meeting to allocate tasks for Proposal 1.
9 The meeting closed at 4.00pm; the next
meeting was arranged for May 5 2004 at
9.00am, Brooks Building.
Normally these would include a column
headed ‘Action’ on the right-hand side of
the
page and the name or initials of the
person allocated or volunteering for a
specific action
or task written alongside each task.
For example:
Training session to be arranged Action:
MM and CS
Action minutes will specify persons,
actions, tasks which can be reviewed at
subsequent
meetings therefore drawing attention to
actions not completed. The minutes can
therefore
act as a monitoring tool focusing on
necessary actions and enabling
delegation of tasks.
As an agenda item, following this
example, the agenda would refer to
update on actions
rather than on matters arising. The
minutes will detail decisions reached
rather than
summarising discussion.
Example of Action Minutes
Minutes of Meeting held at 9.00am on
May 5 2004 in room 20, Brooks
Building
1 Present: R Stairs (CHAIR) T Maxwell;
J Brooks; J Allen; F Willis; T Park.
2 There were no apologies.
3 Update on actions — all complete.
4 Display and exhibition stands — it was
agreed that four
stands be erected and that idea proposed
by J Brooks to
contact the design department be taken
up. It was proposed
that the signage, main display be carried
out by a professional
graphics firm.
Action:
T Maxwell
would approach
design unit and
graphics firm
5 Invitation list — it was decided that
those who had expressed
interest in the February survey be invited
initially. This was
a figure of around 40; subsequently
invitations would go to
those with clear links to the exhibited
areas.
Action:
R Stairs to
coordinate
6 Schedule for exhibitors and staff — in
order to manage the
complicated range of activities planned
and to coordinate
volunteers and staff, a draft proposal was
suggested. This
idea was accepted by all attending.
Action:
J Allen agreed
to finalise draft
and circulate
7 The format for the competition for
Primary Schools was
agreed; publicity and communication
was proposed and
agreed. Deadline for issue was end May.
Action:
T Park
8 There was no other business.
9 The next meeting was arranged for
April 30 at 10.00am in
room 20, Brooks Building.
Advice to assessors
Examples of meetings briefs
Candidates may propose their own
meeting and this is to be recommended,
especially
where the meeting is necessary to
complete a project for other Units or
contributes to the
work for an Integrative Assessment — in
other words it has a real purpose. In order
to
allow candidates to take part in a meeting
which is sufficiently complex, the brief
devised, negotiated or specified must
give real opportunity for exchange of
points of
view, putting forward a case and
reaching a decision as a group.
Some of the following scenarios should
afford sufficient discussion to allow
candidates to
demonstrate knowledge and skills and
may be used for formative work. Other
ideas may
relate to aspects of the Integrated
Assessment and will depend on the
projects and
assignments being undertaken for these.
When the Unit is not being undertaken as
part of
the HND Communication with Media,
assessors should devise briefs related to
the
candidate’s vocational area.
1. A meeting will be held to finalise the
content of a new television programme.
The
programme has a target audience of
teenagers in full-time education and is on
commercial television. Each programme
is part of a series of six, with a duration
of 30 minutes and deals with the subject
of careers.
The meeting will finalise the content for
one of these programmes and consider
aspects of style as well as content and
cover a variety of items. The aim is to
make
the programme informative and lively.
In your proposal you should make clear
what you would include in your
programme.
The meeting will consider the different
proposals before making a final decision
on
one programme.
Points to consider
♦How will you assess the value or
appeal of the programme?
You should draft a checklist which uses
criteria for selection.
♦How will you organise the agenda?
According to an alphabetical order of
proposers or as proposers volunteer at
the meeting?
♦Should you have at the meeting
additional persons who are not
submitting proposals, who will give
feedback on the proposals using the
criteria decided on?
2. You should track news for one week in
preparation for a meeting to finalise the
front page of a newspaper — the title and
date of which will be specified by your
tutor. Your front page content and choice
of stories will reflect the readership of
the paper and its news values. You
should follow the news in order to work
out
possible lead stories and stories likely to
be running on the specified date. Your
meeting may be an early morning
meeting, planning the late edition or next
day’s
edition.

At the meeting be prepared to present

your proposal for the front page
including
headlines and other front page stories
with at least one other story as a back-up.
Make sure you justify the proposal.
Points to consider
Criteria to assist the decision-making
process should be drafted and agreed to
ensure that the proposals are evaluated
fairly.
3. Hold a meeting to explore ideas for a
new soap opera which has as its location
a
Further Education college. Present your
ideas for main characters, typical
storylines, general tone and style. The
target audience is 16 – 40 year olds and
the
programme will go out at 5.30pm. Put
forward your proposal for one
programme
— duration 30 minutes. The meeting
should decide on the content for one
programme.
The decision should be made on the basis
of a convincing and effective
presentation which gives full details of
all aspects relevant to the success of the
programme.
4. You are involved in a public relations
campaign trying to raise awareness of X
and
informing the public of Y.
Hold a planning meeting for an event.
Each participant should put forward a
clear
proposal which identifies:
♦objectives
♦public
♦media techniques
and justify the proposal in terms of the
overall PR objectives of the campaign.
The
proposal should make clear resources and
time-scale required to meet a deadline
and allocate tasks.
The meeting should reach a conclusion
for an event and arrange for a subsequent
planning meeting detailing tasks etc.
5. As a group of candidates studying a
course at a Further Education College
you are
asked to feed back views on the content,
organisation, resources, and other matters
pertaining to your studies. Draw up an
agenda which includes such aspects to
discuss and hold a meeting which will
reach decisions about improvements and
changes if necessary. In any case, you
should produce full minutes to pass on to
your Course organiser.
Decide who should chair the meeting.
6. You have decided to hold a launch for
the magazine or video produced as part
of
your studies. Hold the first meeting at
which proposals will be put forward on
the
format of the launch and decide on the
key areas for discussion and decisions
required, eg time, planning, organisation,
location, scale, type of event, guest list,
catering, publicity, administration.

7. Hold a meeting which will evaluate

work placements which have either been
undertaken by participants of the meeting
or which are being considered for
inclusion in a list to be circulated to
candidates. Your meeting will provide
feedback to the College on the value of
these placements. You should consider
the
benefits of work placement and the
aspects which make them a positive or
negative
experience. If you have taken part in a
work placement, present information on
this at the meeting; alternatively base
your presentation on information based
on
research including interviews with other
people.
8. A meeting will be held to consider
research proposals into a range of
suitable
workplaces relevant to communication
and media students and the benefits of
undertaking a work placement. The
research should consider the aspects
affecting
successful work placements and/or
factors not of benefit. Proposers should
give
full details of their research methodology
and the recommendations they will be
hoping to make in a final report.

Meeting Skills
Class Group
Candidate
Name
Candidate
Number
Outcome 1
Evidence Requirements Record of
Performance
Satisfactory/
Unsatisfactory
Comments
Assessment Task 1
Analyse the meetings process
♦Explain clearly the purposes of a
meeting
♦Analyse roles adopted by participants
♦Examine procedures
♦Evaluate the performance of the
chairperson
♦Evaluate group decision-making
♦Evaluate the meetings process
Overall comments:
Assessor’s signature: Date:

Assessment tasks checklist

Unit assessment: candidate’s
assessment record
D7XJ 35 — Meeting Skills
Class Group
Candidate
Name
Candidate
Number
Outcome 2
Evidence Requirements Record of
Performance
Satisfactory/
Unsatisfactory
Comments
Assessment Task 2
Participate in a formal meeting
♦Contribute to conduct of effective
meeting
♦Present effectively an agenda item
involving a
complex issue
Overall comments:
Where elements of checklist record
inappropriate and/or participation
ineffective, please add
below giving details.
Assessor’s signature: Date:

Assessment tasks checklist

Unit assessment: candidate’s

assessment record
Meeting Skills
Class Group
Candidate
Name
Candidate
Number

Outcome 3
Evidence Requirements Record of
Performance
Satisfactory/
Unsatisfactory
Comments
Assessment Task 3
Produce documentation for a formal
meeting
♦Construct an accurate notice of
meeting
♦Devise a relevant agenda
♦Draw up an effective presentation
paper
♦Make accurate records in two different
formats
of a meeting.

Stay Focused
Every meeting should have a
"topic keeper". I like to ask for a
volunteer at the beginning of the
meeting. The topic keeper's job
is to interrupt whenever the
discussion strays from the topic

under discussion. These new

topics can either be tabled until
later or scheduled for their own
meeting. There is a fine line
between what are amplifying
remarks about the topic under
discussion and what is a
tangential topic. The meeting
organizer can decide. It never
hurts to say "let's take that up
off-line".
Never let anyone say this
about your meetings

A meeting is a place where

people take minutes and
waste hours.