Meetings can be the message

With apologies to Marshall McLuhan, how an organization plans and executes its meetings communicates as much as what happens during the event.
That is especially true when the event takes place off site, something that is happening more often these days. Companies that pulled back after the bursting of the tech bubble and the lockdown on travel that Sept. 11 created, in many cases have come back to taking their staffs out of the work environment.
In addition to the excitement that comes from leaving the routine, going somewhere else to meet – whether it be filled with team-building exercises such as competitive sailing or involves more traditional activities such as outside speakers and the like – allows the company to control the environment completely. The result is that the event becomes the message that leadership wants to send.
Of course, that message needs to be backed up when the staff returns to the office with clear, consistent communication and initiatives that engage employees.
But there can be no question that companies should use meetings as an opportunity to create and support the kind of organization that they aspire to be. •