Meeting Agenda Template

Most of the time, the answer to why some people meet, be it in the office or outside, is that there is an agenda. It becomes even more crucial where a meeting is concerned - a business meeting to be precise. There has to be an agenda for a business meeting within the company or between companies. If the representatives of a company do not know what to discuss in the meeting or deviate from the topic, it will be a sheer waste of time.

Meeting Agenda Layout

The layout of a meeting agenda typically comprises a header and a body. There is no standardization in meeting agenda templates as they differ from firm to firm. However, there are obviously some common aspects in every agenda format. A header usually has these items -

• Project Name
• Purpose, Objectives and Elements of the Meeting
• Expected Attendees
• Date and Time
• Place

That covers all the basic elements concerning a meeting. Now comes the body of the agenda in a typical template which consists of actual items to be discussed and resolved in a meeting. In short, all the points to be covered during meeting are mentioned here. Words like discuss, adopt, declare, announce are a good option. Adding the suggested time allotted for an item can be a good practice. However, the actual time taken might vary from the agenda. Still, it's a good idea to write down the proposed time for each discussion. The items in the body of the agenda, common to almost all the meetings are:

• Pleasantries: Introductions and welcoming the guests is an important aspect of a meeting. It helps to break the ice and people get to know each other if they do not get together often.
• Adapting and approving the minutes of the earlier meeting.
• Discussion on the actual topics in the agenda of that day. Topics can be scrutinizing the budget, presentation of a financial report and discussion on it.
• Important announcements are another significant part of meeting agenda, especially if it is a board meeting agenda. However, there is a chance that announcements can make the participants drift away from the main business at hand. Thus, if the announcements are done early in the meeting, it is better.
• Finally, in any meeting agenda, be it a staff meeting agenda or an NGO meeting for a new project, there is a mention of the time and date of the next meeting.

After these important points in a meeting agenda, go through this generic format of meeting agenda.

Meeting Agenda Format

Date: xx/xx/xx Time: 9.30 am to 10.15 am Type of Meeting: Description of meeting Meeting Facilitator: Name of meeting facilitator Invitees: List of invitees Call to Order: Roll Call: Approval of minutes from last meeting: Open Issues: Description of an open issue like accommodating new office supplies in the monthly budget New Business: Description of new business Adjournment:

Now that you got a fair idea about agenda of meeting, you can download this meeting agenda template and use it according to your convenience. However, keep in mind that this is not a customized template and may not fit the bill for every business venture or organization. This is just to describe what fields are imperative for an agenda. Ultimately, devising a single meeting agenda template for all the meetings and companies is not a very good idea as it might not cater to all your needs.

At the end of the day, you don't take the same medicine for different medical conditions, the same applies to meeting agenda template. You need to be more specific! Therefore, you can make use of a checklist to ensure that all the necessary topics are getting covered in your agenda. You can also take the help of the attendees to suggest the topics that are needed to be discussed in the particular meeting. Formulate a rough draft first and then only send the fair copy of the meeting agenda to all the invitees through email. This will give them ample time to prepare for the meeting which will be more focused on the agenda at hand. All the best!