Meeting Magic, Katherine Woods & Ingrid Uden

Published by Writers World

Buy it now from Blackwell Books

What to do when it all goes wrong

Graphic facilitators Katherine Woods and Ingrid Ugden have trained hundreds of business managers, facilitated thousands of meetings and have a client list littered with major international names like Microsoft and Coca-Cola.

Now they have distilled their experience into 138 densely packed pages explaining how and why meetings ‘go wrong’ and what you can do about it when you are doomed to lead or facilitate.

Apart from the introduction, which sets the scene, each chapter concentrates on a particular issue, introduced in the form of a question from a frustrated facilitator. The issue is then examined for possible causes and practical solutions are suggested.

As the authors point out, the common problems crop up again and again. So chapter titles such as ‘Talks too much’, Unclear outcomes’ and ‘I feel like a spare part’ will no doubt strike a chord with the multi-meeting attendees this book is aimed at.

The authors admit in the introduction that they have not attempted to provide all the research that has led to their proposed solutions though there is a comprehensive bibliography for anyone wanting to delve. Instead they have concentrated on offering practical help.

Not, perhaps, a book to be read through from start to finish, rather a manual to be consulted when you know the type of problem that will arise at that next meeting. And each chapter concludes, as all books of this type should though sadly not many do, with a summary of tips so you can quickly refresh your understanding.