Your Team Members Aren’t Participating in Meetings. Here’s What to Do.

Traditional advice for leaders who want to increase meeting participation call for clarifying expectations, setting clear agendas, and asking open-ended questions. While these strategies have their merits, they might not always work because they’re usually based on the leader’s assumptions about what the team needs, rather than facts about what they actually need. Managers who want their teams to be more engaged in meetings need to foster a safe, inclusive team culture, which requires a deep understanding of their team’s unique dynamics. The author presents several strategies for encouraging employees to engage during meetings.

• 
  Luis Velasquez, MBA, Ph.D. is an executive coach who works with senior leaders and their teams to become more cohesive, effective, and resilient.  He is the founder and managing partner of Velas Coaching LLC, a leadership facilitator at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, a former University professor, and research scientist. Connect with him on LinkedIn.