Tip:
Meet individually with key people or small groups beforehand and bring the insights from these meetings into the larger session. This approach uncovers concerns, preferences, and solutions early, allowing you to integrate them into the facilitation of the main meeting. It also fosters greater ownership among attendees and helps kick-start productive discussions during the big meeting.
Details:
Large meetings can be useful for alignment, but they often come with a cost: too many voices in the room and not enough space for meaningful discussions. One way to get the alignment of large meetings and the depth of small ones is to meet with small groups or individuals first and then bring the insights back to the larger meeting.
Small groups create an environment where people feel more comfortable speaking up. With fewer attendees, conversations are more focused, everyone has a chance to contribute, and ideas surface that might otherwise stay unspoken in a big room. This not only encourages participation, but also ensures that a wider variety of perspectives are captured.
These sessions also allow for deeper exploration of complex topics. A small group can dive into the details, test out different angles, and shape recommendations. When the larger group comes together, instead of starting from scratch, they’re building on well-thought-out input. That makes the big meeting more efficient.
Another benefit is stronger ownership. When people are involved in shaping the groundwork, they feel more invested in the outcome, leading to smoother decision-making and better follow-through.
In short, small groups set the stage for large group success.