Inhalt : How to get your team share information

Presenter: Sinead

Sharing the knowledge

• The more you know, the stronger you are as a team
• You need to be the change that you want to see:
  • Generate the right environment
  • Create an environment of trust
  • People have to trust that it’s okay to share the information
  • It has to be a two-way thing
• You need to know your team’s strengths-weaknesses – open door policy
  • Have to assume that they have something to share
  • Have a platform for sharing
  • The team needs to know they can approach you/others
• Share the big picture:
  • Everybody should be on the same page
  • Is my information relevant? – All team members should know what the big picture is -> streamline them
• Clarify team roles beforehand: assign tasks, roles for reporting
• Be clear on what the objective is
• Set up a structure and tools for information sharing
  • E.g.: Knowledge Base:
    • Summary pages
    • Use categories
    • Relevant information to relevant parties
    • Pages that can be easily outdated could be rather blog posts
• Types:
  • Informal meetings: Chatting – coffee breaks
  • Formal reports/updates – milestones: send regular updates (e.g. weekly)
  • Both of them are needed
• Say out loud the praising words -> motivation for sharing
• Don’t make people feel bad for the failures: help them learn
  • Failure is only failure if you do not learn from it.
• No bad ideas
• Train people to share information in a multi-cultural environment -> guidelines to share
• Ask team for suggestions

Keeping the meeting on track

• Preparation:
  • Choose meeting carefully – research
  • Only invite necessary people
  • Send out agenda
  • Clarify team roles beforehand: assign tasks, roles for reporting
    • Always have a facilitator
  • Be clear on what the objective is
  • Set time limits – stick to them
    • Tip: if a meeting is always running late: move it before lunch, or before going home
• During:
  • Put topic on the board to keep focus
  • Follow up on previous meeting minutes, research who is doing what.
  • Make sure everyone is done on each point before moving on
  • Move additional points to next meeting, sub meeting for exploration + report back
  • Cut off-topics:
    • Meeting Ninjas need to be managed: move on
    • Meeting Ramblers: interrupt them
  • Manage disputes -> report back
  • Take meeting minutes (either you or chose someone in advance)
• After:
  • Send out meeting minutes to the participants