This week someone questioned the wisdom of having a weekly project status meeting where all project team members participated to discuss issues and potential requirements changes. "Wouldn't that be an expensive meeting?" he asked. "Sure", I replied, "but imagine the expense without it."
It's especially important when dealing with a virtual team or remote clients. Without it, instead of managing the project, there are endless phone calls and side conversations. Agreements get made, not documented, and changed. Requirements change and costs go up. It's far less expensive to get everyone together for a short, weekly meeting, bring all the issues to the table, and keep everyone on the same page.
There are a few things to keep in mind to make the meeting effective:
1) Keep it short and to the point -- have an agenda
2) Make sure all key players are available or have a "proxy" participate
3) Stay focused and keep the time productive -- make sure everyone participates
4) Take notes and document all decisions
5) Identify complex issues, solve offline, and bring answers back to the team
Having regular communications with the team and status meetings to keep everyone on the same page will ensure timely communication and resolution of issues which will help keep the project on time and budget.
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