Using an MBA in Project Management to master the meeting

Meetings get a bad rep for good reason. They're often unfocused or overlong, eating into valuable time that might be better spent on work. Worse still, individuals can sometimes be required to attend meetings that are largely irrelevant to their function within an organization, meaning the time spent can be doubly frustrating.

A meeting doesn't have to be a fruitless annoyance, though. Executives who receive MBA degrees with a concentration in project management possess the skills and knowledge necessary to transform meetings into genuinely useful opportunities for exchange that can put teams on a track to success.

Curious about how this type of training can help you master meetings? Here's a closer look.

Smart executives use technology to facilitate meetings, not distract from them

Investing in smart technology can be a great way to produce meetings that are structured for real enthusiasm and engagement. For example, software solutions exist that can record and automatically transcribe the content of meetings. For companies that normally rely on an individual to handle this task, this can represent a substantial saving of time that can be devoted to more productive tasks.

There are also services that can automatically schedule meetings for blocks of time that are most convenient for all the attendees. This can help with promoting participation, since most people won't have something urgent waiting to be done while they're sitting in the meeting.

Learning to integrate technology into the work process is a big part of modern PMBA programs, which means graduates can expect to be able to find and adopt useful meeting management tools with some ease. It's a good idea, however, to ban all non-essential technology from the meeting space. Phones and computers distract participants and make them less effective contributors. The more energy and effort everyone can put in, the more valuable your meetings are likely to be.

MBA school graduates have a knack for keeping everyone on task

Meetings should be lively when possible to keep energy up and participants engaged. Of course, too much of a free-wheeling atmosphere could also make it difficult to achieve a desired level of productivity. Finding an optimal balance requires that leaders be able to balance out the personalities in the room, encouraging reluctant voices to make themselves heard and finding ways to tame the exuberance of more outwardly enthusiastic participants.

Though this is something that comes naturally to some executives, effective leadership can also be honed while attending a top MBA school. At WU Executive Academy, for instance, executives pursuing an MBA in Project Management develop a keen ability to lead in both more traditional organizational structures and in more informal environments. This provides them with a great advantage in maximizing the return on investment of time spent in meetings by facilitating a participatory environment.

PMBA holders use meetings to drive future action

A good meeting should inform future action. For this reason, top executives make a point of using topics discussed in meetings to create tasks, assign responsibilities, and otherwise propel activity forward. By taking this proactive approach, it is possible to add real purpose to meetings, which in itself can be a motivator to the individuals who might otherwise be less keen to participate. Incidentally, this is where having an automated recording and transcription services can be particularly useful, as it ensures no good ideas wind up forgotten.

Understanding how to contextualize new suggestions and potential routes for action in projects into the overall strategy of a company is a challenge. However, the right learning environment will ensure executives are exposed to leading figures from the world of business, along with their perspectives on how best to grow and adapt strategy as projects progress. For achieving continual and lasting results – and for learning to put together meetings with important benefits to the bottom line – there simply is no substitute for the insight that can be developed through this experience.

Do you want to learn more about the benefits of an MBA in Project Management?

Contact WU Executive Academy today!