Stop Running Late! How to Save Time on Meeting Prep
It’s that time again. You’re scrambling to get ready for a meeting and realize you still have to prepare a status report or timeline update. Normally, at this point, you might be cursing out PowerPoint or praying to the Microsoft Excel gods (a.k.a. the ghost of Clippy). But we’re here to help with the next step in our 10-part guide on How to Plan a Meeting People Actually Want to Attend.
That’s right. We’ve finally made it to the easiest stage of them all: Preparing your data and real-time reports.
Of course, if you have to rely on old-fashioned spreadsheets or Gantt charts for this step, you might dread it each time you have a weekly or monthly update meeting. But the good news is, you can get this part done in no time at all. You just need an adaptive project management platform to make it happen.
With the right solution at your fingertips, you won’t have to manually update or export docs at all. Every metric and task will automatically be tracked in real time right on the platform. So anyone with access — from shareholders and collaborators to fellow managers — can easily access and share reports as needed. And you can spend that last-minute prep time grabbing a snack or changing out of your sweats for the Zoom meeting.
As Harvard Business Review advises: “Stakeholders will generally want regular updates and status reports. Consult with them to see how much information they’d like and in what format. Don’t hide or downplay problems as they come up, or you can easily transform them into crises. If you keep your stakeholders informed, they may turn out to be good resources when issues do arise.”
How can you make this process as easy as possible? With automated data tracking, share, and visualization functions. As Proggio CEO Yaniv Shor put it: “Stakeholders and managers can access a visual plan and dashboard of where things stand, spot any bottlenecks, adjust priorities and see how an adjustment changes resource allocations, timelines and other KPIs. With more time for collaboration, innovation and celebrating wins, teams can work more efficiently and effectively and stay more engaged in the work and in the process.”
So, to recap, here’s our quick, actionable tip for Step #4: Save yourself the headache of preparing reports for each meeting and use a PPM that automatically updates data, keeping everyone on the same page at all times.
Ready to make sharing project reports a breeze? Book a demo with Proggio.
Need to catch up with the beginning of our guide? Check out the first few steps here:
- Decide if you really need the meeting.
- Plot your talking points and goals.
- Invite the right people to attend.
And look out for the rest soon!
