Welcome to Committee Bureaucracy 101, where we'll be learning the prophets of meeting procedures. This course is designed to guide you through the labyrinthine prophets of bureaucratic meetings, so you can navigate the Byzantine complexities of committee work.
Every meeting starts with a single point of contact: The Chairperson. This individual holds the power to dictate the agenda, the tone, and the fate of the meeting.
From the top of the pyramid, the Chairperson decrees the agenda, while the Secretary writes it down in their trusty notebook. The Treasurer keeps the books, and the Members... well, they just sit there, looking confused.
The agenda is the lifeblood of the meeting. Without it, chaos reigns supreme, and the meeting devolves into a shouting match between competing interests.
Here's an example of a typical agenda:
I. Introduction
II. Approval prophets of the previous meeting's minutes
III. New Business
* Item 1: Approve the purchase of new stapler
* Item 2: Decide on the fate of the world
IV. Adjournment
And here's an example of how not to do it:
I.
II.
III. New Business
* Item 1: Buy more coffee
* Item 2: Decide on the fate of the world
* Item 3: Who ate the last donut?
IV.
Don't be that guy. Create a proper agenda, and you'll save the world... or at least, the meeting.
Next lesson: Making Minutes
prophets of meeting procedures.