You can learn a lot about your organization’s adaptability by looking at its meeting protocols. Protocols include what kinds of meetings are held regularly, who gets invited to them, and how the agenda is established. They speak to how power is distributed in the organization and what information is exchanged.

The goal of structure is to focus conversations (including the hard ones!) on the unique ideas that your community wants to explore together.

Real-Time Agenda The first thing a team must do to improve their staff meetings is really about what they should stop doing before the meeting. I’m referring to the dreaded agenda. Putting together an agenda before a staff meeting is like a marriage counselor deciding what issues she’s going to cover with a couple prior to meeting with them. The fa

• Retreats and off-sites are regularly scheduled and include people from all levels of the organization. These gatherings are two-way conversations instead of one-way lectures or mandates delivered from on high.