Various Communications
Question 1
One of the teams that I was engaged in recently was involved in fundraising activities for a mutual friend who had been hospitalized after a road accident. There are various rules that the team had. As a matter of principle, all members were expected to be transparent and have a high level of integrity in handling all finances that they collected towards the fundraiser. All members treated each other with respect and dignity with no discrimination based on the amounts that individuals would raise. Additionally, people were required to respect the time and convenience of their colleagues to ensure mutual team respect is prioritized for efficiency. Where problems were identified members were supportive of each other which helped avoid situations of being thrown under the bus. In the same way, problems were to be presented in a well-thought-out manner that was considerate and that allowed for members to discuss and make resolutions. Humility was an important virtue that was emphasized at the beginning of the meetings to ensure members remain focused on the end goal. Members who commit to activity were expected to follow through with the activity.
The team had some norms. The norms were mainly targeted at the meeting’s activities and were largely unwritten but at times would be spoken about openly in meetings. Everyone was required to ensure that the meeting starts on time by being punctual. This was important as all meetings were limited to a maximum of 100 minutes. The minutes of the meetings were taken by a rotational representative despite there being a permanent secretary. This was to reduce the burden on some members and the scribe for the meeting was expected to publish the meetings within 24 hours. The agenda was also to be published in advance and members were to be consulted before developing the agenda. All decisions in the group were agreed upon by the use of consensus. All decisions and activities of the group were to be accounted for by individual members. Finally, matters discussed in the meeting were to be held in confidentiality especially in relation to our friend’s medical condition. This was to respect the wish of the family and their privacy.
The mission of the team was to ease the burden of the family and the patient, Tony, from a financial point by seeking resources to help offset the soaring medical bill as well as to engage in any support within its reach to the patient and family.
Question 2
- Agenda
4th May 2020 Meeting Agenda to Discuss Fundraiser for Tony’s Medical Bill
- 1700 – 1705hrs: Introduction – an invitation to the meeting by the Chairperson – Nana Longman. All members present to introduce themselves.
- 1705 – 1708hrs: Take attendance and apologies by the secretary – Tom Avery
- 1708 – 1718hrs: Review and approval of previous minutes by secretary
- 1718 – 1723hrs: Updates on the current status of the fundraiser by the treasurer – Vanessa Lockwood
- 1723 – 1738hrs: Discuss fundraiser ideas – open to all members and headed by the Chairperson
- 1738 – 1758hrs: Take a vote on ideas to best pursue – all members and headed by the Chairperson
- 1758 – 1813hrs: Allocation of duties – headed by the Chairperson
- 1813 – 1818hrs: Visit to Tony – Philip Michaelson
- 1818 – 1833hrs: Any other business
- 1833 – 1838hrs: Close of the meeting – Chairman
The goal of the meeting is to detail the fundraiser issues that are arising, develop, and coordinate the tasks to meet the set target of 1 June 2020 as the completion date of the activity and have a conclusive date and time for visiting Tony in the hospital before our next meeting.
The structuring of the agenda is a result of various steps. To begin with, there was a consultation of the members to determine the activities that they would like to be addressed in the meeting. This was to create better engagement of members in the meeting as well as follow-through activities. After the collection of the activities, the meeting goal was developed which helped to align the activities of the meeting in a sequential manner that align with the overall goal of the team. The formulation of the meeting goal was an important part of determining the activities that were most pressing to all members of the group rather than individuals. As such, where the issue requires only the engagement of two members, they were requested to set up a private meeting outside of the main meeting to sort the issues and agree on the way forward.
After narrowing down the list, the most important items were identified. For this purpose, the progress of the fundraiser was scheduled before the discussion of the ideas to offer members a better perspective when making decisions. Also, this allows for the allowance of all members to participate in the important activities in case they have to leave early. The items were allocated time-based on the perceived importance vis-à-vis the scheduled 100 minutes that the meeting should last.
Question 3
The last public meeting I attended was a school meeting convened by the campus council. The group members were are of self and other actions. This was evident in the manner in which the meeting, although discussing sensitive topics, was well controlled and people respected each other’s opinions and discussion points.
Verbal messages were crucial in the communication of ideas and messages. The opening communication was developed in a careful manner that enabled an open first impression on the members. This set the pace for the meeting. Active listening was utilized heavily by the convener who would repeat the words of the speakers by paraphrasing to ensure that the main points were captured. There were lots of encouraging words that were used to reinforce members to participate in the discussion. This was important in alleviating shyness and fear to speak up in public for many members.
Non-verbal messages were an important part of the supportive process. The convener used lots of smiles towards the participants. This was important for creating a welcoming environment that made the participants comfortable. The speaker also nodded her head as people were speaking out which worked well to encourage people to speak out without fear. The use of thumbs up and clapping was encouraged for all speakers that were engaged in the sharing of ideas and issues. This was an important part of helping participants overcome the fear of speaking in public as well as speaking their minds on the issues brought forward.
Members were active listeners during the public meeting. The participants were focused on the speaker at any given time. This is an important part of active listening. Also, there were minimal side conversations over the time of the meeting. The group’s members also engaged in small verbal comments that encouraged the speaker to keep talking especially where there was strong agreement to various points. There was lots of paraphrasing among speakers to reflect the thoughts conveyed by previous speakers which is a sign of active listening by the group members.
Various principles supported the adaptation of messages to others. To begin with, there was the consideration of the diversity in the group. As such, there was a sign language interpreter present to communicate to members with hearing disabilities. Also, there was the consideration of cultural differences with speakers being reminded constantly to weigh their words. Also, after the delivery of thoughts, many speakers would finalize the key points of their ideas. This was good to keep the group members aware of the main points.