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Have you ever been at a meeting where you all look at each other and realize that the person who is most needed at the meeting isn’t present? You need to take care over inviting the relevant participants to attend the meeting.

To invite participants:

▪ Check their availability on your computer system or contact them by phone or email to see if they’re available. If the meeting is a regular one, for example of a subcommittee, then there will be little choice over who to invite. However, if the meeting is taking place only on that occasion, then you need to take certain steps. Begin by checking that the most important person/people can attend. Confirm their availability in an email so there is no doubt later. If you want people to attend only the part of a meeting that is relevant to them, then make that clear.

▪ Invite those participants who need to attend. Some people suggest that you should invite many people on the basis of not wanting to offend those who are not invited. However, if you have too many participants, then the discussion is likely to last a long time and it will be difficult to reach decisions. (On the other hand, if you invite too few people, then those who are present may complain that other people’s interests are not being heard and so consider that the meeting lacks authority.)

▪ If you are in doubt about who to invite, then check who was present at similar meetings in the past and/or discuss the choice with the chairs of other meetings to make sure you do not exclude anyone essential.

▪ It is good to have a mix of people, i.e. you do not want all the participants to agree with one another. Disagreements can sometimes be a healthy way to help refine the road ahead.

▪ Send an email confirming the following:

▪ The date and time of the meeting (start time and likely finish time) and the venue. You may want to invite them to come a few minutes before the meeting if refreshments are available.

▪ The subject of the meeting and any agenda and papers to be read (these could be sent at a later date but should still be sent well before the meeting). If the person is expected to lead discussion on a particular point, then confirm that, too. If they want to use a PowerPoint presentation, then ask them to bring it on their own laptop and also on a memory stick (saved in an earlier version of PowerPoint in case their laptop fails and you need to use another one).

▪ Directions to the venue, with links to maps or notes on car parking or access by public transport.

▪ A request to let you know of any special requirements.

▪ Your contact details, including on the day, e.g. if their train is late they can still contact you on your mobile and not be put through to an office voicemail.

▪ If relevant, guidelines on dress code.

Ask the people you invite to confirm they can attend by a certain date, e.g. so that you can finalize numbers for catering purposes.