Even lousy movies and novels have three components: a beginning, a middle, and an end. A meeting participant (or ceremony, event, session, or workshop) should expect every session they attend to provide at least ten clear outputs. Seven clear results from the Introduction and three outputs from the Wrap.

Below is a checklist of the ten outputs a meeting participant should receive followed by detailed support for each.

1. Roles and Impact

1. Facilitators should emphasize their own content neutrality and lack of bias.
2. The facilitator should stress that participants are all equal (put on your sweaters to hide rank and leave your egos and titles in the hallway)
3. The meeting impact should be quantified as to why the meeting is important, typically in currency (e.g., $,$$$,$$$.$$) and/or FTP (Full-time People)

2. Meeting Purpose

1. An articulate statement of the Meeting Purpose (50 words or less). 
2. If the leader is unable to provide a clear statement of the meeting’s purpose, they are probably not ready to lead the meeting.

3. Situational Scope

1. An articulate statement of the Meeting Scope. 
2. This may have been combined in the Purpose statement if the scope is rather simple or concrete such as geographical. 
3. However, if the scope is complex as with many IoT (Internet of Things) products and services, then it should be separate. 
4. Keep in mind that scope creep kills projects and products. 
5. And scope creep begins in meetings.

4. Meeting Deliverables (Objectives)

1. A narrative statement, illustration, or sample that provides a clear understanding of the output from the session.
2. Agilists refer to deliverables as DONE or what DONE looks like.
3. Optimally, the leader provides an example from a surrogate product, project, or template.

5. Administrivia (Housekeeping)

1. Covers contextual concerns, not related to the content of the deliverable.
2. Examples include:
3. Fire exits and safety evacuation procedures
4. Bathroom locations and frequency of breaks
5. Food and beverage provisions (if any)
6. They might include icebreakers here, or insert as a step eight

6. Basic Agenda 

1. In the Launch or Introduction, the leader should explain each of the agenda steps, focusing on:
2. What does the deliverable or DONE look like for each step?
3. Why the steps are provided in the sequence shown?
4. How each step relates to completing the deliverable and getting DONE.
5. While explaining they should prepare you for the timing and duration of breaks, lunch, or other non-meeting issues that could affect timing.
6. Optimally, the leader provides a metaphor or analogy explaining the relationship of the steps. You know that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, a metaphor is worth a thousand pictures (and a story is worth a thousand metaphors).

7. Ground Rules

1. Ground rules should be provided if you want to get more done, faster.
2. “Be Here Now” because disabling electronic leashes reduces distractions.
3. “Silence is Agreement” applies in for-profit situations. If you are being paid to attend the meeting, speaking up is not an opportunity, it is an obligation.
4. “Make Your Thinking Visible” appropriately requests the cause behind the symptom, forcing all of us to provide evidence or objective proof of our claims.
5. See “Ground Rules and Ideation Rules for Optimal Group Behavior in Meetings” for a list of others you may want to request as a participant.
6. Unless icebreakers are inserted here, this step should conclude the Introduction. 

8. (Wrap) Review and Confirmation of the Meeting Output (Deliverable)

1. You are entitled to a complete review of the agreed-upon output from the meeting.
2. During the review, take the following questions into account:
3. What questions or issues of clarity do you have?
4. What is missing that may be critical, important, or substantive?
5. Even though the output (e.g., a decision) may not be your favorite, is the output robust enough that you will support it?
6. If not, what needs to be removed or modified?

9. Open Issues (Parking Lot or Refrigerator)

1. You are entitled to a complete review of the agreed-upon output from the session.
2. Make sure you understand the Open Issue because frequently Open Issues are ‘thrown’ into the Parking Lot and may be somewhat cryptic.
3. Be prepared to volunteer to take responsibility to report back to the group on the status of the Open Issue (you are not necessarily the ‘doer’).

10. Guardian of Change (Communications Plan)

1. Make sure the leader takes a few minutes to build agreement around what the participants are going to tell others was accomplished during the session.
2. Typically, the message to your superior might be different than the message to other stakeholders such as employees or contractors.
3. Try to ensure that it sounds like all the participants were in the same meeting together.

Here’s a thumbnail of our approach to Structured Note Taking many find useful. Click HERE to download the full-size PDF. 

MIDDLE STEPS OF THE AGENDA

Here are the Basic Agendas for over 30 types of deliverables. Alumni can use their passwords to access the annotated versions in a .DOCX format, making them easy to modify. The annotated agendas include the following for EACH agenda step:

• Purpose of the agenda step
• Estimated time
• PROCEDURE or method including recommended tools and the questions to ask
• Visual or multi-media support suggested
• Output from the agenda step (Deliverable)
• Script for concluding the step, including the suggestion of a metaphor 

PLANNING AGENDAS

Planning [From Strategic to Team]

• Launch
• Mission (WHY are we here?)
• Values (WHO are we?)
• Vision (WHERE are we going? How do we know if we got there or not?)
• Success Measures (WHAT are our measurements of progress?)
• Current Situation (WHERE are we now? Quantitative TO-WS Analysis)
• Actions (WHAT should we do?—from strategy through tasks)
• Alignment (Is this the right stuff to do?)
• Roles and Responsibilities (WHO does WHAT, by WHEN?)
• Guardian of Change (WHAT should we tell our stakeholders?)
• Review and Wrap

Project Planning

• INTRODUCTION
• CURRENT SITUATION
• MEASURES OF SUCCESS
• PROJECT STRATEGY
• PROJECT TASKS
• ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
• DEPENDENCY DIAGRAM
• NEXT STEPS
• WRAP & DISMISS

Riffs and Variations

• ASSUMPTIONS, CONSTRAINTS, and DEPENDENCIES
• BUDGET, TIMELINE, AND RESOURCE ALIGNMENT
• BUSINESS CASE OR PURPOSE
• COMMUNICATIONS PLAN and TOUCH POINTS
• CORRECTIVE ACTIONS
• DETAILED WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE
• FLEXIBILITY MATRIX
• FRAMING DIAGRAM (eg, IS NOT/ IS)
• ISSUE ESCALATION PROCEDURE
• OPEN ISSUES MANAGEMENT
• PHASE GATES REVIEWS, MILESTONES, OR DECISION POINTS
• RISK ASSESSMENT AND GUIDELINES
• STAKEHOLDERS DESCRIPTIONS

Sprint Planning

• Launch
• Potential Sprint Goal
• Product Backlog Sizing
• Capacity Planning
• Backlog Selection
• Backlog Tasking
• Final Sprint Goal
• Review and Wrap

Sprint Review

• Launch
• Sprint Goal Reflection
• Sprint Reflection Demonstration
• “DONE”
• Acceptance
• Revisions
• Next Steps
• Review and Wrap

Sprint Retrospective

• Launch
• WHAT (Facts, Learnings)
• SO WHAT (Implications, Insight)
• NOW WHAT (Recommendations, Kaizen Improvements)
• Testing
• Review and Wrap

Sprint Riffs and Variations

• Action Conversion
• Categorizing
• Context Diagram
• Framing
• Guardian of Change
• Prioritization Tools
• Purpose Tool
• Requirements Gathering
• Root Cause Analysis
• Speedboat
• Splitting Stories
• TO-WS Lite
• User Story and Acceptance Criteria
• Temporal Shift

Problem-solving

• Launch
• Definition of the Object or Situation (problem state)
• Purpose of the Object or Situation (ideal state)
• Symptoms (externally identifiable factors)
• Causes
• Actions (for each cause):

• • Preventions
  • Cures
  • Us
  • Them

• Testing
• Review and Wrap

Project Risk Assessment

• Launch
• External Risk
• Internal Risk
• Hybrid Risk
• Consensual Review
• Prioritization
• Review and Wrap

Scenario Planning

• Launch
• Sunny Skies
• Stormy Skies
• Partly Sunny Skies
• Partly Cloudy Skies
• Probably Skies
• Ranges of Probability
• Targets and Thresholds
• Review and Wrap

Strategy Mapping

• Launch
• Financial Perspective
• Customer Perspective
• Internal Perspective
• Growth Perspective
• Cultural Challenges
• Leadership Challenges
• Alignment
• Teamwork
• Review and Wrap

Reflective Thinking

• Introduction
• Define and Limit the Problem
• Analyze the Problem
• Criteria
• Optional Solutions
• Selection
• Implementation
• Wrap

Resource Life Cycle

• INTRODUCTION
• PRODUCT OR SERVICE RESOURCES
• LIFE CYCLE 
• ENABLING RESOURCES
• LIFE CYCLE FOR EACH RESOURCE
• PRECEDENCE BETWEEN RESOURCES
• WRAP & DISMISS

Solution Generation

• Introduction
• Ventilation
• Clarification
• Analysis of Problem
• Set Criteria
• Suggest Solutions
• Evaluate Solutions
• Deselect Sub-Optimals
• Select Solution(s)
• Implement the Solution
• Roles & Responsibilities
• Guardian of Change
• Review & Wrap

ANALYSIS AGENDAS

Appreciative Inquiry

• Launch
• Discovery
• Dream
• Design
• Destiny
• Testing
• Review and Wrap

After Action Review (Hot Wash)

• Launch
• Success Objectives
• Goals and Considerations
• What Worked and Hampered
• Issues and Risks
• Review and Wrap

Context Diagram

• INTRODUCTION
• PURPOSE OF THE BUSINESS AREA 
• WHO INTERACTS (Enablers)
• WHAT COMES IN (Inputs)
• WHAT GOES OUT (Outputs)
• MODEL AND VALIDATION (Walk-thru)
• REVIEW AND WRAP

Activity Flows [Requirements]

• Introduction
• Purpose of the Business Area
• Support Activities (verb-noun)
• Processes
• Purpose of Each Process
• Life cycle Activities
• Procedures (or, SIPOC or Requirements)
• Review and Wrap

Data Flow Diagram

• Introduction
• THE BASE (Display or build the context diagram)
• BUSINESS PROCESSES
• MATCHED INPUTS AND OUTPUTS WITH PROCESSES
• STORES OF INFORMATION
• EACH PROCESS
• NEEDED DATA
• GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
• Review and Wrap

Decision-making Approach

• Launch
• Purpose of the Object
• Options
• Decision Criteria
• Deselection and Decision
• Testing
• Review and Wrap

Decision Support

• Introduction
• WHAT QUESTIONS DO YOU NEED TO ANSWER
• WHAT INFORMATION IS NEEDED
• WHERE IS THE INFORMATION CURRENTLY STORED
• WHERE SHOULD THE INFORMATION BE STORED
• HOW WILL THE INFORMATION BE USED
• INTERACTION
• OPERATING CHANGES
• Review and Wrap

FMEA (Failure Mode & Effect Analysis) 

• INTRODUCTION
• DEFINE FMEA SCOPE (CHARTER)
• IDENTIFY FAILURE MODES
• IDENTIFY EFFECTS OF FAILURE MODES
• VALUE EFFECTS BY:  SEVERITY
• RATE EFFECTS BY:  INCIDENCE
• RATE EFFECTS BY:  DETECTION
• VALUE EFFECTS BY:  CONFIDENCE
• CALCULATE COMPOSITE RISK RATING
• IDENTIFY CORRECTIVE ACTIONS
• PRIORITIZE CORRECTIVE ACTION
• CALCULATE REVISED COMPOSITE RISK RATING
• WRAP

Logical Modeling

• INTRODUCTION
• PURPOSE OF THE BUSINESS AREA
• “THINGS” THAT SUPPORT THE PURPOSE
• HOW THINGS RELATE
• DESCRIBING EACH “THING”
• BUSINESS RULES
• WALKTHROUGH
• WRAP

Mandate Compliance

• Introduction 
• Mandate Review 
• Requirements Modeling
• Model Integration
• Guardian of Change
• Wrap and dismiss

Peer Review Inspection

• INTRODUCTION
• PRI SCOPE (Peer Review Inspection)
• RESOURCES* & PRIORITIZED ARTIFACTS
• OVERVIEW
• DEFECTS
• CAUSE-EFFECT (Optional)
• CORRECTIVE ACTIONS (REWORK)
• DEFECT LOG AND REPORT
• WRAP

Real-Win-Worth

• Launch
• To What Extent Is the Opportunity Real?
• How Can We Win Compared to Competitive Options?
• To What Extent is the opportunity Worth Doing?
• Review and Wrap

DESIGN AGENDAS

Basic Design Agenda

• INTRODUCTION
• THE ACTIVITY
• REQUIRED INFORMATION
• SCREENS, REPORTS, OR SWIM LANES
• ENVIRONMENT
• OPERATING CHANGES

(repeat for each activity or process)

• REVIEW AND WRAP

Transaction (JAD or Joint Application Development)

• INTRODUCTION

(for each activity linking to the Design Agenda above)

1  PLANNING

2  RECEIVING

3  ARRIVAL PROCESSING

4  ASSIGNING

5  PROCESSING

6  RECORDING

7  DISPOSITION

8  PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

• WRAP

Organizational Design

• INTRODUCTION
• THE VISION
• ORGANIZATION OBJECTIVES
• CRITERIA FOR DESIGN
• ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGIES
• CRITERIA FOR STRATEGIES
• PROTOTYPICAL ORGANIZATION
• TEST DESIGN—RASI AND SCENARIOS
• LATERAL COORDINATION
• EVOLUTIONARY PATH
• WRAP

Object-Oriented Design

• INTRODUCTION
• OBJECTS
• ACTIONS
• MESSAGES BETWEEN OBJECTS
• SCREENS, REPORTS, SWIM-LANES
• WRAP

You have just viewed a few hundred thousand dollars of time it took to build the annotated support behind each. Let us know what questions you might have. We aim to serve.

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Lead the Change—One Meeting at a Time

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True meeting leadership goes beyond setting an agenda. It requires a facilitator who can navigate complexity, balance voices, and drive toward outcomes with clarity and consensus. Our Professional Meeting Leadership Workshop and facilitation training equips you to do just that—blending human-centric methods with structured analytical tools to foster rigor, inclusivity, and results that stick.

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Because every meeting should be a catalyst for change—not just another calendar event.

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And earn up to 40 professional development credits.

• CDUs (IIBA)
• CLPs (Federal Acquisition)
• PDUs (SAVE International)
• SEUs (Scrum Alliance)
• 4.0 CEUs (General Professions)

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With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we provide the following for your benefit and reference.

• 20 Prioritization Techniques = https://foldingburritos.com/product-prioritization-techniques/
• Creativity Techniques = https://www.mycoted.com/Category:Creativity_Techniques
• Facilitation Training Calendar = https://mgrush.com/public-facilitation-training-calendar/
• Liberating Structures = http://www.liberatingstructures.com/ls-menu
• Management Methods = https://www.valuebasedmanagement.net
• Newseum = https://www.freedomforum.org/todaysfrontpages/
• People Search = https://pudding.cool/2019/05/people-map/
• Project Gutenberg = http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page
• Scrum Events Agendas = https://mgrush.com/blog/scrum-facilitation/
• Speed test = https://www.speedtest.net/result/8715401342
• Teleconference call = https://youtu.be/DYu_bGbZiiQ
• The Size of Space = https://neal.fun/size-of-space/
• Thiagi/ 400 ready-to-use training games = http://thiagi.net/archive/www/games.html
• Visualization methods = http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html#
• Walking Gorilla = https://youtu.be/vJG698U2Mvo

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