Community Meetings - The Most Common Cause of Failure?

Actually to be honest, I don't know if this is the most common cause of failure or not. But its certainly one I think many community leaders and facilitators fall foul of commonly.

Here's what Marv Weisbord says about defining success in large group meetings:

"A meeting succeeds when people do things afterwards that they couldn't or wouldn't do before. If that sounds too simple, try this: a successful method helps a system transform its capability for action."

And one of the most common failures that community leaders and facilitators make is not scheduling the meeting for long enough or with enough overnight breaks. They think "If we make the meeting too long, people won't attend." Or "We just need to get through a certain amount and if we cram we won't need as long." or "These meetings are so boring, lets get it over and done with as soon as possible."

The reality is that for community meetings to meet Marv's criteria for success, attendees need to change their perceptions so that they work less in isolation and more in collaboration. They need to build trust, get the important issues out on the table, develop an understanding of the 'whole' by hearing from other stakeholders, come to some sense of an agreed way forward and finally plan their actions.

How do you know in advance how long this will take?

I'm not aware of any formula but here's the relevant factors:

1. What is your purpose? The narrower the purpose or task, the less time will be needed. (For example, developing a strategic planning or vision for the whole community generally requires more time than developing a plan for just one aspect, eg youth development or economic development.)
2. What outcomes are you trying to achieve? If its just getting input for a decision you need to make, then you won't need nearly as long as if you're looking for subsequent involvement in the implementation.
3. Has any work already been done on this issue?
4. What sense of community or goodwill already exists amongst the group. A community that barely knows one another or where ill will exists will need longer to build the necessary goodwill.
5. The more overnight breaks in your schedule, the better. For example, 16 hours over 3 days is MUCH more effective than 16 hours over 2 days.
6. I know this goes against the norm but a schedule which see the last session of a meeting in the morning rather than late afternoon is often more effective.

I'd love to be able to give you a formula to know how long you will need but I don't know of any. Personally, I use my experience, the experience of others and my gut instincts. Find out what has worked for others and then adjust accordingly.

But the golden rule has to be this - if in doubt, set more time or a schedule which sees more overnight breaks. (You can always finish early if you don't need the full time scheduled.) Many Australia based community leaders and consultants alike do the opposite and live to regret it. Believe me, I know from experience on this one.