This document provides guidance on how to start and structure a meeting. It recommends beginning by getting the audience's attention through polite methods like clearing your throat or knocking on a table. You should then welcome participants and thank them for attending. Next, provide background context on the topic and state the meeting's purpose clearly. Invite initial participation by asking for views or opinions. Throughout the meeting, summarize key discussion points and invite further comments. Finally, conclude by recapping any decisions made and closing the meeting once all business is addressed. The document encourages practicing these steps in pairs to role play starting different types of hypothetical meetings.

1. MEETING:
How to Start a Meeting
By
ADE JOHAN

2. All right!..
As You
know....
......?
•attention please!
•Hmm …. Hmm (clearing throat)
•Knock …. Knock (knocking the table)
•Etc.
• Thanks for coming to this meeting
• I would like to thank all of you for coming
to this meeting
• Ladies and Gentlemen, please allow me
to welcome you all to our meeting
• On behalf of the Dean of ME Faculty, I
would like to welcome you all to this
meeting
Attracting Audience
Welcoming

3. Telling the background
Telling the purpose
Opening statement
• As we know that …..
• Allow me to tell you the
background. The background
is ….
• In this session we are going to
discuss ….
• The purpose of this meeting
is to...
• Shall we begin our meeting!
• Let’s get started!
• Perhaps we’d better get
started!
• I think it’s about time we got
down to business!
• Shall we start now?
• Ladies and gentlemen, I
declare this meeting open!

4. to one person
• What are your views
on________?
• What are your feelings
about_________?
• What do you think
about__________?
• What’s your opinion about
that?
To a group of people
• Any reaction to that?
• Has anybody any strong
feeling about/views on
that?
• What’s the general view
on/feeling about that?
• Has anybody any
comments to make?
INVITING PARTICIPANTS TO TALK

5. Summarizing the Main Points
• Now, I’ve listened to both
sides of the argument and
we’ve discussed ……,
• So, to summarize, there
seem to be three main
problems…….
• So, we’ve discussed the
problem of……
• can we now try to reach a
decision.
• I think we’ve covered……and
also the benefits……
• We’ve not got to decide on
the best one.
Concluding and
Closing
• So, if there are no more
objections I suggest that you
….
• If everyone is favor, I suggest
that ……
• If everyone’s in agreement, I
propose that……
• Then I recommend that……
• Do you all agree that……?
• If nobody has anything to
add, then we can draw the
meeting to a close.
• So, if that’s everything then
we can stop here.

6. PRACTICE
– You are a head of department in your office. You are
supposed to start the meeting by attracting and
welcoming the audience in a meeting on working
evaluation.
– Work in pairs and make a background and the purpose of
a meeting on the following matters:
• Working evaluation
• Rolling position in the office
• Monthly program
• Etc.
– Practice the above exercise from the beginning (attracting
and welcoming audience, telling the background and the
purpose of the meeting, and opening statement.