Conducting a Business Meeting
Useful Expressions
- I'd like to welcome everyone to the meeting.
- I'd like to thank you all for coming today.
- The purpose of today's meeting is...
- The meeting has been called to discuss...
- Our aim today is to...
- Let's go over the main points of the last meeting.
- Let's go over the minutes from our last meeting.
- Who would like to begin/go first?
- Any questions or comments?
- Does anyone have a question?
- Are there any further questions?
- Does anyone else have anything to add?
- The next meeting will be on...
- Thank you all for attending.
Dialogue Practice
Read the dialogue aloud with your teacher.
A company's meeting is about to start. | |
 Chairman | Good morning, everyone! First, I'd like to thank all of you for coming today. As you already know, this meeting has been called to discuss ways to improve our recruitment practices. Camille, will you take the minutes today? |
 Camille | Certainly, sir. |
 Chairman | All right. Before we begin, let's quickly go over the main points of our last meeting. Alex, could you please give us a short summary of our last discussion? |
 Alex | Yes, sir. Last time, we discussed the sales of our latest product and the performance of our new recruits. Regarding the sales, Mark updated us on the progress of the campaign. As for the performance of the recruits, the meeting concluded with the decision to change our recruitment process. |
 Chairman | Thank you, Alex. So, in today's meeting, I would like to hear your suggestions on what we should do to improve the quality of our recruitment process. Who would like to begin? |
 Camille | I would like to start, if that's okay. I believe that... |
They each present their suggestions and back them up with arguments until a decision is made. | |
 Chairman | Does anyone else have anything to add? No one? Okay, then, I guess we are done for today. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, March 26 at 9 am. Thank you all for attending and for your contributions. |
Check your understanding:
1.
What was the purpose of the meeting?
2.
What did they discuss during the last meeting?
3.
What decision did they make during the last meeting regarding recruitment?
Role Play
Role-play the following situation with your teacher.
Situation
You are the chairman at a meeting. Open the meeting and present its purpose: to discuss the design of your company's new product. Ask one of the attendees to take the minutes and go over the main points of the last meeting. Your teacher will act as one of the attendees. You may use the following expressions:
- I'd like to welcome everyone to the meeting.
- The purpose of today's meeting is...
- Let's summarize the main points of our last discussion.
- Our aim today is to...
- Who would like to go first?
Discussion
1.
Have you ever conducted a meeting? If so, how did it go?
2.
What is the role of the chairman at a meeting?
3.
What kind of skills or characteristics should a good chairperson have?
4.
What are the biggest obstacles to conducting an effective meeting?
