This book will guide you in creating and conducting meetings that accomplish what they need to – make decisions and have them carried out. It gives you practical, specific, easy-to-use steps you can take to – identify and work within your organization’s meeting culture, modifying it if needed, – design agendas that stimulate creativity and focus discussion, – conduct meetings that encourage full participation and collaboration, – help shape decisions so they are clear and lead to effective action, – deal with unhelpful meeting habits and difficult behaviors, – record policy decisions so that they are readily available for reference in the future. Bruce Partridge speaks directly to the person who will chair board or committee meetings on a monthly or weekly basis for community organizations, religious congregations, housing co-operatives, service groups and political associations. His book can also be used for work-group meetings in business and other professional settings. And since the basic principles are similar across types and sizes of meetings, it offers guidance for planning and conducting Annual General Meetings and other large-group meetings.