Of all the things that we recommend for effective meeting management, the one area that is most often ignored, avoided or disliked is meeting evaluation. Most people will say that it is a good idea, that they should do it, then say they will do it, but then, somehow, it doesn’t happen.

So, why don’t people evaluate their meetings?

1. It takes too much time. It takes some time, but you can do it in just a few minutes by asking one or two simple questions, such as “What went well in today’s meeting?” and “What can we do to improve our next meeting?” Alternatively, you can send out an e-mail survey after the meeting (improve your chances of getting people to respond by telling them at the end of the meeting to expect a brief survey in the next few days).