Written by David Brewer

Ever run a dead news meeting where people are slouched on chairs, lacking in ideas and unresponsive when called on? Sure, we all have. Well, never again. Our 50 tips for running a stimulating news meeting should help guarantee a steady stream of original stories.

You will need to have a clear idea of the outcome you want, but will also need to encourage participation from every member of staff. There should be no hiding places, no scapegoats and no favourite. There needs to be a sense that every meeting will unearth several news story idea in the category of "had it not been for you the world would never have known."

Your staff need to know that it's not worth turning up if they don't have original ideas to contribute. Better to meet with one person with ideas rather than a dozen with blank faces. And then make sure you tick the following boxes. (Please add any of your own tips using the comments box at the end of the article)

Tell staff not to bother turning up if they don't have original ideas

50 tips for a successful news meeting

1. Meet standing up or sitting on hard seats, not slouching on sofas
2. Be punctual and start even if all have not arrived
3. Create a sense of urgency and set a time limit
4. Keep things moving and avoid silences
5. Have a clear outline of what you think the news day should look like before you start the meeting
6. Encourage staff to read in before the meeting, not during
7. All should be totally across what you and your competition are covering
8. Make people aware that they should come to the news meeting prepared
9. Ban texting or calls (unless they are to do with an ongoing news story)
10. Discourage private conversations during the meeting
11. All should be totally across what you and your competition are covering
12. Speak loud and clear, don’t drone
13. Use humour without trivialising the seriousness of the task in hand
14. Make sure the meetings are enjoyable; they set the tone for the day
15. Generate an atmosphere of participation rather than one where people want to hide
16. Briefly recap the top ongoing stories
17. Be across the day's prospects and planning diary and have copies printed out for all staff
18. Spend five minutes asking what could have gone better on the last shift
19. Mention where your news team beat the opposition the previous day
20. Make sure you praise what was done well
21. Point out examples of where a member of staff has excelled, not just the correspondents but also the backroom staff
22. Create a sense that it is a team effort and everyone needs each other
23. Encourage shared responsibility for all output
24. Never criticise a member of staff in front of his or her peers
25. Leave individual correction to private conversations with staff members
26. Don’t waste time with conversations that can be dealt with after the meeting
27. Allow time for brief one-to-one chats after the meeting ends if staff are unclear
28. Learn from every mistake and set action points for improvements
29. Don’t try to be smart it will reduce participation
30. Don’t try to belittle people and make them shrink
31. Draw the best out of people and make them great
32. Encourage participation and welcome all ideas and don’t mock any
33. Look at every member of staff as you talk, bring the quiet ones into the conversation
34. Ask them what ideas they have for new angles to existing stories
35. Ask them what exclusive stories they are working on
36. Ask them what stories they would like to be able to work on
37. If it goes quiet, stimulate the debate by offering at least one new angle on each story
38. Ensure all understand the agreed priorities for the day
39. Ensure all understand their roles and responsibilities
40. Don’t allow anyone to hog the conversation
41. Don’t allow any hiding places by picking a room where you can see everyone
42. Avoid dwelling on an item too long
43. Ensure decisions are made and move on
44. Ensure that everyone knows what they need to deliver and when
45. End with a sense that all key issues were tackled and resolved
46. Don’t end a meeting with loads of loose ends
47. Sum up at the end with a clear outline of the day ahead
48. Leave the impression that you are in charge, but that everyone is needed
49. If necessary, set a time for a quick follow-up progress meeting later in the day
50. End the meeting by thanking everyone for taking part – and mean it.

Please feel free to add comments below to add to these or to rubbish them. Open debate is welcome.

David BrewerThe author of this piece, David Brewer, is a journalist and media strategy consultant who set up and runs this site, Media Helping Media. He delivers media strategy training and consultancy services worldwide and his business details are at Media Ideas International Ltd. He tweets @helpingmedia.