A kickoff meeting is held to brief all team members on a new project, establish a timeline, and assign project functions. The project manager organizes the meeting, takes notes, and sets up an achievement list. Task assignment is important, and meeting notes should include action items, due dates, and responsible parties.
A kick-off meeting is a meeting where all responsible team members are briefed on a new project. Activities can include discussing project intent, establishing a timeline, sharing cost and budget constraints, and assigning project functions. Kickoff meetings often include team members in several functional areas and might, on occasion, include a customer representative.
The intent of a breakout meeting is to ensure that a project runs as smoothly as possible by ensuring that all team members are on the same page. Such meetings are an opportunity for the project manager to share information about the project. This can include hard facts like a project’s due date, specifications, and budget, but it can also include soft information like quirks and client preferences.
The project manager is often responsible for organizing a kickoff meeting. He usually takes ownership of setting and following the agenda. This includes scheduling a time when all required parties can meet; reserve a position; and in the case of long meetings that take place during a midday break, by ordering lunch service for team members.
During the meeting, the project manager will take accurate notes on all topics discussed, decisions reached and questions to be answered at a later time. He will be responsible for ensuring that all interested parties agree on terms, timescales and costs and that they fully understand what is required of them. Thereafter, the project manager should promptly distribute clear and concise meeting notes.
One of the most important functions of a kickoff meeting is to set up an achievement list. This is a list of all items owed to the customer and the specific actions required to satisfy each product. For example, a product to be delivered to the customer might be to produce an entry sign for a store. To do this, the sign must be designed, materials must be purchased and ordered, it must be manufactured, quality verified, and the sign must be shipped and/or installed. The procurement specialist cannot order materials until the designer designs the sign, and if any of these stages are not completed on time, the installer will not be able to meet the due date.
Task assignment is very important to the process, so meeting notes for a kick-off meeting should include a list of action items, due dates, and responsible parties. If one party has an issue with deadlines, specifications or pricing, the kickoff meeting is the time to bring it up. This meeting provides an open forum for all interested parties to ensure they get what they need to produce a successful project.
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