How Do You Measure Committee Effectiveness?

Committees. Committees come in all shapes and sizes. Committees vary in their effectiveness. 

If I had a friend who was going to put together a tool to assess a committee's effectiveness, what would she want to include in it? Ok, in the spirit of full disclosure,  I do have a friend and she has been tasked to develop a tool, really. Here is what I have gathered so far and could use your ideas for other ways to measure the effectiveness of a committee:

AN EFFECTIVE COMMITTEE WILL understand its purpose and effectively work toward its goals • have open communication among members • listen to all points of view and make decisions that work for all • not be dominated by one leader or member • strike a balance between group productivity and personal needs • establish a process to evaluate and make changes • provide an opportunity for members to work collaboratively • have access to information they need to make recommendations.

Any and all ideas are appreciated AND an actual tool will be recognized with a super honorable mention and many, many thanks!

Credit Where Credit is Due

The difference between reading my Google Reader and not reading my Google Reader is learning. Bottom line: I don't learn if I don't read.

I'd like to call your attention to a few posts that I keep at arms length and acknowledge Team Building is For Suckers for adding a no-holds-barred 25 cent shot of caffeine to my day each and every time I read a post:

• Ask A Manager: But I'm qualified for that job, why did you reject me?
• The Career Encouragement Blog: HR referred me to the EAP - what does that mean?
• Compensation Force:  Please Strike the Word "Poor" From All Performance Management Materials
• The HR Capitalist:  What's the Difference Between An Employee Who "Meets" and One  Who "Exceeds"

Click through, they are well worth your read!