The Role of a Meeting Evaluator

The meeting evaluator is just what the name implies... an evaluator of anything and everything that takes place throughout the meeting. The responsibility is large, but so are the rewards. The evaluation should be brief, yet complete. Methods for conducting the evaluation sessions are limitless. Review the Effective Speech Evaluation manual for ideas.

Prior to the meeting --

• Check with the Toastmaster to find out how the program will be conducted and if there are any planned deviations from the usual meeting format. Remember, always be ready when the meeting starts.

• Prepare a brief but thorough talk on the purpose, techniques, and benefits of evaluation (for the benefit of the guests). Emphasize that as evaluators, you are not critics. Criticism is negative; evaluation is a positive experience designed to help people overcome weak habits and add power to good ones.

• Sit near the back of the room to allow yourself full view of the meeting and its participants.

• Check again to see if the Toastmaster has any special plans for the meeting. You might also ask if the Toastmaster would like you to watch for any specific things during the meeting.

During the meeting --

• Take notes on everything that happens (or doesn't but should). For example: is the club's property (trophies, banner, educational material, etc.) displayed properly? If not, why? Were there unnecessary distractions that could have been avoided? Create a checklist from which you can follow the meeting. Did the meeting, and each segment of it, begin and end on time?

• Cover each participant on the program--from the opening to the last report by the timer. Look for good and unacceptable examples of preparation, organization, delivery, enthusiasm, observation, and general performance of duties. Remember, you are not to reevaluate the speaker, though you may wish to add something that the speech evaluator may have missed.

• Wrap up by giving your general evaluation of the meeting, using the notes you took as suggested above. You may wish to comment on the quality of the speech evaluations. Were they positive, upbeat, helpful? Did they point the way to improvement?

• Have Fun! The evaluator and the people being evaluated should remember not to take themselves too seriously. Again, the purpose of evaulation is to help people improve!

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