About COSI
• The Center of Science and Industry
• Located in Columbus, Ohio, USA
• Opened 1964
• 320,000 square feet science museum
• 583,556 onsite visitors last year
• About 300 full-time and part-time Team Members
COSI’s Divisions
• Advancement
– Marketing, Membership, Development
• Operations & Experiences
– Exhibits, Guest Services, Retail, Food, Facility
Operations
• Diversity, Inclusion & Partnerships
– Access Initiatives, Strategic Partnerships
• Finance
– Accounting & Human Resources
• Programs
– Student & Family Programs
Lots of projects +
lots of people +
collaborative culture =
lots of meetings
Working Cross-Divisionally:
it hasn’t always been so.
Old complaints:
Too many meetings.
When will I get my work done?
Why are so many people from our department here?
Why are we having this meeting?
Not everyone knows how to meet.
We should get rid of half our meetings.
To work cross-divisionally,
We cleared the decks and organized.
We spread out accountabilities.
We sought to end the era of “that's your
department’s problem, not mine.”
No one team member is in more than two
standing meetings.
We even trained on how to meet.
The Result: Four Cross-Divisional Meetings
Designed to Help Us Move COSI Forward
1. Strategy Meeting
President
Advancement
Programs
Finance
Operations &
Experiences
Diversity,
Inclusion &
Partnerships
1. Strategy Meeting
• Meets: Every Wednesday from 8:00 – 10:00 AM
• Major Activity: Strategy
• Level of Focus: Executive
• Time Horizon: 1 to 5 years out
• Participants: President and VPs
• Major Activities: strategic initiatives, strategic
plan, budget, holding balanced portfolio of
experiences, top-level reporting, campaigns,
major partner relations, major pricing revisions
2. Planning Meeting
Advancement
Finance
Operations & Experiences
Programs
Diversity, Inclusion &
Partnerships
2. Planning Meeting
• Meets: Second Tuesdays from 1:30 – 3:30 PM
• Major Activity: Planning
• Level of Focus: Big Picture
• Time Horizon: 12 months to 2 years out
• Participants: directors, project managers, VP of
Experience Division
• Regular Activities:vetting new programs,
exhibition rental and movie ideas,
interconnectedness of overall marketing and
fundraising plans, talent development, inputs
from strategic team and mobilization team
3. Mobilization Meeting
Operations &
Experiences
Programs
Advancement (Marketing)
3. Mobilization Meeting
• Frequency: 1st and 3rd Tuesdays at 1:30 – 2:30
• Major Activity: Operations
• Level of Focus: Medium-Picture
• Time Horizon: 1 month to 12 months
• Participants: managers and directors, project managers as needed, VP Operations
• Regular activity: calendar and space negotiation, resource capacity, research and evaluation implementation, reporting, troubleshooting
4. Implementation Meeting
Operations & Experiences
Advancement (Marketing)
4. Implementation Meeting
• Meets: Weekly – Thursdays at 11:00 AM
• Major Activity: Doing
• Level of Focus: Small-Picture
• Time Horizon: tomorrow to 4 weeks out
• Participants: implementers, schedulers, point people
• Regular activity: use of resources and equipment, daily event turnover, logistics, communication, putting out fires before guests see them, not decision-making.
Standing Meetings In a Nutshell
• Team authority is based on time horizon
• If something is happening a year from now, for
example, Implementation must pass it up to
Mobilization
• Aim to have the right frequency of meetings with the
right people in the room
• Expect participation, not just attendance
• Meeting recorder is the law enforcement officer
• Re-evaluation should happen annually
• Have a coach who reaches out to recorders: How's it
going? Are you missing someone critical? Do you
have people who don't need to be there?