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Leadership Team Meeting Tool

Updated

In This Article: 

 

Why Do Leadership Team Meetings Matter?

Alignment doesn’t happen by accident.

 

You’ve got to have a leader meeting every single week. Regular leader meetings create space for clear communication, better decision-making, and a stronger, more connected team. You’ll also experience:

  • Fewer surprises and more clarity: Everyone stays in the loop.
  • Stronger leadership and less chaos: When your key players are on the same page, everything runs more smoothly.
  • Focused goals and better results: You’ll focus on what matters most and adjust as needed.
  • Real alignment and momentum that lasts: Consistent check-ins keep goals moving forward.

 

Script for Leader Meeting Invitation Email

Your first order of business is to identify who your leaders are and schedule a 60-minute meeting to give them a high-level heads-up about new communication rhythms. You’ll set the stage to talk through the changes and how they’ll benefit the team, and you’ll get buy-in for using Elite to unify and grow.

 

Script for Leader Meeting Invitation Email

Your first order of business is to identify who your leaders are and schedule a 60-minute meeting to give them a high-level heads-up about new communication rhythms. You’ll set the stage to talk through the changes and how they’ll benefit the team, and you’ll get buy-in for using Elite to unify and grow.

 

Copy and paste this email to send to your leadership team:

 

Subject Line: Exciting Next Steps for Our Team

 

Hey team,

 

I’m pulling us together to talk about some important new communication rhythms we’ll be rolling out over the next several months to help take [insert your business’s name] to the next level.

 

In this meeting, we’ll walk through the changes, why they matter, and how we’ll fit the new rhythms into our day-to-day flow. Then you’ll have a chance to ask questions and give feedback so we can make the changes work best for our team.

 

Here are the meeting details:
Date: [Insert date]
Time: [Insert time]
Location: [Insert location or virtual meeting link]

 

Please come ready to:

  1. Learn about the new rhythms and how they’ll help us lead with focus and clarity
  2. Share your thoughts and questions
  3. Talk through steps for sharing these with the rest of the team

 

I believe some simple shifts will make a big difference in how we work together and grow. Your leadership is critical to making this a success, so I need you to prioritize this meeting.

 

If you have any questions beforehand, let me know.

 

See you there.

 

[Your name]

 

Talking Points for Your First Leader Meeting

We call your first leader meeting the buy-in meeting. Your buy-in meeting is crucial for setting the tone for a unified new chapter for your business. But before you ask for buy-in, your leaders need to understand what has to change and why. This is your chance to share honestly about:

 

  • What you want for the business
  • What’s in it for the team
  • How your current approach is working—or not working

 

Then you can ask the million-dollar question: If I can show you a path to get what we all want with less cost, how open would you be to exploring it? 

 

Use these talking points to introduce Elite and roll out the new communication rhythms.

 

Pro tip: Before your meeting, read the ABCs of Alignment for helpful tips on getting commitment from your leaders. Prefer a video? Watch this 30-minute training on team alignment.

 

Leader Buy-In Meeting Talking Points:

Meeting length: About 60 minutes

Section 1: Welcome and Vision (15 minutes)

  • Open with vision and humility: “I’m thrilled to bring you in on something that I believe is going to make a huge difference for our team and our business. And I ask you for lots of grace as we figure things out together.”
  • Share the why for the meeting: “We’ve outgrown the old way of doing things and need to lay a new foundation that will help us scale. As we do that, we want to stay true to our mission, vision and values.”
  • Talk about the future you see: “Here’s what I want for our business and our team.” Personalize this and clarify for your team, “If you’re in the room, I see you as a leader who will get us there.”
  • Be open about the current reality: “Here’s where we’re stuck.” Personalize this with examples of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. “We need a system for clear objectives and accountability.”
  • Emphasize the opportunity: “As leaders, we’re the ones who set the tone for the rest of the team. When we’re excited and on the same page, it makes everything else run more smoothly.”
  • Ask the million-dollar question: “If I can show you a path to get what we all want with less cost, how open would you be to exploring it?”

Section 2: Overview of Elite (10 minutes)

  • Briefly explain Elite: “Going forward we’ll be using Dave Ramsey’s EntreLeadership Elite. It’s a digital product that provides a framework for how to get everyone on the same page and moving in the same direction. A big part of that is establishing new communication rhythms and clear roles for our team. So let me show you the four new communication rhythms we’ll have each week.”

Section 3: Share Expectations for New Communication Rhythms (15 minutes)

  • Leadership team meetings: “Consider this our first leader meeting. Going forward, we’ll have a weekly leader meeting to stay on track with our goals and address priorities as a team.”
  • One-on-one meetings: “This will be one of our biggest game changers. I’ll meet with each of you one-on-one every week. These meetings will help us stay aligned and ensure you get the answers you need from me, and I’ll help remove any roadblocks. We’ll also use them early on to clarify our roles and what winning looks like.”
  • Weekly Reports: “Soon, you’ll get a weekly reminder to fill out a Weekly Report using a simple online tool, and it’ll only take you about five minutes to complete. Weekly Reports will help me be more aware of your most pressing issues and concerns so I can help you clear blockers. It will also give you an easy way to share some of your weekly wins.”
  • Weekly staff meetings: “Once we’re ready, we’ll invite the whole team to our first weekly staff meeting to share customer stories, company goals and business outcomes. We’ll also give shout-outs for work anniversaries, share other team news, and take a few minutes to remind the team why we do what we do and the values our company is built on.”

Section 4: Open for Discussion and Questions (15 minutes)

  • Set the pace: “I know that was a lot. Sometimes you’ve got to slow down to speed up. That’s what this is about. Again, I ask for your grace as we commit to coming together in new ways.”
  • Ask for input: “What are your initial thoughts?”

Section 5: Closing Thoughts (3–5 minutes)

  • This is just the beginning: “We’ll discuss these changes more next week during our leader meeting and our first one-on-one meetings.”
  • Give next steps: “Look for a calendar invite for these meetings.”
  • Reinforce commitment: “Let’s take this step together, lead by example, and make Elite something that benefits everyone.”

Reminders:

  • Follow up with a calendar invitation to your weekly leader meeting series. We recommend you hold this meeting at the start of your work week.
  • Send an email to your leaders about one-on-one meetings. (Copy and paste the script above)
  • Add your direct reports to Elite so they can start using the tools and accessing the trainings. You’ll do this under Team in the main navigation.

 

 

Talking Points for Ongoing Leader Meetings

After the buy-in meeting, send an invite for your first leader meeting. Kick off the meeting by:

  • Recapping the plan for new communication rhythms: leader meetings, one-on-ones, Weekly Reports, staff meetings
  • Reiterating the leader meeting goals: unity, clarity and accountability
  • Explaining that leader meetings are focused, tactical working sessions to solve problems and drive the business forward

Then follow this simple agenda each week.

 

Ongoing Leader Meeting Talking Points:

Meeting length: 60 minutes

 

Section 1: Icebreaker (5 minutes)

  • Start with a fun question or activity to build connection and set a positive tone for the meeting. There are helpful prompts in the Leadership Team Meetings tool if you need suggestions.

Section 2: Wins and Shout-Outs (3–5 minutes)

  • Celebrate victories and recognize team members to keep the energy high and reinforce your purpose.

Section 3: Score Card (5–7 minutes)

  • Review your goals and track your key numbers. Assess where you’re winning and identify areas that need improvement. But don’t start solving problems now. You’ll do that once you get to Key Topics.

Section 4: Desired Future (5 minutes)

Section 5: Close the Loop (5 minutes)

  • For your first meeting, you won’t have any Desired Future loops to close. Going forward, you’ll review actions from previous meetings to ensure completion and accountability. No task should slip through the cracks!

Section 6: Key Topics (20–25 minutes)

  • Discuss main issues, solve problems, and make decisions—this is the heart of the meeting. (Before each meeting, any leader invited can add a topic they want to talk about.)

Section 7: Action Items (5–7 minutes)

  • Wrap up with clear next steps, ensuring each person knows what’s expected of them to continue making progress. Action items can be added to the Leadership Team Meetings agenda inside Elite at any point before, during or after the meeting.