Meetings: Introduction
Opening
  • Good morning/afternoon, everyone.
  • If we are all here, let's get started / start the meeting / start.
Welcoming and Introducing
  • Please join me in welcoming (name of participant)
  • We're pleased to welcome (name of participant)
  • I'd like to extend a warm welcome to (name of participant)
  • It's a pleasure to welcome (name of participant)
  • I'd like to introduce (name of participant)
Stating the Principal Objectives
  • We're here today to ...
  • I'd like to make sure that we ...
  • Our main aim today is to ...
  • I've called this meeting in order to ...
Giving Apologies for Someone Who is Absent
  • I'm afraid.., (name of participant) can't be with us today. She is in...
  • Unfortunately, (name of participant) ... will not be with us to day because he ...
  • I have received apologies for absence from (name of participant), who is in (place).
Reading the Minutes (notes) of the Last Meeting
  • To begin with I'd like to quickly go through the minutes of our last meeting.
  • First, let's go over the report from the last meeting, which was held on (date)
  • Here are the minutes from our last meeting, which was on (date)
Dealing with Recent Developments
  • Jack, can you tell us how the XYZ project is progressing?
  • Jack, how is the XYZ project coming along?
  • John, have you completed the report on the new accounting package?
  • Has everyone received a copy of the Tate Foundation report on current marketing trends?
Moving Forward
  • So, if there is nothing else we need to discuss, let's move on to today's agenda.
  • Shall we get down to business?
  • Is there Any Other Business?
  • If there are no further developments, I'd like to move on to today's topic.
Introducing the Agenda
  • Have you all received a copy of the agenda?
  • There are X items on the agenda. First, ... second, ... third, ... lastly, ...
  • Shall we take the points in this order?
  • If you don't mind, I'd like to go in order today.
  • Let's skip item 1 and move on to item 3
  • I suggest we take item 2 last.
Allocating Roles (secretary, participants)
  • (name of participant) has agreed to take the minutes.
  • (name of participant), would you mind taking the minutes?
  • (name of participant) has kindly agreed to give us a report on ...
  • (name of participant) will lead point 1, (name of participant) point 2, and (name of participant) point 3.
  • (name of participant), would you mind taking notes today?
Agreeing on the Ground Rules for the Meeting (contributions, timing, decision-making, etc.)
  • We will first hear a short report on each point first, followed by a discussion of ...
  • I suggest we go round the table first.
  • Let's make sure we finish by ...
  • I'd suggest we ...
  • There will be five minutes for each item.
  • We'll have to keep each item to 15 minutes. Otherwise we'll never get through.
Introducing the First Item on the Agenda
  • So, let's start with ...
  • I'd suggest we start with...
  • Why don't we start with...
  • So, the first item on the agenda is
  • Pete, would you like to kick off?
  • Shall we start with ...
  • (name of participant), would you like to introduce this item?
Closing an Item
  • I think that takes care of the first item.
  • Shall we leave that item?
  • Why don't we move on to...
  • If nobody has anything else to add, lets ...
Next Item
  • Let's move onto the next item
  • Now that we've discussed X, let's now ...
  • The next item on today's agenda is...
  • Now we come to the question of.
Giving Control to the Next Participant
  • I'd like to hand over to (name of participant), who is going to lead the next point.
  • Next, (name of participant) is going to take us through ...
  • Now, I'd like to introduce (name of participant) who is going to ...
Summarizing
  • Before we close today's meeting, let me just summarize the main points.
  • Let me quickly go over today's main points.
  • To sum up, ...,.
  • OK, why don't we quickly summarize what we've done today.
  • In brief, ...
  • Shall I go over the main points?
Finishing Up
  • Right, it looks as though we've covered the main items.
  • If there are no other comments, I'd like to wrap this meeting up.
  • Let's bring this to a close for today.
  • Is there Any Other Business?
Suggesting and Agreeing on Time, Date and Place for the Next Meeting
  • Can we set the date for the next meeting, please?
  • So, the next meeting will be on ... (day), the . . . (date) of.. . (month) at ...
  • Let's next meet on ... (day), the . . . (date) of.. . (month) at ... What about the following
  • Wednesday? How is that?
Thanking Participants for Attending
  • I'd like to thank Marianne and Jeremy for coming over from London.
  • Thank you all for attending.
  • Thanks for your participation.
Closing the Meeting
  • The meeting is finished, we'll see each other next ...
  • The meeting is closed.
  • I declare the meeting closed.
Getting the Chairperson's Attention
  • (Mister/Madam) chairman.
  • May I have a word?
  • If I may, I think...
  • Excuse me for interrupting.
  • May I come in here?
Giving Opinions
  • I'm positive that...
  • I (really) feel that...
  • In my opinion...
  • The way I see things...
  • If you ask me,... I tend to think that...
Asking for Opinions
  • Are you positive that...
  • Do you (really) think that...
  • (name of participant) can we get your input?
  • How do you feel about...?
Commenting
  • That's interesting.
  • I never thought about it that way before.
  • Good point!
  • I get your point.
  • I see what you mean.
Agreeing
  • I totally agree with you.
  • Exactly!
  • That's (exactly) the way I feel.
  • I have to agree with (name of participant).
Disagreeing
  • Unfortunately, I see it differently.
  • Up to a point I agree with you, but...
  • (I'm afraid) I can't agree
Advising and Suggesting
  • Let's...
  • We should...
  • Why don't you....
  • How/What about...
  • I suggest/recommend that...
Clarifying
  • Let me spell out...
  • Have I made that clear?
  • Do you see what I'm getting at?
  • Let me put this another way...
  • I'd just like to repeat that...
Requesting Information
  • Please, could you...
  • I'd like you to...
  • Would you mind...
  • I wonder if you could...
Asking for Repetition
  • I'm afraid I didn't understand that. Could you repeat what you just said?
  • I didn't catch that. Could you repeat that, please?
  • I missed that. Could you say it again, please?
  • Could you run that by me one more time?
Asking for Clarification
  • I don't quite follow you. What exactly do you mean?
  • I'm afraid I don't quite understand what your are getting at.
  • Could you explain to me how that is going to work?
  • I don't see what you mean. Could we have some more details, please?
Asking for Verification
  • You did say next week, didn't you? ('did' is stressed)
  • Do you mean that...?
  • Is it true that...?
Asking for Spelling
  • Could you spell that, please?
  • Would you mind spelling that for me, please?
Asking for Contributions
  • We haven't heard from you yet, (name of participant).
  • What do you think about this proposal?
  • Would you like to add anything, (name of participant)?
  • Has anyone else got anything to contribute?
  • Are there any more comments?
Correcting Information
  • Sorry, I think you misunderstood what I said.
  • Sorry, that's not quite right.
  • I'm afraid you don't understand what I'm saying.
  • That's not quite what I had in mind.
  • That's not what I meant.
Keeping the Meeting On Target (time, relevance, decisions)
  • We're running short of time.
  • Well, that seems to be all the time we have today.
  • Please be brief.
  • I'm afraid we've run out of time.
  • I'm afraid that's outside the scope of this meeting.
  • Let's get back on track, why don't we?
  • That's not really why we're here today.
  • Why don't we return to the main focus of today's meeting.
  • We'll have to leave that to another time.
  • We're beginning to lose sight of the main point.
  • Keep to the point, please.
  • I think we'd better leave that for another meeting.
  • Are we ready to make a decision?

Arranging a meeting

Asking for a meeting
  • Could we schedule a time to meet next week?
  • I’d like to schedule a meeting as soon as possible.
  • Could I suggest that we meet?
  • Can we meet and go over this together?
  • Perhaps we could meet and go over the details together?
  • Do you have time to meet next week?
  • I was wondering if you might have time to meet on Thursday.
Suggesting a meeting time
  • How about Monday at nine?
  • How would Wednesday at four o’clock be for you?
  • How about sometimes after lunch?
  • Could we meet next week?
  • Would it be possible for us to meet on Friday afternoon next week?
  • Can I suggest 7.30 on Thursday evening?
  • Could we schedule a time to meet next week?
  • Would half past five suit you?
Saying that you can attend
  • Sounds good.
  • Yes, that works for me.
  • Yes, that would be fine.
  • Yes, I can manage that.
Confirming the day and time
  • See you on Monday at seven.
  • So, I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday at four.
  • So that’s Tuesday at 3 p.m. in your office.
Agreeing the length of a meeting
  • Should we plan for the whole afternoon?
  • Let’s leave the timing of the meeting open for now.
  • How long should we plane on meeting for?
  • The meeting should take about an hour and a half.
Saying that you’re looking forward to seeing someone
  • It’ll be nice to see you then.
  • I’m looking forward to meeting you then.
Saying sorry and rescheduling a meeting
  • I’m calling about our meeting next week.
  • I’m terribly sorry.
  • I’m afraid I have to ask you if we can reschedule our meeting next week.
  • I’m afraid something has come up.
  • Sorry to inconvenience you.
  • Could we postpone the meeting until Wednesday at the same time?
  • Would you be able to meet on Tuesday instead?
  • Would it be possible to meet a bit later/earlier?

Introductions and small talk

Introduction yourself
  • Hello. My name’s…
  • Hi everyone. My name’s…
  • Hello. I’m…
  • Pleased to meet you.
  • Nice to meet you.
  • How do you do? I’m…
Making introductions
  • Ms Lai, do you know Mr Weimann?
  • Chris, have you met Fiona yet?
  • Mr Saramanago, I’d like you to meet Ms Copeland.
  • Delphine, this is Eric. Eric, Delphine.
Asking someone to use your first name
  • Please, call me Chris.
  • By the way, it’s Frances.
  • And you can call me…
  • And I’m…
Asking how someone is
  • How are you?
  • How are you doing?
  • How are things going?
  • How’s business?
Making small talk
  • Which hotel are you staying at?
  • How long have you worked for your company?
  • Did you come here by plane?
  • Which airport did you fly into?
  • Is this the first time you’ve come here for a meeting?
  • Are you a colleague of, … ?
  • Do you know my colleague, … ?
  • Is this your first visit to (country/town)?
Showing interest in what someone is saying
  • Right.
  • Oh, really?
  • Interesting.
  • That’s absolutely fascinating!
  • I see.

Starting a meeting

Welcoming participants to a meeting
  • It’s nice to see everyone.
  • It’s great to see everybody.
  • I’m glad you could all make it today.
  • Hello everybody.
  • It’s good to see you all.
Saying who can attend the meeting
  • I have apologies from Tina and Bob.
  • Derek has sent his apologies.
  • Petya can’t make it either.
  • Unfortunately, Tim wasn’t able to make it today.
  • Laura can’t be with us today.
  • Laura has sent her apologies.
Stating what the meeting’s about
  • We’re meeting today to talk about…
  • Our objective today is…
  • We’ll be discussing…
  • Jim will be examining…
  • Jeremy will present an analysis of…
  • John will be giving us an overview of…
Introduction participants at a meeting
  • Before we begin, can I introduce Chris Hall to you all?
  • Does everyone know Mary Norman?
  • This is Christina, one of our consultants.
  • Let me introduce…
Asking participants to introduce themselves
  • Why don’t you introduce yourself to everyone?
  • Tell us a bit about yourself.
  • Could you tell us all who you are and say something about yourself?
Giving details about yourself
  • I’m the business development manager.
  • I’ve been with Burotech PLC since 2002.
  • I’ve worked for the company for four years.
  • I’m based in the Madrid office.
  • I work at our Cambridge branch.