Learn common business phrases used at a business meeting in English. Effective communication nurtures relationships with business partners, suppliers, staff, customers, and other stakeholders. This, consequently, has a direct impact on important factors like reputation and the bottom line (profit).
One of the best ways of communicating effectively in a meeting is ensuring you use the right phrases at different stages of business meetings. Here are some phrases used at a business meeting for congruence and better communication.
Phrases Used at a Business Meeting
Business Phrases: Greetings and Introductions
Every business meeting should begin with greetings. All participants also need to know each other briefly. The phrases below will help you kickstart the greetings and introductions.
- Hi everyone, it’s wonderful to see you all today.
- Before we start our meeting, I’d like to welcome you all and give you an update.
- Thank you for taking the time to attend this meeting, given your busy schedules.
- Good to see you all. Let’s get right into business and make the best use of our short time together.
- Let’s begin the meeting with brief introductions and a quick recap of the issues at hand.
Business Phrases: Setting the Agenda
Before a business meeting starts, there’s a need to set the agenda (direction) of the meeting. The phrases below will help you do just that;
- First on our agenda is (most pressing issue). Next in our agenda is (next pressing issues).
- We have (x) number of issues to discuss today, after which we shall have a short Q&A session.
- Let’s begin with a brief update from every head of the department.
- At the end of the meeting, we expect everyone to share their thoughts about our expansion plan.
- This meeting is about reviewing previous goals and setting new ones for 2023.
Business Phrases: Making a Presentation
If you are presenting in a business meeting, you must capture your audience’s attention, involve them in your presentation and answer any arising questions. Consider using the phrases below if you wish to have a good presentation.
- For those who don’t know me, I’m (X) from (X). My presentation is about (X).
- Here’s a quick summary of what my presentation will cover.
- Does anyone have a query before we continue?
- This is a visual representation of the concept we just discussed. There’s more in the next slide.
- In summary, we have covered (main points).
- Does anyone have a question or comment?
Business Phrases: Facilitating Discussions
Business meetings should be consultative. Your audiences need to be engaged. The phrases below are bound to facilitate discussions.
- We have a few minutes left. Let’s have a few people share their thoughts on what we’ve discussed today.
- Who is in agreement with the points that have been raised today?
- Are we all on the same page, or there is anyone with a different perspective?
- We can begin by agreeing that there is a problem with (x), right?
- Can we finish off by assigning the different tasks to several team members?
- What are the most critical challenges we should cover before we adjourn this meeting?
Business Phrases: Closing the Meeting
It’s good etiquette to conclude a business meeting by summarizing the discussion, thanking the participants, and allowing them time to make closing remarks. You also need a date, time, and agenda for the next meeting. Consider these phrases if you wish to close your business meeting properly.
- Let’s conclude by summarizing the main points we’ve discussed today.
- Can we set a date and time for a follow-up meeting?
- Let’s have the minutes of this meeting by the close of business today.
- Thank you, everyone, for taking the time to attend this meeting. Your presence and contribution is appreciated.
- If there is no other business, we can adjourn the meeting.
Conclusion:
There you go. The above sets of phrases used at a business meeting are enough to guide you from the start to the end of a meeting. Use these phrases as inspiration. They can be modified as you see fit depending on your industry, meeting stakeholders, agenda in question, etc.