Meetings in English

manager about that.
We can't give you a definite answer just now.
As a next step we should look at …
If you don't mind, I'd like to come back to that later.
Let's not rush things.
I don't think we should make a decision just yet.
Agreeing
That sounds/seems reasonable.
That sounds like a sensible suggestion.
In fact, that suits me fine.
It's a deal!
Summarising what was agreed
Can we run through what we've agreed?
So, I'll summarise the important points of your offer.
I'd like to check/confirm what we've said.
Next steps
We need to meet again soon.
So, the next step is to draft a formal contract.
Before the next meeting we'll check the order quantities.
    Follow-up
    A written follow-up summarises what was agreed and obliges the other party to act. It also shows that your intentions were serious. Sometimes a formal „letter of intent“ is sent before any contracts are signed.
    Useful grammar
How to express a must
    Don't forget that „must“ has no negative form and exists only in the present tense. „Must not“ means „not allowed to“ and, as it can only be used in the present tense, for all other tenses you have to resort to „have to do sth“ in its respective tenses:
We must meet again to discuss the details.
We mustn't forget to send the draft today.
We had to organise the TC differently.
If-clauses
    An essential tool for bargaining are if-clauses. Particularly type I and II prove to be useful.
Type I if-clause: The if-part of the sentence is in the present tense, the second part is formed by „will“ + infinitive. It is used to talk about real possibilities: „If you agree on that, we will offer you a discount.“
Type II if-clause: Type II is used to express a hypothetical possibility. The if-part of the sentence has to be in the past tense, with „would“ + infinitive in the second part: „If you agreed on that, we would offer you a discount.“
    All if-clauses can also be turned around, so that the if-clause forms the second part of the sentence, eg: „We will offer you a discount, if you agree on that.“
Useful vocabulary
    what the stakes are: was auf dem Spiel steht
    plot of land: Grundstück
    leeway: Spielraum
    on-site maintenance: Wartung vor Ort
    line manager: unmittelbarer Vorgesetzter
    at your expense: auf Ihre Kosten
    Briefing and brainstorming
    What these two types of meetings have in common is that they require a subtle and careful facilitation style. In brainstorming sessions the chair should give the participants the opportunity to have their say and interrupt as little as possible; in briefings he or she should make sure all the information comes across.
    Briefings
    As the name suggests, a briefing should be kept short by definition. It should not take longer than 30 minutes. In a briefing the information has centre of attention. The idea isto share and spread knowledge. It is a one-way transfer of information from the organiser to the attendees. There is no exchange of ideas, nor are decisions taken. Questions may be asked by the persons being briefed.
    Example: briefing meeting for a facilitator
    A: Thanks for coming in, Jane. Have you received the guidelines for the first group?
    B: Yes, I have. In fact, I've read through them and I'd like to ask you some questions. As always, the devil is in the detail!
    A: That's excellent, but first let me show you how the device works. Then I'd like to tell you what our main focus is.
    B: Good, please go ahead. How do you switch it on?
    A: The buttons are on the back panel, all of them.
    B: I see. And what shall I say if people ask me who the sponsor of the study is?
    A: Just tell them you don't know yourself, and that it is one of the major players in the market.
Useful phrases
This is what we want to achieve: increased timeliness and accuracy.
Just show your customers this list.
There's no need to feel uneasy.
Are these figures understandable?
Do you understand what I am getting at?
    Brainstorming sessions
    Brainstorming is a creative technique aiming at the maximum number of ideas to address a certain area of interest orto solve a problem. In the first step, the value or feasibility of the ideas generated is not an issue – all ideas are welcome. In general, brainstorming makes most sense for group sizes of 4 to about 20. Superiors or managers should only be invited if their subordinates will not feel inhibited by their presence. There should either be a time set for collecting ideas or a maximum number of ideas (50 to 100) fixed in