Meeting Roles
In Toastmasters, you learn by participating. During club meetings you will participate in many roles, and each one is a learning experience. Following are the roles you as a member will be called upon to fulfill.
Head Table roles are:
Other roles in our club are:
The Chairperson leads the meeting. At each point in the agenda, the Chairperson will introduce the role. A Sample Agenda is included here.
Before the Meeting
- Contact all head table presenters. Confirm attendance. You will be introducing all presenters, so you should get some information from each presenter in order to prepare a short introduction on each. Typically, you may ask them how long they have been a member, what their goals are, or what their thoughts relating to the meeting's theme.
- Prepare an agenda with names of all confirmed participants. Include names and speech numbers of all confirmed manual speakers. The order of the speakers will be from least experienced to most experienced.
- Prepare brief opening remarks related to the theme of the meeting.
- Arrive early and distribute copies of the agenda. Confer with the Toastmaster and General Evaluator for any possible changes to agenda. Be prepared for last minute substitutions.
- Call meeting to order (bang gavel) at 7:10 p.m. sharp. Then, deliver your opening remarks. Be energetic and positive! Review the agenda. Note any changes.
- Introduce the Head Table. Remind the audience to hold their applause until all names have been announced.
- Introduce supporting officials (Timer, Greeter, Ah Counter).
- Ask the Greeter to introduce the guests for the evening.
- Ask members to separate their feedback sheets, so as not to distract speakers later on in the program.
- Very important! Never, never leave the front of the room unattended.
Make sure the presenter arrives at the lectern before you leave. Hand over control by handing the presenter the gavel and shaking hands. - Introduce the Word of the Day Master. Lead the applause.
- Introduce the Table Topics Master. Again, lead the applause.
- After Table Topics, remind everyone to bring a drink back so that they may drink to the toast of the day.
- Bang the gavel to indicate recess.
- Give a brief introduction of Toastmaster. Hand control over by offering the gavel.
- The Toastmaster will return control after requesting the club members to fill in the ballot for Best Speaker. Lead the applause and thank the Toastmaster.
- Introduce the General Evaluator in the same fashion as the Toastmaster. When the General Evaluator hands control back to you, ask the Timer for the Awards for Best Evaluator, Best Table Topics Speaker, and Best Speaker. Present them to the winners saving Best Speaker for last.
- Ask guests to comment on their impressions of the meeting.
- Call for announcements.
- Call on the VP of Education to review the roster for the next meeting.
- Bang the gavel and say, "This meeting is now adjourned."
Depending on how much time is allotted, you may want to ask those who are already presenting in the program not to participate in Table Topics if there are more than 20 people at the meeting.
Before the Meeting
- Choose a challenging and entertaining topic. If there is a theme for that meeting, try to incorporate it.
- The most common way of presenting Table Topics is to prepare quotes, questions, or comments related to the theme; place these in an envelope, and pass the envelope around during the meeting.
- There are other ways of presenting Table Topics, however. You could:
- have a mini debate;
- have the speaker comment on a saying from a fortune cookie;
- create a list of any 12 topics. Have each speaker roll a pair of dice and speak about the topic matching the count on the dice.
- When introduced by the Chairperson, take your place at the lectern and bring any materials you have with you.
- Briefly state purpose of Table Topics.
- Hand out materials if needed.
- Encourage guests to participate.
- Remain at the front of the room until the session is complete to provide leadership. The easiest way to conduct this session is to start at one end of the room and go around clockwise or counterclockwise. If you are passing around an envelope, remind members not to look at theirs until just before it is their turn. Allow guests to look as soon as they receive their topic.
- When the last speaker is finished, ask the group to fill out their ballot for best Table Topic Speaker (allow 30 seconds).
- Return control of the meeting to the Chairperson and be seated.
- "How To Lead As Topicsmaster" (in C&L Manual)
- Advice from senior club members.
The Toastmaster delivers the Toast of the Day and introduces each prepared speaker.
Providing feedback to a prepared speaker is highly encouraged and the Toastmaster will allow up to one minute between speakers to allow club members to fill out the feedback forms provided for them.
Before the Meeting
- Toastmaster is responsible for choosing the theme of the meeting.
- Toastmaster must post the chosen theme onto TurboBase latest the Monday prior to the meeting to allow enough time for the head table to prepare their notes.
- Confirm speakers.
- Obtain speech title, project number, objectives and some background information about the speakers.
- Prepare brief introduction. Limit the introduction to 30 to 60 seconds per speaker.
- Prepare a Toast of the Day (maximum of two minutes) on the subject of your choice (usually related to the meeting's theme).
- Arrive early. Prepare for any possible last minute changes to the agenda.
- After the break, you will be introduced by the Chairperson. Thank him/her. Deliver your Toast of the Day speech. Then propose a toast by saying, "Please stand, raise your glasses and toast to "_____" (a word or two relating to your Toast of the Day speech). Ask the members to be seated.
- When the audience is settled, briefly describe your agenda.
- For each prepared speaker, give a brief introduction, followed by the title of their speech, followed by the name of the speaker. Lead the applause, shake the speaker's hand and take your seat.
- Never leave the front of the room unattended!
- Upon conclusion of the speech, lead the applause and offer a congratulatory handshake.
- Allow club members one minute to fill out the feedback form provided. Ensure that an envelope is passed around for the members to put feedback forms in.
- After the final speaker, remind club members to fill out the ballots for Best Speaker.
- Return control to Chairperson.
The General Evaluator is responsible for the Evaluation Program, where every speaker is assigned an evaluator who gives him/her a formal evaluation, and also for evaluating the meeting as a whole. A Sample General Evaluator's Report is included here. .
Before the Meeting
- Obtain a list of prepared speakers. Assign each prepared speaker a formal evaluator. Try to match speakers with an evaluator of greater or equal experience.
- Have the evaluator review the assignment with the speaker and make sure he/she is familiar with the speech objectives.
- Arrive early.
- Instruct speech evaluators to get the speech manual from the speaker they are evaluating.
- Take notes on everything that happens once the meeting starts. Ask yourself:
- Did the meeting begin on time? If not, how was it handled?
- How were head table and guest introductions handled?
- Was the Chairperson well prepared and enthusiastic?
- Was the Word of the Day appropriate and was it used effectively throughout the meeting? Was its purpose clearly defined?
- Were the Table Topics challenging and creative? Was the procedure clearly explained?
- Was the Toast of the Day appropriate?
- Were speaker introductions done properly?
- How did the speech evaluators perform?
- Include any other observations you consider to be constructive and relevant. Remember, no one is right or wrong. Be honest. Point out what you felt worked and what didn't.
- Upon completion of the Toastmaster's duties, control will be returned to the Chairperson, who will then introduce you.
- Briefly describe the purpose of Speech Evaluation section. Instruct timer to allow up to two minutes per evaluator.
- Introduce first evaluator and take your seat when he/she reaches the lectern, or stand in the wings.
- Repeat above procedure for each of the Speech Evaluators.
- When final Speech evaluation is done, remind the group to fill out their ballot for Best Evaluator.
- Begin your general evaluation. Instruct the Timer to allow you 5 minutes.
- Remember to cover each section of the program, but do not re-evaluate the speakers.
- Make sure you highlight positive points as well as areas requiring improvement.
- Try to give concrete examples when indicating how things could be improved, and end on a positive note.
- When finished, turn the meeting back to the Chairperson.
- "Effective Speech Evaluation" (included in new member kit from Toastmasters International)
- Advice from senior club members.
In order to develop your skills as a Toastmaster, you will need to deliver speeches from your basic Communication and Leadership manual or your Advanced speech manuals.
This is your chance to shine on centre stage, and progress as a public speaker. Preparation and enthusiasm are essential to success as an effective speaker.
- Contact the VP of Education to sign up for a speech.
- Review the assignment in the appropriate speech manual.
- Prepare and practice your speech.
- Ask your mentor or a senior member for critique and encouragement.
- If you wish to have your speech recorded, contact Stuart Segal. (There will be a charge for the blank tape.)
- If you are using props or need any furniture moved, be sure to make arrangement with the Toastmaster before the meeting starts.
- Always acknowledge the Toastmaster, members and guests before you begin your speech, or after a short introduction. You may address them, as "Mister/Madame Toastmaster, fellow Toastmasters and welcome guests" or "Ladies and gentlemen".
- When you have concluded, do not say, "Thank you". Instead end by saying, "Mister/Madame Toastmaster" or "Ladies and gentlemen." This will prompt the Toastmaster to take control of the meeting.
- Wait for the Toastmaster to return to the lectern before returning to your seat. Do not leave the lectern until the Toastmaster arrives and shakes your hand.
- After the meeting, have the VP Education (or President, if the VP is not available) initial the Record of Assignment in the back of your manual.
- Communication and Leadership Manual (first ten speeches).
- Advanced Communication Manuals
- "Your Speaking Voice" (included in new member kit from Toastmasters International)
- "Gestures: Your Body Speaks" (included in new member kit from Toastmasters International)
- Advice from senior club members (watch speakers carefully during meetings and learn from them).
Every Prepared Speaker receives a formal evaluation from a fellow club member. Your role as a Speech Evaluator is to provide an unbiased reaction to the speaker's presentation. You should be honest, constructive and helpful. Avoid terms such as “You didn’t…” or “You should have …”. Instead, use personalized statements like, "I believe...", "My reaction was...", or "I suggest that...".
Evaluate the speech, not the person! The ultimate aim is to support, help, and encourage the speaker in order to build self-esteem as a public speaker.
In addition to your oral evaluation, you will also give the speaker a written evaluation from the manual. Evaluations are a terrific way to develop listening skills, as well as preparing a piece of material within a short period time. It’s best to wait until you have delivered at least one speech before evaluating another member’s speaking skills. You should be familiar with at least one technique of speech evaluation.
Evaluating the Icebreaker
The Icebreaker is no place for negative reinforcement. The new member needs a supportive environment during the first few speeches, and especially during the Icebreaker. Therefore, focus on finding budding strengths and any gems encountered while enjoying the speech. There will be plenty of opportunities for constructive feedback later.
Three Techniques for Speech Evaluations
- What I saw, what I felt, what I heard
- The sandwich
- Glow and grow
- Approach the speaker you have been assigned to and obtain their speech manual. Discuss the objectives of the speech and ask the speaker if there are any particular areas he/she has concerns with (i.e., vocal variety, pacing). Before the speaker begins, review the Evaluation Guide found at the end of that particular speech. Know what you are looking for in advance.
- Once the speaker begins, take careful note of their performance. Record your impressions along with your answers to the evaluation questions in the manual.
- When introduced by the General Evaluator, go to the lectern and give your oral evaluation. Remember that a good evaluation may give new life to discouraged members, while a poor evaluation may dishearten members who tried their best.
- Keep the following in mind:
- Begin and end your evaluation with a note of praise.
- Don't try to cover too much -- your time is limited to two minutes or so. Focus on the main points outlined in the evaluation guide and special concerns given to you by the speaker.
- Be encouraging!
- Point out areas of weakness in a tactful manner and give concrete suggestions for improvement. If the weakness is serious, cover it in your written remarks but not in your oral presentation. Point out one or two areas for the speaker to concentrate on in their next speech.
- Comment on positive elements such as a good delivery, a nice smile, a soothing voice.
- Return the manual to the speaker. Add a verbal word of encouragement to the speaker, something that wasn't mentioned in the oral evaluation.
- "Effective Speech Evaluation" (included in New Member Kit from Toastmasters International).
- Advice from senior club members.
One of the ways we improve as speakers is by enlarging our vocabulary. The Word of the Day gives us an opportunity to learn the meaning and appropriate use of a difficult or interesting word.
Before the Meeting
- Think of an interesting or unusual word, or find one in a dictionary.
- Look up the correct meaning of the word in the dictionary, and write it down.
- If possible, find the original meaning or root of the word.
- Write the word down in black marker on a piece of paper or cardboard large enough for the whole group to see it.
- Approach the lectern with your material when called upon by the Chairperson.
- Give a bit of background on why you chose this particular word.
- Introduce your Word of the Day and display it to the club. Encourage the members to use it throughout the evening.
- Turn the meeting back to the Chairperson.
The role of the Ah Counter is to encourage members to reduce the use of fillers like “ah”, “uh”, “um”, “er”.
The Ah Counter keeps track of the number of times that these fillers are used and reports on this number at the end of the meeting.
The Timer keeps the meeting on track by timing Table Topics, Prepared Speeches, Speech Evaluations and the General Evaluators Report.
Lights are used to indicate to members and guests when they are getting close to the end of their allotted time for speaking.
Meeting officials (Table Topic Master, Toastmaster and General Evaluator) should advise the Timer how much time is allocated to speakers and when to turn on the green, yellow and red lights.
If they forget, the Timer should ask.
At the end of the meeting, the Timer will be asked for the Timer’s report.
The Greeter greets guests at the door and asks them to fill out a Guest Information Sheet. He or she will collect these sheets and introduce the guests when asked to do so by the Chairperson.