I have team members who dominate every meeting. The same voices, every time. What do I do?
Let's be direct about this, because the situation deserves it. A team member who consistently dominates meetings is not just expressing a preference. They are, whether they realise it or not, being disrespectful to every other person in the room. They are crowding out contributions that the team and the organisation genuinely need. And they are reducing the quality of every decision made in that room. That is a performance issue, and it is your responsibility as a leader to address it.
Not unkindly. But clearly.
Start with a private conversation. Name the pattern specifically, not as a character judgement but as an observable behaviour with a real impact. Something like: when you speak first on every point and at length, others stop contributing. That costs us.
Then give them something practical to work with. Ask them to pause before speaking and let two others contribute first. Suggest they write their key point down before the meeting rather than working it out aloud. Encourage them to ask a question rather than make a statement. These are small, concrete adjustments that build the muscle of self-regulation over time.
Then hold them to it. Check in after meetings. Name what you noticed. Acknowledge improvement when it happens because accountability without follow-through is just a conversation that fades.
The goal is not to silence a strong voice. It is to build a team where every voice gets heard, because that is where the real performance lives.
