The idea of a book club may evoke visions of stuffy people on stuffy couches nibbling on stuffy snacks and having stuffy conversations. Or, we might be brought back to our college days of cluttered cafes and wildly off-topic “discussions” that are more about asserting personal and political opinions than they are about listening and learning. It’s true; some book clubs aren’t ideal, and they’re often managed without purpose or in really dull or annoying ways.
Many book clubs, however, are amazing and engaging, and they ultimately lead to something much greater than the meetings themselves. That is why many companies are hosting employee book clubs that successfully lead to productive connection and meaningful growth.
Company book clubs are a great way to bring employees together and encourage positive communication. They are also amazing platforms for practicing leadership, encouraging cross-department communication, and building company-wide trust and comradery.
If you’re thinking about starting a company book club, then do it. If you don’t know where to start, then you’ve come to the right place. Follow these simple steps to start and maintain a company book club that will not only be fun and engaging, but it will also positively impact many aspects of your company.
Listen to ep. 183 on Transform Your Workplace on How to Start a Company Book Club
#1 – Step Up as a Leader
A book club is an excellent opportunity for someone to take on a leadership role, especially if they don’t have a formal leadership position within their company.
Any productive book club has a leader who establishes a purpose and schedule, and then makes sure the groups sticks to it. A good book club leader helps the group stay on track and inspires focused conversation without dominating the group or enabling someone else to do so. An effective book club leader is also flexible and can allow the conversation to twist and turn as group members bring new ideas to the table.
If you are unable to commit to being the book club leader, then find someone who is. The leader needs to be focused and available to be there for each meeting.
#2 – Establish and Maintain a Clear Why
Simon Sinek’s advice to “start with why” is not only relevant and genius in business and sales, but it’s also what makes a great book club, well, great.
There are a few ways to approach establishing a why and choosing a book club focus:
- Identify a pain point within your company and select books that will encourage members to address that point of concern and develop and practice solutions.
- Identify something that your company does well that you’d like to celebrate and keep as a part of your success and culture. Choose books that spark positive conversations that encourage group members to recognize and openly acknowledge the things that they and their colleagues do well.
- Support or establish a company goal, and choose books that encourage movement towards that goal.
Whatever your why, make sure that it is something that will enable book club members to learn something new and to be better at their jobs ultimately.
#3 – Choose Books That Support the Why
Once you’ve established a clear why, find books that support it. Browse sites like Goodreads, and go to your local library or bookstore. Consider also reaching out to other organizations who have book clubs to see what they would recommend. If possible, preview a book before you start to make sure it’s what you’re looking for. This doesn’t mean you have to read the whole thing; it just means you should at least read the first chapter or two and then skim the rest of the chapter headings to make sure they are on-topic and engaging.
Keep it simple, and either choose a book or, if you’re going to offer some choice, narrow it down to no more than three options.
#4 – Be Inclusive and Encourage Involvement
Book clubs are a great way to get people together and talking who normally wouldn’t. This is particularly true for large companies or companies that are experiencing growth. Unless you’re starting a team-specific book club because you want to strengthen a particular team, take time to invite members from different departments and specialties, and encourage people of all levels to join and participate.
#5 – Give Employees a Reason to Join
As much as we’d like to think that personal and professional development are enough to spark interest in a book club, people are busy and focused on their immediate work goals. Many employees don’t have the time or money to invest in a book club, so companies who want one need to provide an incentive to join. Ideally, your company will buy books and, at the very least, provide on-the-clock time for members to meet.
If that’s not possible, or it needs to be an after-work kind of thing, then provide food and refreshments or maybe offer childcare. If it’s in the morning, then supply coffee and breakfast. Don’t skimp here; make it memorable and worthwhile. If an employee joins and continues to attend mainly for the breakfast burritos and Starbucks, that’s a win. In the end, that employee will get a heck of a lot more out of it than some morning freebies.
Eliminate all of the reasons an employee may not join so that joining is easy and beneficial.
#6 – Make it Easy to Join
Make it easy for employees to find out about and join the book club. An all-staff email with a Google form is a great way to go. You can also use a tool like Doodle to easily let people share their availability and narrow down meeting times that will work for everyone.
After sending the email, take time to talk to people about it and personally invite them to join. Be ready to resend the email or link to the sign-up form to employees who may have lost or missed the initial email. If your company has internal social media accounts, then post your invite and sign-up form there too.
Make sure there is a definite deadline to sign up. Give people time, but don’t let it go on for too long. Establish the deadline around an action, like when you plan to order the books.
#7 – Make it Easy to Participate
When you develop your form, include a question about how each member would prefer to receive their book, and then order their books for them. If they want Kindle versions, then order and email them the links to their books.
Also, send regular updates and reminders about the meetings and discussion topics or questions. Encourage members to bring up their own topics; however, give them a starting point.
After each meeting, send a follow-up with a brief review of the topics covered or some of the key takeaways. This can be as simple as a couple of key quotes from the book that the group found inspiring or perhaps a short list of things to think about and/or do before the next meeting.
#8 – Timing is Everything
Although breakfast was mentioned as an incentive to join the book club, mornings are not an ideal time to meet. If possible, schedule your book club meetings as a happy hour around 3:30 or 4 pm. This is an ideal time because people are already at work, and they are ready to call it quits.
Morning meetings are easy to skip, and lunch meetings often exclude people who need to work through their lunches or schedule meetings at that time.
No matter what time you choose, be consistent and stick with it.
Speaking of timing, give yourself plenty of time to order the books, and provide book club members plenty of time to read the books. Forty-five days is ideal because it gives people more than a month to read a book, and it doesn’t give them too much time to forget about it. Send reminders and calendar invites so that people feel prepared and encouraged to participate. Start with a book that’s easy to read so that members aren’t discouraged.
#9 – Establish Easy and Clear Expectations
Don’t only make it easy to join and participate, make it easy to stick with it. Develop and communicate simple and clear expectations about commitment and participation. For example, if you’re providing the books, then require members to attend each meeting. If they miss more than one session, then they buy the book. If you’re choosing a series of books, then select a series that is easy to jump into so that members don’t have to commit to 4 books; they can jump in and opt out in between books.
Before each meeting, send a brief message that reinforces the purpose of the book club and explains what you’re going to cover and what you’d like each member to do or prepare. Some people get nervous about talking, so give them opportunities to do some in a structured and supportive way. This is a discussion group, after all, so each member needs to participate in some way.
In your message, also include what you will do as the facilitator so that people know what to expect from you as they prepare.
Finally, include a reminder about the perks. If it’s a happy hour meeting, then let them know there will be drinks and snacks.
#10 – Stick to an Agenda and then Don’t
Start each book club meeting with a plan and some opening questions, conversation starters, and/or critical quotes. Be flexible and allow the conversation to organically move as members contribute; however, make sure the discussion stays on topic and generally supports the focus and goals of the club.
Whenever possible, support the points that you make with excerpts and precise details from the book, and encourage group members to do the same. This isn’t high school English; however, pulling the group back into the book is a great way to stay on topic and true to the book. Speaking of this not being high school English, let members know that it’s alright to join the discussion, even if they didn’t read the entire book.
When the meeting is over, allow the conversation to turn wherever it turns. Books clubs are a great way to get employees together for a focused discussion, and they are also a great way to give employees time to socialize, network, and get to know each other. Members will likely stay after to chat about other things, and that’s awesome and should be encouraged. Give yourself time to participate in and encourage socializing after the scheduled book club meeting time.
Starting a company book club is easy, however, it requires some planning and a heck of a lot of intention. The rewards are incredible and well worth the time.