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CODIR meeting: how to organize an effective CODIR?

publié le
13.6.2025
CODIR meeting: how to organize an effective CODIR?

La CODIR meeting, or Management Committee, is a key meeting in the life of a company. Bringing together executive members, as well as managing directors, it makes it possible in particular to define the company's strategy and to manage performance. A real place for exchanges and strategic decisions, the CODIR meeting has a direct influence on the overall performance and dynamics of the company.

In this article, we look back at the importance of type of meeting to align the company with its objectives and gives you advice for setting up a productive CODIR: from defining objectives to monitoring decisions taken.

The management committee: definition

La CODIR meeting is one of the pillars of corporate governance. It is generally a weekly meeting or monthly that brings together the managing directors or the management team. In particular, this strategic meeting makes it possible to share key performance information, facilitate the making of important decisions and resolve potential problems.

CODIR meetings are not not reserved for large companies. Regardless of the size of your organization, it is important to schedule regular meetings with senior managers to ensure the smooth running of the business and create strong relationships between the various department managers.

What are the objectives of CODIR?

Define and adjust business strategy

The role of the CODIR is first of all to ensure the strategic management of the company, and in particular to assess whether the company's trajectory is consistent with short, medium and long-term goals.

For example:

  • Faced with a drop in market share, the CODIR of a service provider company may decide to reposition its offer or to accelerate digital transformation.
  • Faced with the growing demand for sustainable construction, an SME in the construction sector may decide to reorient its activity towards ecological solutions.

Monitoring the performance of management

The organization of this corporate meeting allows each direction to present your results through key indicators (KPIs). This is an opportunity to identify potential problems and to think collectively about possible solutions.

For example:

  • If the HR director has an absenteeism rate that increases from 2.5% to 6% in one quarter, this can alert all senior managers to internal HR problems.

Making operational and budgetary decisions

The CODIR is also the place where urgent or structuring decisions are arbitrated: budget validation, strategic recruitments, investments, project launches...

For example:

  • The CODIR of a growing company can vote for the opening of a new subsidiary abroad.
  • A tech company could decide to allocate a substantial additional budget to develop a new AI feature, etc.

Ensure coordination between services

The objective of this meeting is also to promote transversal exchanges And thecollective intelligence. Above all, it is a place for reflection, exchanges and communication between members of the management committee. This meeting not only makes it possible to promote the fluidity of actions between the various departments (HR, finance, IT, production, marketing...), but also to strengthen the cohesion of the teams.

For example:

  • The HR manager can alert you to the difficulties he encounters in recruiting a rare profile. In response, the CIO can propose a partial automation solution to facilitate recruitment.

💡Good to know: what is the difference between CODIR and COMEX?

The CODIR, for management committee, and the COMEX, for executive committee, are two types of meetings that bring together the company's top managers for strategic decision-making. The main difference is that the CODIR brings together the main managers, while the COMEX can bring together managers from all hierarchical levels.

The operational part of the actions, for its part, is generally managed by the COPIL (steering committee) and the COMOP (operational committee).

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How do I plan and organize a CODIR meeting?

Define a clear and structured agenda

The agenda for executive meetings should be prepared in a clear and precise manner. It is essential for:

  • Stay on track during the meeting;
  • Respect the speaking times defined for each subject;
  • Make sure you cover all the important points.

The agenda should not only list the topics to be addressed, but also provide context and reasons why these topics should be discussed. It should be shared before the meeting with all participants to allow them to prepare as best as possible. Feel free to attach preparatory documents when necessary.

Select participants

Only the key management members participate. The composition of the CODIR is generally as follows: CEO, DAF, HR director, commercial director, or even technical director.

Depending on the topics to be addressed, other profiles may be invited (e.g.: a digital project manager to present the progress of a strategic project for the company). On some occasions, members from outside the company may also be invited (experts, consultants, etc.).

Preparation of key media and data

To avoid wasting unnecessary time or missing out on valuable information, each member of the committee should prepare your data, his conclusions and His possible questions.

Data must be presented in a synthetic, clear and reliable way: dashboards, budgets, SWOT analyses, etc.

How does a CODIR take place?

Introduction and validation of the agenda

The president (often the CEO) opens the session, validates the agenda for the day and reiterates the objectives. At the start of the meeting, consider doing a Round table so that each participant can share any important updates that have occurred in their teams. It is also a way to ensure that everyone participates.

Analysis of key indicators

Financial, commercial, HR, IT, etc. results are reviewed. The aim is to bring out trends and check if the company is still on track or if, on the contrary, it is necessary to realign strategic actions and directions to achieve goals.

It's also an opportunity to see how the goals of each department can contribute to the organization's broader organizational goals.

For example:

  • If the administrative and financial manager reports a marketing budget overrun by 15%, it's time to understand the causes and readjust the resources.

Strategic decisions

After analyzing the OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), the members of the CODIR move on to decision-making. Concretely, this generally results in a debate And a vote decisions.

This may include:

  • The restructuring of a service;
  • A management training plan;
  • The repositioning of a product or service;
  • The release of a budget for new software, etc.

Monitoring of ongoing actions

Actions decided during previous meetings of the Committee must always be the subject of a Stage point : who did what? Where are we at? Do we have to readjust the shot?

For example: “The CRM deployment is 80% complete, the sales team is starting training this week.”

Round table and summary

At the end of the meeting, a clear summary of the decisions taken, the persons responsible and the deadlines must be made. Just like at the beginning of the meeting, it is advisable to go around the table again to ensure that all essential information has been shared.

The tools and methods to conduct a productive CODIR meeting

  • Dashboards and summary reporting : tools, such as Power BI, allow you to quickly and clearly visualize performance in order to monitor effectively.
  • Dynamic presentations : choose short formats with synthetic slides and visual elements (graphs, infographics, or even videos to stimulate exchanges).
  • Collaborative platforms : these facilitate the follow-up of post-meeting actions and collaboration between the various members. For example:
  • Trello for cross-department project management
  • Asana for action planning
  • Notion to easily share documentation and reports
  • Microsoft Teams for remote or hybrid meetings (mix) face-to-face meeting and videoconference)

Follow-up and implementation of decisions taken

Drafting and distributing the CODIR report

As with any type of meeting, it is essential to write a report. This involves a effective note taking during the session: a person may be designated to take note and distribute the minutes of the meeting.

It should be concise, factual, precise and reformulate:

  • The decisions taken;
  • The actions to be launched;
  • Designated officials;
  • Deadlines.

The ideal is to send it to all participants within 24 to 48 hours maximum.

Setting up an action plan

Each decision must be accompanied by an action plan and each action must be assigned to a manager with a deadline.

For example:

  • Action: Implementation of a new price list
  • Responsible: Sales manager
  • Delay: June 15
  • Objective: +5% margin on the premium range

Follow up on commitments

At the next CODIR, a quick update should be made on the progress of actions and the achievement of objectives. This reinforces the accountability of everyone and avoids the “meeting without follow-up” effect.

Best practices for a successful CODIR meeting

  • Respect a precise schedule : plan a limited time (2 hours maximum) for the entire meeting. It can be interesting to appoint a moderator to guarantee time and avoid off-topic.
  • Encouraging active participation : try to ensure that all participants can speak freely and be proactive. Listen to objections and value everyone's ideas.
  • Focus on decisions based on concrete data : every discussion should be based on facts and figures (KPIs), not impressions.

Conclusion

La CODIR meeting is essential for successfully managing the company's strategy. Well prepared, rhythmic and monitored, it strengthens the cohesion of the management team, accelerates decision-making, and aligns the entire organization with clear objectives.

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