For a long time, online meetings have seemed like a theoretical advantage but in practice have failed to live up to these expectations. This is because face-to-face meetings are, generally, more effective; you can see your colleagues and engage with them more easily. Moving these conversations to a video conference platform introduces the risk of sound delays or other disruptive technical issues, and it can make it harder to gauge your colleagues’ level of interest or engagement in the meeting.
However, taking meetings online is becoming an increasingly attractive option for many businesses; aside from current concerns about the Coronavirus, there is also an opportunity to save both time and money by cutting the amount of travel you need to do, and to reduce your company’s travel related carbon footprint.
“Taking meetings online is becoming an increasingly attractive option for many businesses; there is an opportunity to save time and money, and to reduce your company’s carbon footprint.”
And as internet connections and technology improve, and best practice standards evolve for this medium, online meetings are becoming more effective.
Many tips for hosting successful online meetings are well-known: choose the right tools (Zoom, Skype, GoToMeeting or Google Hangouts are some popular options for video calls, which all enable screen sharing too); test your tools beforehand to avoid problems during your meeting; have an agenda and stick to it; and have someone run the meeting who will ensure that everyone is heard.
However, have you considered the importance of making everyone feels comfortable and connected? This can go a long way to making your meeting (and working together!) more effective.
The theory
Humans crave connection, and when we have it we are happier, healthier and more likely to succeed. This applies equally to the working environment, as this article on the World Economic Forum website explains.
“The risk with communicating through technology is that it is very easy to lose that sense of human connection.”
The risk with communicating through technology is that it is very easy to lose that sense of human connection. And when this happens, you also risk losing a sense of personal investment in the meeting and the work being done.
In terms of hosting online meetings, this means big benefits can be derived from taking a little extra time to get everyone acquainted on a more personal level.
The practice
GitLab has an international team with staff working remotely in over 60 countries. This means they need to have a strong culture that ensures online meetings are successful. They have a number of tips to help this happen, which can all be found here.
Some of my favourite ones include:
- For newly formed groups, include initial ice-breakers and activities to develop shared trust. For example, begin with a show and tell that allows team members to showcase something they’ve assembled or have contributed to.
- Schedule breaks during calls longer than 1 hour. [This gives people a chance to go to the bathroom, get some tea, stretch their legs and so on – which will ultimately improve their focus.]
- Take more time than you normally would to explain activities and intent, framing your position with additional context. In traditional offsites, understanding came come from observing others in the room, and this can be more difficult remotely.
- If possible, spend a full day working together with breaks, and share a remote meal together coffee-chat style.
A coffee chat style meeting is a scheduled one-on-one online meeting, but where the conversation is social and the aim is simply to get to know your colleague better.
Slack, a communication tool for teams, has a similar recommendation to the coffee-chat on their blog, which is to create a ‘virtual water cooler’ for remote employees. This is a space online where colleagues can get to know each other in a more informal setting. Again the theory is that people work together better once they have a more meaningful relationship, and building these kinds of long distance relationships requires creating opportunities for social exchange.
These recommendations are more geared for internal teams working remotely, but a lot of the advice still applies to online meetings with clients and partners. But if you think using ice breakers or talking about non work related topics will not be appropriate for a formal meeting, at least make sure everyone has the opportunity to introduce themselves at the start of the meeting, to nurture familiarity and relationships.
There are many companies that have structured online meetings to benefit them. As with all things, improvements and the benefits will come with practice. If you are new to this, expect a few bumps in the road while you figure out what works best for you.
And lastly, remember that online meetings shouldn’t replace face-to-face ones. As GitLab writes: “[T]here is still great value in in-person interactions, and leaders should aim to include those opportunities when possible rather than shifting entirely to remote offsites.”
