Lead Effective Remote Meetings

Many businesses have now adopted remote working. The option is great but it presents a lot of technical challenges, and holding meetings is one of them. Even though working from home has its benefits, it can leave you feeling under-motivated. The sense of isolation and lack of collaboration may reduce productivity. Executives and team leaders have to be creative with remote meetings. Each type of session may require a unique approach. The following are some of the most effective strategies to make your next remote meeting effective.

Effective Remote Meetings

Consider the Culture

In a remote working environment, nothing is more important than meetings. They are an effective way to maintain connections with other members of the team. When holding your remote meetings, try to uphold your culture. If a meeting would be bad in a physical setting, it would be bad virtually as well. Examine your in-person meeting culture and identify problematic areas. Avoid them in your virtual meetings. Some of the most important things to keep in mind include: plan for distractions, do not waste time ‘admiring the problem,’ and try to make your meetings short.

Schedule Specific Times

With in-person meetings, you can chase down other people if they fail to show up for the meeting. However, remote meetings do not allow you that pleasure. Scheduling a specific time for your meetings can make things easier. When making your plan, account for differences in time zone.

Assign Talk Points

This is the most effective way to engage all the attendees. Ensure that every member of the team has at least one point to talk about. It gets them excited about the meeting and gives them a sense of purpose. This strategy is a lot better than having everybody gather just to listen to the team leader.

Discourage Muting

Most meeting services and conference calls will include a muting option. Even though it has its role, it could disrupt your meeting. If you allow attendees to go on mute as they please, they are likely to try multi-tasking.

Assigning Responsibilities

During the meeting, assign all participants a responsibility and follow-up item. Typical responsibilities that you may assign include taking notes and keeping track of time.

Have a Plan B and Understand Your Tools

Knowing how to work your video camera is not enough when conducting remote meetings. It is essential that you know your hardware and software as well. It makes it possible to deal with issues in case they arise. Try going online a few minutes before the actual meeting. If anything goes wrong, you should have a plan B to fall back to.

Don’t Invite Everyone

You do not need to invite all members of your team to all remote meetings. Holding remote meetings is difficult and having a high number of participants could make it more difficult. The number should be small enough for everyone to make a contribution. This is especially important if the concept of remote working is still new to your business. Consider setting the number to ten or less.

Make the Goal Clear

All participants should understand the purpose of the meeting from the start. It helps keep everyone on track and could encourage engagement. If the participants know what you hope to achieve, they are likely to be just as productive and engaging as in physical meetings.

Remote meetings have become the glue that holds organizations together. Even though it can be challenging to get through them, there are a few crucial tips that can help. Remote work presents unique problems that require unique solutions. Always ensure that your meetings are productive, short, and relevant to the needs of your teammates.