You’re struggling to keep your virtual meetings productive. How can you make them more engaging?

I boost virtual meeting engagement with these strategies: Set clear objectives and an agenda, keeping the meeting concise. Encourage active participation by involving team members in discussions and decision-making. Use visuals, presentations, and interactive tools to convey information effectively. Leverage breakout sessions for focused discussions. Foster a positive and inclusive atmosphere, valuing diverse opinions. Implement interactive polls or Q&A sessions. Rotate meeting leaders to maintain freshness. Limit meeting duration to prevent fatigue. Embrace technology for seamless collaboration. Regularly seek feedback to enhance future meetings.

It depends on the nature of the meeting - large group vs. small group, decision making vs. collaborating, motivational chat vs. time to hit targets talk. But, I always start with an intention - clearly articulating why we are in the meeting helps get everyone oriented. I also take 30 seconds to set the outcome I am hoping to get at when we wrap - this also helps everyone understand the urgency and need to focus. It also helps to make sure you don't overload a virtual call with - meaning, invite only those that have an opinion on the topic and need to be informed.

1) Like any great meeting needs, have a great agenda. Highly recommend the L10 EOS meeting format if you haven't tried it yet! 2) Make camera use mandatory - no exceptions. People don't care if you're eating or have food crumbs on your face. 3) Use interactive tools and features to keep people engaged. Make them respond to questions, polls, surveys, whiteboard, etc. 4) Take regular breaks to keep people refreshed and moving. 5) Have fun with - do a funny question or ice breaker as you come back from breaks. 6) Start on time - end on time. 7) Solve issues!

Virtual meetings have become the norm in today's work environment but present unique productivity and engagement challenges. To make them more effective, set clear objectives, encourage participation, use visual aids, limit meeting length, and provide breaks. Breakout rooms promote active participation, and visually appealing slides with compelling data help keep attendees engaged. Limiting meetings to 30-45 minutes and providing breaks can prevent fatigue. By following these tips, virtual meetings can be as effective as in-person meetings, leading to better outcomes and stronger relationships.

Prepare an agenda and STICK TO IT! Too often, even with an agenda, teams meet because…well…teams meet. But let’s assume a periodic meeting is valuable and worthwhile. Without an agenda—to which the meeting leader holds the team accountable—it may end up being another hour chasing rabbits down trails that some have no part in and to which they cannot contribute, effectively wasting their time. Address recurring problems in separate meetings involving only the affected stakeholders. If it doesn’t need to be discussed by EVERYONE, take it off line and report back later (if that’s even needed). In a professional environment, we’re all getting paid too much to waste precious time in meetings that don’t affect all.

I have used and been in meetings using different platforms over the last decade. There are two important dimensions: The Chair/Facilitator should NOT be the platform "custodian" for the meetings. The function of the chair is to be aware of the people, context and meeting process and outcomes. The platform "custodian" should have the contact details all participants and their support people. The custodian is like a facility tech in a conference centre who know how to adjust sound levels, keep video, skies and visuals on and visible. Can also assist the Chair/Facilitator with sequencing inputs and time-keeping only with delegated responsibility to intervene directly.

Navigating the virtual meeting landscape demands more than just picking a platform; it's about aligning your choices with your meeting's essence. Size matters — whether it's an intimate team huddle or a sprawling conference. Purpose dictates features; a sales pitch craves screen sharing, while a brainstorming session thrives on breakout sessions. Don't let the bells and whistles sway you; choose what your meeting needs. If documents, presentations, or videos are your artillery, find a platform armed with seamless screen and file sharing. Seek simplicity in managing polls and quizzes for engaging sessions. It's not about the fanciest platform; it's about the one that gets your job done.

When choosing the right platform for company meetings, be it digital or physical on-site, reliability, user-friendliness and security should be a priority. Digital platforms should offer robust video and audio capabilities, while physical meeting rooms should have enough space and the necessary technology for presentations. The selection should take into account the needs and preferences of participants to maximize effectiveness and efficiency.

Selecting the right platform is a process that balances your specific needs with the features offered by various options. By thoroughly evaluating your requirements and testing potential platforms, you can ensure a successful and engaging meeting or event. Understand whether your meeting is a webinar, team meeting, workshop, or large conference, as this affects your platform choice Estimate the size of your audience to ensure the platform can support it Check if the platform integrates with other tools you use, such as calendars, email systems, and collaboration tools Consider if you need the ability to record the meeting for later viewing Keep an eye on new features or platforms entering the market that may better meet your needs over time

In most cases the platform is going to be determined by what your company has selected and paid for. In my organization we use Zoom day to day plus Streamyard for live streams and we pick what suite our particular needs. The big takeaway is that you need to understand the capabilities and limitations of whatever platform you are using. And avoid virtual backgrounds the suck of bandwidth and rarely look good.

Engagement required focus and a role. Cameras on should be a rule and don't invite people who are not necessary, if you are there it is because your contribution is required. If not, then the meeting summary notes are all you need to be in the loop

Engagement is essential. Where you can (and not force) have the participants turn on their cameras. This is not to catch people out rather increase the level of interaction and engagement. I attended a meeting recently where no one had their cameras on for more than 30 minutes. It was completely unproductive, audience was disengaged and at the end no one asked any questions. Share a safety moment at the beginning using a video as an icebreaker and allow time for a decent Q and A session at the end.

Meetings need to be far shorter than f2f ones and discussions need to be more focused. Distractions should not be allowed by the meeting chair. Presentations should not be ppt driven; slides can be used but only as support; avoid long ppt decks. Attendees should have an active role as much as possible.

Leave space for conversation. If you tend to lecture at meetings, your lectures are 3x as boring online as they are in person. If all you plan to do is monologue, you may as well send an email.

It requires quite some training to lead efficient online meetings. The moderator needs to read faces on camera. In offline meetings you can read body language in addition. Therefore some online meeting rules should be set upfront: e.g. camera always on, microphone mute, except when speaking. If it is with many people, maybe you can include the "raise hand"

Use a word document to address the meeting objectives , overview , challenges not power point as a pre-read - PP has no depth and people can over speak - you can judge someone articulation of a problem / subject if he cant right a 1000 words around it . #leadership #marketing

The best mechanisms to keep meetings crisp and participants engaged is limiting invitees to those that NEED to be there, brevity and militant efforts to stay on point. Most meetings do not need more than 15 minutes to share information. Meetings designed to collaboratively work through an opportunity, solve a problem or prepare for a client/ sales meeting will take longer but the same mechanisms apply

Kepp the meeting time as short as possible.. people get distracted when they feel they have more time Only invite people with direct involvement in the topic so they maintain their focus during the meeting

For most people virtual meetings are an opportunity to multitask. Your main challenge is to stop multitasking and to gain focus. So ask everyone to turn their camara on. If it was an in person meeting, no one would be standing behind a curtain. Second ask everyone to turn their phones off. Of course, peoples attention will linger, so when you see someone not paying attention ask for their opinion instantly. Like in school, if students feel that the teacher may call on them, they will be more likely to pay attention. I personally hate the analogy with a classroom as this is not what meetings are supposed to be. But unfortunately this is what meetings have become.

Everyone camera on shows the commitment to the meeting and the topic and builds trust, and when you engage fully, it starts to become natural - so keep cameras rolling, it will serve well!

The most important is to do an honest self evaluation. How did you do in that meeting. What went great would could have gone better. Ask your audience to tell you one thing that would have made it better.

At the end of the meeting, carry out a small survey of all the guests, where you ask about compliance with the meeting's objectives, evaluate the methodology, compliance with the times, the platform and the effectiveness of the meeting, this will allow for continuous improvement. and keep the guests' concentration until the end.

End with agreed upon actions and deadlines. Start the next meeting with this list. Don't be mean--people are trying. Seek regular feedback about how meetings are going and how to be more effective.

Sending out a summary of the meeting helps. This will help people remember what was discussed and what action items they need to take...

Finish virtual meetings with a bang. Send a quick summary to participants — hit key points, action items, and decisions. Be a detective; seek confirmation or clarification. Keep it brisk. Now, feedback time. No fluff — what did they like, hate, or learn? Be hungry for improvement. Humbly beg for suggestions. This isn't preaching; it's about improvement. Spot the cracks as a fellow navigator on this digital sea.

May already be covered but be clear about what is being covered but more importantly want decision will be made. I have seen too many agenda’s that do not make the result clear. example: if you don’t attend or delegate appropriately you will not have a voice in X. Equally, delegation is so important- when accepting or declining- do you need a voice or are you covered by other attendees - AND do they know they are covering you?

I recently learned from a @Lizzie Williamson talk that people who sit for less than 90mins at a time are more likely to live longer than people who sit for 90+mins at a time. This is very likely to be the case in virtual meetings. At the start or even in the middle of the meeting, pause and do a simple stretch. Lead by example and encourage the audience to do the same. This will get the blood circulating and should improve the audience's focus to help make for more productive meetings.

Make sure that you are clear on why the meeting is happening. This is no different than in person meetings, it is just so much easier to call a virtual meeting, so we don't always spend enough time on thinking about it's purpose. From the purpose of the meeting follows participants (as few as needed), agenda, decisions and ultimately action.

Keep your audience small. Six or fewer seems like the sweet spot for interaction and decision making. If you're the meeting's facilitator, try maintain balance between the talkers and the thinkers so each has the opportunity to participate. If you have to host a larger audience, then set the proper expectation that the meeting's purpose is for information sharing with limited participation. And finally, keep your meetings succinct. If you find the conversation devolving into a squirrel chasing session and you can't get it back on track (hey, it happens), then wrap it up and move on.

Instead of reviewing status, consider an "adaptive/pivot" meeting. Conduct and review status updates ahead of time and come to this type of meeting ready to solve a problem. Use the collective knowledge in the meeting to solve solutions together. You'll better engage your team and hopefully ignite innovation as well.