Meetings have always been a great opportunity for improving collaboration and boosting team spirit, but in the hybrid workplace, holding successful meetings can be a little more complex given that your attendees aren’t all located in the same place. Here are some best practices to help you get the most out of your hybrid meetings.
1. Follow Basic Meeting Etiquette
To start with, there are a number of best practices for meetings of all kinds — whether they’re attended 100 percent on-site, fully remote, or somewhere in between — which are important to keep in mind:
- Only invite key stakeholders who really need to be there.
- Schedule meetings well in advance to make sure all invitees can make it.
- Send an agenda ahead of the meeting to help you stay on track and give attendees an opportunity to prepare if necessary.
- Send meeting notes to all invitees, whether they attended or not, summarizing what took place in the meeting and spelling out clear next steps assigned to owners.
2. Talk into the Camera
In hybrid meetings, etiquette dictates that all in-office attendees should speak directly into their computer cameras and microphones rather than at others who are in the room. This prevents remote workers from feeling like bystanders and encourages their participation.
3. Pay Close Attention to Quiet Attendees
In a hybrid meeting setting, there’s a common tendency for in-person employees to get in discussions with each other, making it harder for remote attendees to participate. Meeting hosts should adopt the habit of asking quiet attendees individually — both at-home and in-office — for their feedback. A simple “What are your thoughts?” can help employees feel more engaged with the group — and result in some excellent insights and contributions that you would have otherwise missed.
4. Invest in Hybrid Meeting Technology
Camera technology is quickly adapting to the needs of hybrid companies. Consider investing in a camera that integrates auto tracking, multi-presenter detection, and remote autofocus functions, such as the Meeting Owl Pro from Owl Labs. This gives speakers the ability to stay mobile while they’re presenting and facilitates group discussions more easily. These technologies often include meeting analytics which track metrics such as the duration that people in the room talked, the duration that remote people talked, and the duration that both talked, which can help your team continually refine your meeting practices.
It Takes Time
Just as with many aspects of the hybrid workplace, it will probably take some time to master the art of hybrid meetings, but these steps above will help set you up for better team coordination and improved engagement. Remember to keep gathering feedback from your employees and experiment with new technology to help you improve your meeting policy and practices over time.
