Louisa Walsh, Anneliese Synnot and Sophie Hill from Cochrane Consumers and Communication share their top tips for getting the most out of online meeting.

In the global world of Cochrane, remote meetings are the norm as we connect with colleagues all over the planet. But have you ever considered what the key ingredients are to make a really good online meeting? Well, we did…and we learned a few things we did not know.

Being the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Group we took a look at the evidence and consulted people. We found that whether you’re a meeting organiser or a participant there are some simple things you can do before, during, and after online meetings to make them more efficient, effective and enjoyable – for everyone!

Our top tips for ONLINE meeting ORGANIZERS

Before the meeting

1. Ask: do I really need a meeting?

• Remember to ask yourself – what is the purpose of this meeting?
• If you need to hear ideas, have an active discussion, make decisions or allocate tasks, then YES.
• If some of the work can be done by creating a shared document (like a Google Doc) or email comments will do, then NO/MAYBE.

2. Be kind with your times  

• Consider the impact of time zones, summer time – and family-friendly work policies!
• Ask attendees their preferences and change times around.
• Consider how long or how short you really need the meeting to be.

3. Get your tech right

• Videoconferencing versus teleconferencing - consider issues of software access and internet speeds and people’s personal preferences. Ask in advance or give people the choice.
• Consider distributing software instructions– don’t assume people know how to use your program.

4. Prepare and distribute meeting materials in advance

• One week in advance is preferred but if this is impossible, let people know when to expect it.

5. Consider any access needs

• Be proactive. Address access needs well ahead of the meeting. For example, do any of your participants need new software, an alternative meeting format or an interpreter?

During the meeting

6. Be an active chair

• Good chairing is a rare skill but it can be learned. Mixing inclusiveness with efficiency is a nice balance.
• Don’t assume people know each other at the first meeting. Start with introductions.
• Consider if the purpose of the meeting is suited to going around the ‘table’ and asking everyone in turn their views. Tell them the order you are using.
• Invite anyone who has been quiet to contribute. Remember that possible power imbalances may affect how participants contribute.
• Use names– it clearly identifies who you are speaking to and keeps participants engaged.
• Remember the instruction for muting when people are not speaking.
• For some platforms, check everyone knows they can add or view comments.
• Remember not to confuse any non-Cochrane people by speaking Cochranese!

7. What helpers do you need?

• With a larger meeting, or using new technology, you might need a helper.
• Helpers can: monitor conversations or questions in the chat box (if relevant), keep track of who hasn’t spoken, take minutes, or keep the meeting to time.
• Establish who is taking minutes or action points in advance.

8. Keep to time

• To assist, work out a meeting schedule in advance (potentially with timings) and ask participants if this is acceptable.

9. Open and close the meeting with a summary

• Set the scene at the start with what you are hoping to discuss and achieve.
• At the end of the meeting, summarise and reiterate any actions.

After the meeting

10. Circulate a meeting summary

• Getting meeting minutes or a meeting summary to your participants allows them to complete their actions and also shows that the meeting – and their input – was valuable to you.
• Meetings minutes are also likely to be more accurate if completed soon after the meeting.

11. Follow up agreed actions

• If you have actions arising from the meeting, then complete them. This demonstrates that you value your project partners and the time they give to meetings and the project.

Our top tips for ONLINE meeting PARTICIPANTS

Before your meeting

1. Do you really need to attend?

• If you think you don’t need to be at the meeting, or that you can make a more useful contribution over email, don’t be afraid to raise it with the organisers.

2. Don’t forget to RSVP

• Your attendance may be vital to the meeting going ahead, or the topics under discussion, so don’t leave your organiser and other participants in the dark.

3. Do you have special requirements?

• If there is something you need to be able to access the meeting let the meeting organiser know.

 4. Prepare!

• It usually benefits everyone if you read any meeting documents, test your technology and think about your talking points before the call.

During the meeting

5. Keep your responses short and sweet

• By staying on topic you both get your point across more powerfully and allow room for others to have their voice.
• It may help to prepare your key points in advance – depending on the meeting purpose.

6. Make use of available meeting tools

• If your meeting is using tools like chat boxes for questions and virtual hand raises, use them, particularly if you don’t want to interrupt the meeting flow, or can’t get a word in!

7. Mute yourself when you’re not speaking

•  It improves sound quality and stops everyone hearing your dog barking.

8. Support quieter meeting members

• If you notice someone is not speaking or being heard, you can support them by asking to hear their opinion.

9. In an audio-only environment, identify yourself before making your point

• When there is no video, consistently stating your name before you ask your questions or share your view reduces confusion around who is talking.

After the meeting

10. Read meeting minutes

• It is fine to send corrections or additional information to the organiser.

11. Follow up agreed actions

• If you can’t complete your actions, let the organiser know.

 

If you’d like more information, tips and hints, check out these resources:

• Mittleman DD, Briggs RO, Nunamaker JF. Best Practices in Facilitating Virtual Meetings: Some Notes from Initial Experiences. Group Facilitation: A Research and Applications Journal. Number 2, Winter 2000.
• Hampton SE, Halpern BS, Winter M, Balch JK, Parker JN, Baron JS, Palmer M, Schildhauer MP, Bishop P, Meagher TR, Specht A (2017). Best Practices for Virtual Participation in Meetings: Experiences from Synthesis Centers. Bull Ecol Soc Am, 98: 57-63. doi:10.1002/bes2.1290
• Jurd, K. Delivering effective VC meetings and tutorials.

 

Acknowledgements: Thanks to Camille Condon, Sally Crowe, Lyubov Lytvyn, Belinda MacLeod-Smith and Chris Watts for their input to this blog post.