Undoubtedly, the development of technology brings dramatic changes in all areas of our lives. Their application is still based on proven principles based on facts and experience. To have a successful virtual meeting of directors, the necessary principles have to be followed.
Who Should Attend the Board Meeting?
Once you’ve determined your goal and desired outcomes, think carefully about who to invite. Adhere to the following rule: you need to invite only those team members whose participation is necessary to obtain the desired results. In this case, following the rule is even more important than in face-to-face meetings.
The thing is that the technological logistics, the additional difficulties of interpersonal interaction due to the remoteness of participants, and the difficulty of reaching consensus at a distance decide on the number of invitees to a group event of paramount importance. However, if you are planning to have a one-way briefing meeting that spans multiple locations, with a time-limited Q&A session, the number of participants in the event does not matter.
Provide Personal Interest
Consider the needs or interests of those you intend to invite. Make sure that any special questions or concerns of the meeting participants are examined and compared with the desired outcomes. Thus, you will give them an additional incentive to come to the upcoming meeting. Do not invite those who are not interested in the content of the planned agenda in full.
Assign Roles
In virtual meetings, the roles of the main facilitator are as important as in ordinary meetings. Appointment of the timekeeper and recorder can be either in advance or determined at the time of his review.
Check the Preparatory Work
Meeting preparation tasks need to be distributed in advance, as well as clear instructions to give attendees enough time to complete the work. Make sure that it will be done without relying on the fact that all participants in the event understand the importance of the tasks assigned to them and follow your instructions. If only a few participants prepare for a virtual meeting, this will lead to a loss of information processing efficiency and a huge waste of time.
Keep the Desired Results in the Spotlight
If the meeting fails, re-state the desired outcomes to get the discussion back on track. The lead facilitator and co-facilitators need to check that the summed up results are consistent with the desired outcomes, and to ensure that the breadth and depth of the summaries are relevant to the question. Otherwise, continue to refer to desired results and come up with provocative ideas to encourage people to look for new lines of research.
Stick to the Topic
In well-facilitated virtual group events, all issues discussed are relevant, no deviance is allowed here. This is a necessary condition for the involvement of participants in the discussion process, otherwise, they will be constantly distracted.
Ask questions and give feedback
Regarding all topics discussed in the meeting, constantly ask open-ended questions, no matter what form they eventually take – a direct, general, counter-question, or redirected question. Feedback and answers to questions are essential for an effective virtual meeting. Without this, people become just observers, not participants. Lack of feedback causes people to lose interest in the meeting, which does not encourage active discussion and consistent decision-making.