9 tips for online meeting facilitators and managers
With remote work ongoing, a lot of people are finding themselves in a new role - online meeting facilitator.
Facilitating an online meeting or event is not the same as in-person facilitation, with facilitators facing some unique challenges.
So here are 9 things to think about when tasked with facilitating your next online team meeting.
What technology are you going to use
You might have a standard platform that you use within your workplace and be limited in what you can choose, but if not, think about what video conferencing platform you want to use - Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, etc.
Different platforms have different limitations so it’s worth thinking about the objectives for the meeting and if there are any key functionalities, such as breakout rooms, that you need for the meeting to run smoothly and be productive.
Technology is not just video conferencing though - you might also think about the types of online tools and resources that you can integrate into the meeting to enhance the experience for your participants.
A word of warning - it is always good to test your technology before you go live. There is nothing worse than running into technical issues and having to handle them live in front of people who are staring at you, waiting for you to do something…
Video conferencing etiquette & rules of engagement
When you host an online meeting it’s important to establish etiquette and how participants should interact with you and each other. Some things to think about are:
Should they be on mute when they enter the meeting
Should they have their web cameras switched on or not
How do you want people to ask questions - verbally or using the chat?
Does everyone need to have input? If so, how are you going to ensure everyone gets to have a say or contribute. You might want to use a voting system in parallel, if decisions are required
Provide a clear agenda & instructions
As you would normally do for a regular meeting, it is always helpful to set the expectations of your meeting participants. This can be done with a meeting agenda and clear instructions on how the session is going to be run.
If it is a longer meeting you need to consider both energiser activities as well as scheduled breaks. Just like being in a meeting room, it can be hard to concentrate for long periods of time on the same subject.
Address individuals as well as the group
In an online meeting it is much easier for people to tune out and get distracted and get away with it! This is especially the case if they have their camera turned off.
One way to avoid this is by addressing people individually intermittently, seeking feedback or asking questions. If participants are expecting they may be called upon to contribute next, they are less likely to disengage.
Regardless of whether they are distracted or not, communicating with individuals as well as addressing the group as a whole is a better way to facilitate until you get to very large groups of people, in which case it might not be feasible to engage with everybody on an individual level.
Use webcams for visual cues
Whether or not people turn on their web cams is normally an individual decision but as a facilitator, it is so much easier to get feedback when you can see the people you are speaking to.
When we facilitate The Puzzle we always suggest people turn on their cameras, provided they feel comfortable.
The next best thing is seeking feedback using a chat function, or in the case of Zoom, thumbs up and other assorted emojis.
Use an icebreaker to activate people & make them feel comfortable
Icebreakers do not have to be complicated, or make you cringe, and are very helpful when you want people who do not know each other very well to work together on a project, task or problem.
When we facilitate team-based work and are going to be splitting the group up we like to do an introductory icebreaker exercise.
Here are a few simple ones you could use:
Describe your ideal day in 1 minute
Tell everyone your favourite thing to do on a Saturday morning
Share a habit you are proud of, and a bad habit that you wish you didn’t have
What is the last good book you read and why did you like it
Ideally you want it to be a bit personal, to help people get to know each other a little better, without being too much to the point that people don’t feel comfortable sharing with colleagues or strangers.
Use interactive tools to create engagement
There is nothing more boring than a meeting or conference where you, as a participant, do not get to participate.
There are so many different ways to engage people as a manager or facilitator - polls and quizzes normally work well if you want people to have some fun.
Two of our favourite online tools for this kind of interaction are Mentimeter and Kahoot.
Foster communication between participants
As a facilitator of an online meeting or event, it is often you communicating with the group “one-way”, or with you and individuals on the call talking directly.
But it can also be important to foster communication between participants. This can be difficult with larger groups unless you use virtual breakout rooms, which is what we always recommend to facilitators, and which are a useful built in feature of many video platforms (ZOOM), or can be hacked together using individual team channels if your platform doesn’t support them natively.
Break up the meeting or conference with a fun group activity
During longer online meetings and events it can be nice to break up work with something fun!
For those tired of quizzes we designed a fun problem solving game that is played as a team competition called The Puzzle.
It’s easy for facilitators and managers to deliver for their teams using our DIY version or you can ask for one of our professional facilitators to jump on your call and deliver it for you.
