Toward More Engaging Virtual Meetings: II

Keeping attendees engaged in virtual meetings is inherently valuable. But it also reduces the need for techniques to re-engage attendees after they "check out" or become distracted. Engagement prevents many other problems, such as inattentiveness, distractedness, poor decision-making, and the need to repeat what's just been said.

Here's Part II of a set of techniques for keeping attendees engaged.

Solicit agenda items from attendees in advance

Some meeting chairs distribute agendas for their meetings without first soliciting suggestions from attendees. In effect, they're imposing an agenda on the meeting.

Even when the agenda is obvious, soliciting suggestions in advance enhances attendee engagement. Attendees who suggest items tend to feel an affinity for the items they suggested, which can enhance their sense of engagement.

Publish a "Not Agenda" in advance

Items on the Not Agenda are off limits for the meeting. They're less likely to arise during the meeting, less likely to be appended to the parking lot, and less likely to waste valuable meeting time.

Including the Not Agenda along with a solicitation of agenda items keeps attendees from suggesting items that are known in advance not to be agenda items for the meeting.

Track who is actually present

If you don't know who's present, it's Even when the agenda is obvious,
soliciting suggestions in advance
enhances attendee engagementdifficult to keep them engaged. Ask people to "check in" when they arrive, or when they return from breaks or from stepping out. Ask that they announce their departures if they must step out during the meeting. This custom lets everyone know who is present, which can be important for conducting discussions.

But it can require a bit of bookkeeping. For meetings of more than a few people, designate an "attendance scribe" who tracks this information, and posts it on screen in a manner visible to everyone. Two columns work well: Present and Not Present. When people know that everyone else is aware that they're present, they're less inclined to succumb to distractions, because they realize that anyone might address them directly at any time.

Don't maintain a queue of people who want to speak — use rotation

The speaker queue is widely used for allocating speaking time. Whether executed by catching the facilitator's eye in face-to-face meetings, or by technological "hand-raise" tools in virtual meetings, speaker queues have limitations. They tend to scramble discussion threads, especially for complicated or controversial topics. And the queue can get very long indeed.

Rotation addresses both issues. Using Rotation, the facilitator asks each attendee, in turn, for a contribution, perhaps in the order of the "Present" list (see above). Attendees who have no contribution say, "Pass." The facilitator repeats the poll until a round completes with everyone passing. Rotation has the added benefit of providing a natural reason for the facilitator to ask each attendee for a contribution, without the risks attendant with singling out individuals.

Most important, don't meet unnecessarily. Taking up people's time for no good reason leads to disengagement that can't be overcome by even the most powerful techniques. First in this series   Top    Next Issue

Are your virtual meetings plagued by inattentiveness, interruptions, absenteeism, and a seemingly endless need to repeat what somebody just said? Do you have trouble finding a time when everyone can meet? Do people seem disengaged and apathetic? Or do you have violent clashes and a plague of virtual bullying? Read Leading Virtual Meetings for Real Results to learn how to make virtual meetings much more productive and less stressful — and a lot shorter. Order Now!

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Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout

Coming March 20: Stone-Throwers at Meetings: I

One class of disruptions in meetings includes the tactics of stone-throwers — people who exploit low-cost tactics to disrupt the meeting and distract all participants so as to obstruct progress. How do they do it, and what can the meeting chair do? Available here and by RSS on March 20.

And on March 27: Stone-Throwers at Meetings: II

A stone-thrower in a meeting is someone who is determined to halt forward progress. Motives vary, from embarrassing the Chair to holding the meeting hostage in exchange for advancing an agenda. What can Chairs do about stone-throwers? Available here and by RSS on March 27.

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