Tips for Virtual Meetings

The federal DigitalGov folks shared some great tips on how to have an effective Town Hall meeting or other large virtual meeting.

Print out the cell phone number for all speakers.

As the organizer you can ask everyone ESPECIALLY your top brass speakers for their personal cell numbers and give them your cell as well. PRINT THIS OUT on paper if possible and keep it on your desk during the meeting so you don’t have to open a screen to access the numbers quickly! 

Tell the execs to keep their phone close but on silent/vibrate in case you need to alert them via text that something is wrong in mid meeting. (e.g. their sound stops suddenly)

 Remind everyone to have their cell phones fully charged in case they have to dial in when audio gives out during their presentations!

Have each speaker in their own setting.

Better to have each person in their own setting doing their presentation, not together IRL – even if they follow protocols and wear masks it is hard to see them all at a distance and they just look tiny and faceless.

 Also, each person should get their own label on screen – if you have them together as a group you have to name them as a group and that’s not as good for those who are watching. 

Bosses tend to like to have their own name up there, too, so that’s a good way to convince someone of the value of this, in addition to safety and health protocols.

All speakers should have a background image - ideally of their office.

If you can have them do a background screen that has their office – so that it looks like they are speaking from their desk – that really seems to work well.  

If possible, have someone take a really high quality photo of your exec’s office and upload it as a background for them for this purpose. 

 If they don’t want to use a background but want to be in their office you can help them minimize distracting items in the background and/or tell them where to sit for the best lighting, etc. 

Consider providing official backgrounds with your agency logo to provide a uniform look for your office.

Write out a full script with stage directions, speeches and other instructions just like you would a play on stage.

Make sure everyone on your team gets a copy ahead of time. It can be a lifesaver when it comes to logistics – sometimes speakers realize that they need to switch the order or add some detail that you have overlooked. 

And if they all know the order of things and have it written out at their own locations it helps you tremendously. 

Consolidate speaker slides into a single deck and assign a slide manager and a backup.

Just as in a live presentation, making eye contact is important! Screen sharing in some technologies unfortunately leave presenters feeling like they’re presenting in the dark, with many looking at only their slides and not the camera.

Compile all the material from the presenters in advance on one slide deck a few days prior to the event, and to have a slide manager (and a back-up) dedicated to advancing slides.

Prepare housekeeping talking points for the event facilitator to announce at the start.

The facilitator may not be an expert in the technical platform, therefore it is critical to provide them with messages to announce to attendees once the sessions start, such as how to participate in Q&A, where to send technical problems, and break times if they apply.

Test ahead of time in a dry run/dress rehearsal.

Have everyone attend if possible and do their presentations.

Do a sound check as part of the dry run.

Some people really shout into the microphone when they get going, and that makes it hard to hear. It is nice if you can give them this feedback with a group of practice listeners so that they optimize the volume before the meeting. 

Assign at least 2 co-hosts (to manage questions, highlight speakers, and manage/admit/support attendees.

PRACTICE. PRACTICE. PRACTICE. Have all hosts and presenters for a full run-through so they are familiar with the controls.

Address accessibility for the event.

Hire an ASL interpreter and be sure they are at the practice session. And, send a copy of the (accessible!) presentation to all attendees.  Ensure that you have live captioning service (aka CART). 

Automated captioning is getting better, but it can stop without warning, plus live captioners should be given names, acronyms, and other key terms in advance for correct spelling.

You will need to know how to ensure that attendees can pin the ASL interpreter. If you don’t know how, or can’t ensure that it can be done, you will get into trouble quickly. 

So ensure that the dry run includes the interpreter.  Remember to repeat questions before you answer and other similar best practices.

Be prepared for a technical interruption.

The host should be prepared in the event a presenter's internet goes out.  Don't miss a beat - have discussion questions prepared, do a an audience poll, have a mini presentation ready for backup, or do a quick "game" like trivia on the subject. 

Request attendees send questions by email.

Request questions in advance and provide the email for questions as part of the meeting introductions so people not comfortable with the virtual platform chat or question and answer feature can have the ability to send an email.  

Keep the meeting from dragging.

You’ll need to focus on getting the pace and tempo right. Online sessions will need to go at a quicker pace to keep the participants engaged. 

There is a much greater likelihood that people will be multi-tasking during these sessions so if you want to hold their attention, especially if the session is going to be long, intersperse the dialog with interactive elements such as poll questions, visuals/graphics, very short video clips, etc. Keep the pace flowing though.

Other Suggestions:

• During the event: HIGHLIGHT the appropriate presenter or attendee if speaking. 

• Encourage use of the chat function to engage in open conversations, and have a Co-host monitor and ping presenters about some key takeaways.

• Always use the cloud recording function, it will do a decent job of auto-captioning the video, and it allows in-line editing for easy correction. 

• Don’t forget to do a post-event survey!