Present Without Being Present

Most meetings are live and therefore demand both team leaders and members to be present. Meeting slides are typically presented via screen sharing, and minutes are noted down as crucial matters are discussed.

While some people relish meetings, many others think they are a waste of time. Whatever your perspective is on meeting cadence, agendas, and sizes, there are new approaches that will enable your team to save time and money without compromising meeting quality.

The problem with conventional online meetings

There are times when people can’t attend due to illness or conflicts in schedule. When this happens, meetings can either be rearranged or recorded for playback. Either way, it’s likely that someone ends up with gaps in their understanding.

But what if you could present in a meeting without actually being there? Now, this wouldn’t work for all meetings. But in certain situations, you can broaden your meetings’ number of active contributors without increasing costs.

Calculating the cost of an hours-long meeting really puts things into perspective, especially when you start looking deeper into how productive these meetings truly are. Multiplying the hourly rate of staff by the hours spent in a typical conference call can add up quickly, especially when this is a recurring event.

Using pre-recorded videos on a virtual events platform

Some people tend to believe that if they are not contributing or talking, then they shouldn’t be at the meeting. Perhaps there are specific segments of the meeting which are not relevant. As a result, people become silent and disengaged.

In these instances, people are present but their mind is elsewhere–perhaps on other work priorities which need focus. Playing prerecorded videos in meetings can reduce the number of meeting attendees and hence costs. People can have their say, make recommendations, and give options without being there.

People not attending can record a video for playback in the meeting, and the meeting itself can be recorded for further playback by absentees. Recorded video meetings are posted on a social timeline in private groups for further asynchronous comments with text, voice notes, or video.

The benefits of using virtual events software

Playing prerecorded videos during meetings in lieu of live presentations and using video comments post-meeting creates flexibility which keeps people engaged and connected. Instead of rescheduling or delaying meetings, schedules are preserved while keeping everyone informed.

People can get on the same page with meeting agendas be it through asynchronous or synchronous means.

What’s more, a board meeting held online can be enhanced by screencasts from non-board members. This approach empowers managers who are not on the executive board but have more experience directly dealing with customers.

Knowing when to sync up for meetings and when to allow participants to contribute without being present is a new leadership skill that needs to be honed. After all, whilst large meetings of over 20 people are inclusive, they might not be productive.

The bottom line

Meetings can be re-imagined by shifting our focus away from live attendance and into solid, measurable output. Allowing people to flexibly contribute asynchronously frees up precious space in everyone’s work calendars for more crucial work. No longer do we all need to jump on a video call just to feel involved and proactive. These days, asynchronous collaboration can just be as effective as live meetings, if not more so.