Most meetings have now transitioned from being in-person to meeting over a computer screen or other digital device. The following is a guide for your reference when planning a virtual meeting.
Planning your Meeting
The basics of a meeting, whether in-person or virtually are: Who? What? When? Where? In a virtual setting, these are still important pieces of information to communicate ahead of time to those being invited even though there isn’t a physical location where the meeting is taking place.
Who
Establish who will be invited to this meeting?
What
Determine what will be discussed during your meeting and create an agenda. In a virtual environment, engagement is essential; prepare ice breakers or team builders for your participants.
When
Establish date, time, and frequency of meetings.
Another important step is to determine the platform which will be used to conduct the meeting(s). Some recommendations are: Zoom, Discord, and MS Teams.
Another important step is to determine the platform which will be used to conduct the meeting(s). Some recommendations are: Zoom, Discord, and MS Teams.
Before the Meeting
Once you have established your meeting basics, send out your meeting invites. Invites should include:
Date(s)
If your meeting will be recurring, it is recommended you use day of the week in the invites rather than dates to avoid confusion.
Times
Establish the best time to meet based on everyone’s schedules. If your meeting will be recurring, aim to keep the meeting at the same time for consistency purposes.
Link to the Meeting
Depending on the platform you will be using, you may have the option to generate a link to send those being invited.
Rules and Expectations
If invitees are expected to have their cameras on or off, if they are expected to participate in an activity, if using the chat feature during the meeting is allowed, make sure to include that in your invitation. This will help everyone be more prepared for the meeting.
In addition to sending the invites, an agenda should also be sent out to all invited to the meeting.
The last step is to designate someone who will take minutes. If your meeting does not already have a designated secretary, establish who will take minutes.
During your Meeting
On the day of your meeting, it is suggested that you login 10–15 minutes before your scheduled start time to test your Internet connection, your audio settings, and camera settings.
Once your meeting has started, reiterate the expectations and rules set for your meeting which were included in the invitation. For recurring meetings, unless the expectations change, there is no need to repeat each meeting. With the agenda distributed beforehand, attendees can reference the agenda or you can share your screen and display the agenda for all to see.
After your Meeting
Once your meeting is over, send out minutes to those who attended for their review. The recommended timeline is within 24 hours of the meeting so the information is fresh in everyone’s minds.
Transitioning your meetings to virtual platforms can be overwhelming. We are here to provide resources to help you get started and are available to assist if you have any questions.
