A virtual meeting is a type of business meeting that takes place online, allowing participants to communicate and collaborate remotely. It involves the use of video conferencing software or platforms that enable individuals or groups from different locations to connect and engage in real-time discussions, presentations, and sharing of documents or files. Virtual meetings offer the convenience of eliminating the need for physical travel, making them a cost-effective and efficient way to conduct meetings, especially when participants are geographically dispersed.
What is the purpose of a Virtual Meeting?
The purpose of running a virtual meeting as a leader is to effectively communicate with team members who may be located in different geographical locations, ensuring everyone is on the same page, making decisions collectively, fostering collaboration, and keeping the team engaged and motivated towards achieving common goals.
How To Run A Virtual Meeting: Step-By-Step
- Step 1: Agenda Definition
- Step 2: Choose Technology
- Step 3: Invitations
- Step 4: Pre-Meeting Materials Preparation
- Step 5: Technical Set-Up
- Step 6: Participant Briefing
- Step 7: Meeting Conduct
- Step 8: Engage Participants
- Step 9: Record Minutes
- Step 10: Meeting Wrap-Up
Step 1: Agenda Definition
Defining a clear agenda or purpose of the meeting beforehand ensures that participants understand the topics to be discussed and decisions to be made, promoting efficiency and effectiveness in accomplishing meeting objectives.
Our platform, ZipDo, facilitates the integration of calendar appointments into a single collaborative space. This space is dedicated to constructing a joint agenda, where every team member has the opportunity to add their topics. By doing so, it guarantees more comprehensively prepared meetings, optimizing efficiency and easing the preparation and follow-up stages.
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Step 2: Choose Technology
When deciding on the virtual meeting platform, it is important to choose one that aligns with the technical requirements of all participants. Platforms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet are commonly used options.
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Step 3: Invitations
Sending out invites for the meeting in advance is crucial to ensure participants are prepared. Include the meeting agenda, date, time, and clear instructions on how to join the meeting to facilitate a smooth and productive session.
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Step 4: Pre-Meeting Materials Preparation
It is crucial to create and gather any relevant documents, presentations, or materials that will be required for the meeting. These materials should be easily accessible to all participants to facilitate discussion and engagement.
ZipDo, our app, streamlines team meeting preparations by centralizing information from past sessions. As a meeting lead, you gain easy access to previous agendas and notes for recurring meetings, greatly reducing preparation time. This centralized approach ensures comprehensive coverage of all critical topics.
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Step 5: Technical Set-Up
It is crucial to test your video, audio, and internet connection before the meeting to avoid technical issues during the meeting. Performing this test ensures that everything works properly and reduces the risk of encountering technical difficulties.
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Step 6: Participant Briefing
In order to ensure a smooth meeting process, it is important to brief participants about the code of conduct, rules for muting and unmuting, utilizing the raising hand feature, and different methods of active participation.
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Step 7: Meeting Conduct
To ensure efficiency, start the meeting on time, clearly communicate the meeting’s objective, adhere to the agenda, and actively steer the conversation to stay focused. This will promote productivity and help achieve desired outcomes.
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Step 8: Engage Participants
Engaging participants by involving them in questioning, discussions, polls, and feedback fosters interactivity, leading to enhanced creativity and informed decision-making during the meeting.
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Step 9: Record Minutes
Assign someone reliable and efficient to diligently record accurate minutes during the meeting. These minutes should encompass crucial topics discussed, major decisions made, tasks designated, and any necessary future actions to ensure proper tracking and follow-up.
With our app, ZipDo, you can easily create meeting minutes. All your meetings are imported into the app through the calendar and sorted into a channel. In this channel, you can invite all your team members so they have access to the meeting. By posting meeting minutes in the respective workspace after a meeting, all members in the channel can automatically access them. This ensures that everyone on your team is up to date.
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Step 10: Meeting Wrap-Up
The key points, actions, and next steps were summarized before concluding the meeting.
Questions to ask as the leader of the meeting
1. “What are our objectives for this meeting?” – This question helps to clarify the purpose and desired outcomes of the virtual meeting, ensuring that everyone is on the same page and focused on achieving specific goals.
2. “Are there any updates or progress to report since our last meeting?” – This question encourages team members to share their achievements, challenges, or any relevant information since the previous meeting, promoting transparency and accountability.
3. “What roadblocks or obstacles are you facing that require immediate attention?” – By asking this question, leaders can identify and address any issues impeding progress, providing necessary support and guidance to overcome challenges.
4. “What ideas or suggestions do you have to enhance our current strategies or processes?” – This question fosters a culture of innovation and continuous improvement, as team members are encouraged to contribute fresh perspectives, insights, and recommendations.
5. “How can we better support each other in achieving our goals?” – This question promotes collaboration and teamwork, opening a dialogue on how team members can provide assistance, share resources, and ensure mutual success.
6. “Do you have any questions or concerns about our current initiatives?” – By giving team members the opportunity to express their queries or doubts, leaders can address any miscommunication, clarify expectations, and ensure everyone has a clear understanding of ongoing projects.
7. “What actions will we take following this meeting, and who will be responsible for each task?” – This question helps to assign accountability and ensure clear deadlines and ownership for specific action steps agreed upon during the virtual meeting.
8. “How can we improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our virtual meetings?” – This question encourages feedback and suggestions to enhance the overall virtual meeting experience, ensuring that future gatherings are productive, engaging, and valuable for all participants.
9. “What additional support or resources do you need to successfully accomplish your responsibilities?” – By asking this question, leaders can identify any gaps in resources or support, providing the necessary tools and assistance for team members to perform their roles effectively.
10. “Is there anything else you would like to discuss or bring up during this meeting?” – This open-ended question offers an opportunity for team members to share any additional topics or concerns that may not have been covered yet, ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard and no important matters are overlooked.
Learn how to prepare a Virtual Meeting
When preparing a virtual-meeting agenda as a leader, it is important to start by clearly stating the meeting objective. This should be followed by a structured outline of discussion topics and designated time slots for each. Including any necessary pre-reading materials and specifying expected outcomes will help ensure a productive and efficient virtual meeting.
How To Prepare For A Virtual Meeting
Exemplary Agenda Template For: Virtual Meeting
In a virtual meeting, it is essential to focus on topics that require immediate attention or decision-making. These can include project updates, problem-solving discussions, goal-setting sessions, and feedback sharing. Additionally, addressing any concerns or challenges faced by team members and allocating time for brainstorming new ideas can also contribute to a productive virtual-meeting experience.
See Our Virtual Meeting TemplateSoftware tools to facilitate a Virtual Meeting
Software enables leaders to efficiently run virtual meetings with ease. It provides features such as video conferencing, screen sharing, and chat capabilities, which facilitate effective communication and collaboration among team members regardless of their physical locations. Additionally, software allows for the recording and playback of meetings, making it easier for leaders to review discussions and follow up on action items. Overall, software streamlines the virtual meeting process, enhancing productivity and enabling seamless remote teamwork.
Our Recommendations:
- Meeting Management Software: A software that can help you organize your meeting workflow
- Meeting Agenda Software: A software that helps you to collaboratively create meeting agendas
- Meeting Notes Software: Software that allows you to create notes during meetings
- Meeting Minutes Software: A software that helps you preparing meeting minutes for your team.
Conclusion
In today’s digital age, virtual meetings have become an indispensable tool for businesses worldwide. They offer a myriad of benefits such as increased flexibility, reduced costs, and enhanced collaboration. However, running a successful virtual meeting requires careful planning, effective communication, and the use of appropriate technology platforms. By following the tips and best practices outlined in this guide, you can ensure that your virtual meetings are productive, engaging, and efficient. Embrace the virtual meeting revolution, and watch your business thrive in the new age of remote work.
Jannik Lindner
I'm Jannik and I write on MeetingFever about the experiences from my career as a founder and team lead.
If you have any questions, please contact me via LinkedIn.
Popular Questions
What is a virtual meeting?What are the main tools used for hosting a virtual meeting?How can you enhance the security of virtual meetings?How can you keep participants engaged during virtual meetings?How to handle technical difficulties during a virtual meeting?
A virtual meeting is a gathering of individuals who use internet-based tools or software to interact, converse, or collaborate, irrespective of their geographical location. These meetings can be in the form of webinars, online conferences, or simple team meetings.
Some of the main tools used for hosting a virtual meeting include Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Cisco Webex and Skype. These tools provide features such as video conferencing, screen sharing, instant messaging, file sharing, and more.
To enhance the security of virtual meetings, you can start by using a secure and reliable virtual meeting platform. Use passwords for your meetings, enable waiting rooms to control attendee access, restrict screen sharing and file sharing to host only, and ensure all communications are encrypted.
There are several ways to keep participants engaged during virtual meetings. This includes maintaining a clear and concise agenda, encouraging interaction and participation, using visual aids or presentations, regularly checking in with participants, and incorporating regular breaks in longer sessions.
In case of technical difficulties during a virtual meeting, the first step is to remain calm and composed. Check your internet connection, audio and video settings, and other setup-related factors. Having a technical support contact or team can be beneficial. Also, it is advisable to conduct a dry run or practice session before the actual meeting to ensure everything runs smoothly.
