Despite having more than 5.5 billion minutes used in virtual meetings, 30% of the employee’s time spent in meetings is considered unproductive. It’s, therefore, crucial to have virtual meeting etiquette in place to lead an effective session.
Why etiquette is so important for your business’ virtual meeting
As more people work remotely, the boundaries between our personal and professional lives are starting to become blurry. During a virtual meeting, there are several situations that can be awkward. Your children might burst into the meeting room, and you might have to go watch them for a moment. You can also receive a phone call in the middle of a meeting. These might seem like minor problems, but they become quite irritating for your meeting participants and compromise professionalism. The meeting becomes unproductive, and the meeting leader ends up wasting valuable time trying to get their meeting back on track while their meeting participants are distracted by the noises outside. Virtual meeting etiquette ensures that such distractions don’t happen as everyone knows what’s expected during a virtual meeting.
Common virtual meeting etiquette
To make a virtual meeting effective, you need to set ground rules at the beginning of the meeting. This will help everyone know what is expected of them. Some common virtual meeting etiquette includes:
1. Establishing a meeting time-frame
When setting up a meeting, it is important to be clear about how long the meeting will last. This is especially important for virtual meetings, where people from different time zones are participating. If you need people to block out an hour or two hours on their schedules, give them at least 15 minutes’ notice before the meeting starts.
2. Asking for an agenda
Virtual meeting rooms are designed to allow several people to participate in a meeting. This way, everyone has a chance to speak without being interrupted. That’s why it’s important for the leader of the meeting to have an agenda and stick to it. That way, everyone can prepare for the meeting and focus on the topics that are being discussed instead of interrupting the speaker.
3. Preparing ahead
If you prepare ahead of time, you can avoid the last-minute rush. This way, people won’t be wasting their time looking for meeting resources like meeting transcripts and minutes. Before the meeting begins, set a good background and check your video conferencing tool’s audio and visual settings. Make sure you have also downloaded the meeting resources sent to you. If you are the host, send the meeting link earlier, together with the agenda list, and assign roles to the meeting participants. This will give meeting participants adequate time to prepare for the meeting.
Conclusion
Virtual meetings are becoming increasingly common as more people rely on online conferences such as BlueJeans meeting tools to communicate, collaborate and network with individuals from around the globe. This is why meeting etiquette for virtual meetings is becoming increasingly crucial. Meeting leaders are responsible for ensuring that their meeting participants are ready to go into the meeting room and focus on what needs to be discussed. With these ground rules in mind, you will find your virtual meeting experience more engaging and enjoyable. BlueJeans is a virtual meeting app designed for businesses. It’s secure, easy to use, and includes all the features you’d expect from physical meetings. Download a free trial of BlueJeans today to get started.
