Keys to a Successful On-Line Meeting
Planning and Attendee Participation
Submitted by: Ginger Ackerman Vice President of Sales & Marketing Jigsaw Meeting
Today's economy continues to drive companies to change the venue of meetings from face-to-face to on-line meetings. Unfortunately, most companies who choose to utilize this method of meeting haven't defined how to transfer the skill set of effectively managing live meetings to the virtual meeting platform. The result of on-line meetings are often lacking in presenter planning, attendee engagement and solid meeting results.
Studies show the majority of on-line meeting attendees log in to the meeting and then minimize the meeting system and continue to do things like e-mail and other tasks that comprise their normal work day. Because you are unable to see what they are doing, they are not really accountable to the meeting or its results. Most of this lack of interest or participation is due to either the meeting host not including the attendees in the action of the meeting or the inability of the on-line meeting application to allow true interaction with the meeting data.
On-line meetings can be just as effective as live meetings but the meeting host may have to adjust the planning and management of the meeting. The biggest challenge of on-line meetings is participation and engagement from everyone. The 5 P's to ensure on-line meetings have solid meeting results:
1. Purpose
- Identify the objective or purpose of the meeting before you complete a meeting agenda. What do you want the meeting to accomplish?
- Share the purpose/objective with your attendees prior to the meeting and again at the beginning of your meeting.
