Are we are still battling with the COVID-19 pandemic; it is worth reflecting on the positive developments we have experienced so far. These developments have emerged over constant lockdowns due to the pandemic. The year 2020 was the worse year for business and everyone since we saw an increase in infection rate, which made us find new ways to socialize.
This is where we experienced a sharp rise in virtual meetings across the world. Since businesses have seen the benefits of virtual meetings, experts are predicting that this trend will continue and become the new normal to conduct business.
Of course, some companies are proudly boasting that they have been using virtual meetings for many years, pre-COVID. Nevertheless, to us regular people, we were using virtual calls to communicate with family and friends over FaceTime, Webinar, or other means. Corporate conference production is a service to consider if you are needing help hosting your own conference meeting.
It is fair to say that many businesses did not know the benefits of virtual meetings until when it became a necessity overnight. Nevertheless, the move to a virtual meeting is an exciting development and is expected to stay as the dynamics of conducting businesses are changing. All in all, it is a necessary tool that helps organizations boost workplace inclusion, work-life, and diversity balance.
The million-dollar question is; why is the virtual meeting the best thing that happened in the year 2020? Below are a few points: –
More Time to make Decisions
Virtual meetings have a tendency to be more efficient compared to physical ones and this is a fact. That is because there are no acknowledgments and everyone does not want to stay online longer than they have to. For this reason, to have an effective virtual meeting, it is wise to send your agenda ahead of time, the pre-reading will have already occurred, and the meeting will begin as scheduled and end on time.
It is wise to have a few virtual meeting rules such as: –
• Asking questions in the chat function or raising the hand up
• Having the mic muted when not speaking
• Allocate time for breakfast
• Have a chair who will keep the discussion on track
These are just but a few examples. All of them are geared towards saving time and having an effective meeting.
Discussion Dominators Are Reduced
Unlike physical meetings where you will find a colleague who will always dominate a discussion, this rarely happens in virtual meetings. You will be surprised by how they tend to be quiet in a virtual meeting or you are speaking in equal amounts.
This helps boost effective discussion. Remember, for a discussion to be categorized as effective, all parties must agree while each party has their ideas heard. This is something that tends to be difficult in the case where there are discussion dominators. As you know, these people will speak louder than the rest and prevent others from contributing.
The Death of Power Suits
Because virtual meetings allow people to work from home, we are seeing colleagues wearing any cloth they want to wear. This means that one has the power to wear their most comfortable clothing. This means that gone are the days where one had to invest in expensive power suits, perfectly coifed hair, or high heels.
As such, virtual meetings allow us to respect and value our colleagues for their contribution rather than their appearance. In a virtual meeting, people are encouraged to bring their authentic ideas rather than express their external symbols of success and power. This means time are gone where people were forced to save money so that they can get expensive dresses.