The era when team meetings necessitated everyone’s presence in a cramped conference room has been replaced by the age of virtual meetings.
Nowadays, employees can participate in meetings virtually anywhere around the globe, thanks to the convenience of video conferencing technology. This advancement in conducting virtual meetings is revolutionizing the workplace, enabling companies to tap into more diverse talent pools as they are no longer restricted to hiring solely within their immediate geographic area. More fundamentally, the shift to virtual meetings significantly alters the dynamics of attending work meetings.
Here are some key changes brought about by integrating video conferencing into our professional lives to look out for.
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1. AI is Keeping Meeting Attendees on the Same Page
During the days of in-person meetings, taking detailed notes was critical. Few managers are willing to excuse missed deadlines resulting from an employee failing to write down action items.
People are, however, imperfect. We are liable to mishear what others say and have our minds trail off during meetings, causing us to record incomplete or incorrect notes. Fortunately, artificial intelligence is reducing the frequency of these mistakes.
Video conferencing software providers such as Zoom now integrate AI to create transcriptions of meetings. In addition to outlining notes from the meeting, the AI assistant also analyzes phrases to determine when a meeting attendee is committing to perform a task. Later, once the meeting is complete, all attendees will receive an email summary of the meeting complete with next steps.
Of course, AI transcription technology is not infallible. After reading through an AI meeting summary, it’s always a good idea to follow up with co-workers if any of the notes or action items are unclear.
2. It’s Becoming Easier to Gather Feedback in the Moment
It probably shouldn’t come as a surprise, but many people aren’t comfortable sharing their true feelings during meetings.
Employees value their relationships with co-workers. They understandably want to avoid the damage to these relationships that responding negatively to information shared during a meeting can cause. But, in many cases, a project’s success depends on the amount and quality of feedback it receives.
Video conferencing is making it possible for all employees to share feedback. For example, video conferencing software allows users to create anonymous surveys. Speakers can deploy these surveys to get a general sense of how receptive the audience is to their shared plans.
Breakout rooms also offer employees who may feel nervous speaking in front of a large group a smaller, more intimate setting to share their thoughts. Once the meeting convenes, a designated notetaker in each breakout room can share the view of employees in their rooms with the meeting organizer.
3. Virtual Meetings are Becoming More Focused
It has never been easier to schedule a meeting with co-workers. It’s a matter of generating a link for a meeting and then sharing it with colleagues through email or a messaging application such as Slack.
This wasn’t the case when meetings took place in person. To schedule a meeting with one or multiple co-workers, you would either need to meet with each of them directly to find out when they had openings on their calendars or get in touch with their receptionists. Because of this, many employees would schedule standing meetings in which multiple topics were discussed.
Thankfully, times have changed. Many meetings now focus on a narrow range of topics, allowing attendees to dedicate additional time to discussing each. While it’s impossible to gauge the impact this focus has had on the quality of team output, it has unquestionably made many meetings feel productive.
4. Collaboration is more Seamless than Ever Before
Meetings are intended to serve as a space for employees to collaborate. But many fail to live up to their billing.
In some meetings, discussions may not turn out to be as productive as the organizers of it anticipated. In others, some employees may not feel as though their voices are being heard. Virtual meetings through video conferencing software streamline collaboration by making it simple for all attendees to contribute.
For example, many video conferencing software providers allow meeting attendees to write on a screen shared by the organizer using a desktop conferencing device or other tool. This feature is especially valuable for brainstorming activities since it enables employees to share their ideas without waiting until other employees have spoken.
Many of the leading video conferencing platforms also promote collaboration by integrating with other popular applications. Zoom, for instance, integrates with Google Drive to simplify the process by which meeting attendees share documents through meeting chats.
5. Meeting Attendance is Typically Higher
Employees appreciate flexibility. Video conferencing makes it possible.
In the days before virtual meetings, employees had to be in the office to attend meetings. Getting a large group of employees in the same room simultaneously is certainly not easy. Some could be traveling for work or stuck in traffic. Companies paid the price in the form of poor meeting attendance.
Now, employees can attend meetings at their convenience. If they have an early meeting on a day they plan to work in the office, they can attend the meeting from home and then make the commute afterward. Similarly, those on the road can join a meeting from their hotel room. Virtual meetings are convenient for employees and a boon for business leaders who want their meetings to be well-attended and productive.
A Revolution in the World of Business
If your business hasn’t already harnessed the power of virtual meetings, there’s still time. Invest in a software provider and you’ll immediately begin to witness its transformative impact on your business.
