Conferencing Hints & Tips

Before, During and After - Speed Meeting etiquette requires participants and the moderator to be interactive, thorough, focused and to the point in preparation, meeting flow and follow-up.

Before

• Speed Forward
  Don't repeat what's already been discussed in previous meetings! Aim to build on previous meetings. 
• Follow Short Cuts
  Post an agenda 1-2 business days beforehand and ask for input from the participants. They will feel more involved and focused on the business in hand. 
• Take Speed Driving Lessons
  A full-featured web conferencing product gives you more meeting support tools than offered by the average physical meeting room. Take a quick training session online - offered regularly and free of charge - to learn how to drive the most productive and enjoyable meeting.
• Master the Dashboard 
  Excel at moderating Speed Meetings by using the tools of the trade.
  • Use of visuals and text will more than double audience attention and retention. But keep them brief. Include one page for the agenda and one for each agenda item and use short, bulleted copy and charts and visuals where possible.
  • Whiteboard -Jot down key points so people can see their ideas appear before them and everyone can add to the content. Polling - A virtual "show of hands" can speed consensus and shorten a meeting, and has the advantage of being anonymous. So, to speed the group to a productive outcome, poll often - it's fast, easy and fun.
  • Look Who’s Talking – Use a conferencing service with integrated phone and web functions, which displays all attendees on screen and indicates who is talking over the phone line. A good moderator keeps tabs on who has spoken up and calls upon those who haven’t to keep all members engaged and contributing.
  • Side Chats – This function lets two or more attendees have a private chat in an “instant messaging” type fashion. The shorter, more interactive and visually supported you keep your main meeting, the more likely attendees will be to use this function only for quick, meeting-related side talk.

During

• Let the Meeting Begin! 
  Always start meetings on time. Latecomers will soon learn that integrated web meetings show when people ‘arrive’ as clearly as in a physical room.  
• Stop, Look and Listen
  • Stop all other workspace activities, including email and instant messaging, just as you would in a face to face meeting. Ask your conferencing provider for a Do Not Disturb sign for your office door. This signals that online meetings are defined as serious working time, needing quiet and concentration.
  • Look at your computer screen. Concentrate on the PowerPoint presentation, study the charts and participate in the whiteboarding, just as you would do in a physical meeting.
  • Listening is not waiting for your turn to talk. Carefully absorb and weigh what others say so that every comment builds upon what has come before. This alone can cut meeting time in half.
• Speed-Time the Speaker
  Normal speaking time is about two words per second.  So, a focused, 50-word, five-sentence contribution should take just under 30 seconds.  Ask participants to adhere to this time limit.
• Tune In 
  Without body language to rely on, online meetings rely on the voice to convey their thoughts and reactions with impact.

After

• Take Stock
  End the meeting on time, leaving five minutes to agree on the next steps, assignments and deadlines. End with a quick poll of participants, asking the following questions:
  • Could this Speed Meeting have been even speedier?
  • Did any parts of the meeting become boring? ·
  • Did everyone succeed at demonstrating proper Speed Teaming behavior (30-second speed-timing, building on others’ thoughts, giving full attention and good use of visuals, for example)?

Note the score and challenge the group members to each play their part in improving the next meeting. Ask people to send email suggestions for how to increase speed, productivity and enjoyment.

• Speed Meeting for Speed Teaming
  Use Speed Meetings to assist in the process of team building. The principles can be applied to streamlining collaboration and helping teams work smarter, more efficiently and achieving a better work/life balance.