Virtual meetings are vastly different from their real-world cousins. To successfully lead these meetings, you need to truly understand the medium and its benefits and challenges. Then you need to practice the skills necessary to facilitate virtual meetings and be the role model for how these meets are led.
Many leaders haven’t adopted the skills or adapted to this very different forum for conducting business. Maybe that’s because we were all thrown into virtual meetings at the flip of a switch when the pandemic hit. Or maybe it’s because we don’t take these meetings as seriously. Or maybe we’re technophobic. No matter the reason, an effective leader must master the art of digital gatherings because:
They’re personal brand builders or busters. Meetings are still the most important place for sharing your brilliance and influencing stakeholders. Unlike their face-to-face predecessors, virtual meetings are even more highly visible venues for vaunting (humbly) and demonstrating your expertise. That small screen presents a focused opportunity for showcasing your leadership savvy and growing your personal brand with your team and your clients.
Your people need you to be really, really good at this. The members of your team look to you for guidance and coaching. They seek to model the behaviors you are great at. When your meeting facilitation stands out—in a good way—they take note and apply what they learn from you to the meetings they lead and participate in. Your people want you to improve your skills, too. Over half of employees (54%) think their boss needs to get better at facilitating discussions in meetings.
They can increase productivity and engagement. Virtual meetings can be either time sinks or productivity enhancers depending on how they’re managed. When done right, meetings can be fruitful both in moving projects forward and in keeping all relevant team members apprised of what’s going on. And they can help expand team connection and cohesion, two vital elements that are waning because of reduced human interaction in hybrid/virtual environments. A leader who is skilled at facilitating virtual meetings will be able to create a collaborative and inclusive environment for all participants, drawing in key players who might not even be in the same time zone.
They keep team members engaged. It can be challenging to maintain a high level of team engagement and focus during a virtual meeting, especially if your people are working remotely. A skilled leader will be able to keep the meeting interactive and engaging, encouraging participation from all attendees.
So what can you do that will help you shine online?
- Take a crash course. There are many learning programs that can help make you a virtual video meeting virtuoso, and many of them are on video so they will easily fit into your busy schedule.
- Get to know your video meeting platform and all its features and capabilities. The more you understand the functionality, the more fun your audience will have because you’ll be able to refine the experience for everyone.
- Model the behaviors you’ve admired as a participant. Pay attention to the meetings you attend and adopt the behaviors you think are interesting and effective. Incorporating just a few small tweaks to your presentations can make the difference between a snooze fest and an energy blast.
- Completely rethink virtual meetings. There is an opportunity to truly shine when you become the video meeting disrupter. Think about what would make you mesmerized in a meeting that takes place online and incorporate some of those elements into your next meeting. In addition, think about the virtual meeting elements that make you want to scream and find ways to replace or eliminate them.
Meetings have always been a powerful way to build relationships and grow your personal brand. The newest form of virtual meetings gives you a prime opportunity to stand out and demonstrate that you truly are an innovative leader.
William Arruda is a keynote speaker, co-founder of CareerBlast.TV and creator of the 360Reach personal brand feedback survey which allows you to get the real scoop about your professional reputation from those who know you.
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