Getting meetings right can make or break your business.

Between 2020 and 2022, the proportion of employees spending a third of their week or more in remote video meetings rose from 48% to 77%. New figures for 2023 suggest 83% of employees now fall into this category.

If they were spending the time productively, it wouldn’t be a problem. But unfortunately, most companies aren’t running effective remote meetings. Leaders know that conversations can get off track, and people can waste time.

Luckily, this guide can help. Here, we provide you with practical tips for conducting efficient hybrid meetings. The goal is for employees and workers to spend less time chatting and more time on valuable, productive tasks that help your business achieve its goals.

Tips for Running Hybrid Meetings

Establish Clear Meeting Objectives

It sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many meetings don’t have a clear goal or objective. Without them, hybrid meetings can lack focus and direction, leading to unproductive discussions. Participants can easily get off track, discussing topics off the agenda. Establishing clear meeting objectives reduces that risk as everyone understands what the purpose of the meeting is.

Actionable tips: 

  • Communicate the purpose of the meeting and desired outcome in the meeting invite. State what you want to achieve during the discussion and the role of each participant in getting there.
  • Ensure the agenda aligns with individual employees. Don’t invite non-contributors to the meeting or people who cannot benefit directly.
  • Start the meeting by emphasising the objectives and agenda. Ensure the meeting aligns with the roles and goals of the individuals present.

Set Expectations For Remote And In-Person Attendees

Different teams will have developed a different set of practices and behaviours for meetings. Not all of them are good ones. Setting a standardised set of expectations for remote and in-person attendees can go a long way towards helping to run the meeting. It can help to manage everything from people talking over people to making sure you are actively involving every member of the meeting.

Actionable tips: 

  • Create meeting guidelines and etiquette for all hybrid meetings. Make sure in-person and online attendees understand the behaviours that are outlined in it.
  • Start meetings by ensuring all parties can hear each other without audio issues. Online participants should be able to listen to the voices of all in-person attendees, regardless of location.
  • Set a rule for cameras on. If people in the room can see each other, people outside of the room need to be seen.
  • Create visual cues for when people want to talk. Make these cues both applicable for online and in-person attendees.
  • Prevent cross-talk within the meetings. Don’t let it feel like separate conversations are being had in the room.
  • Have someone responsible for monitoring the chat. Have someone constantly on top of the chat in case any issues arise or questions are popped in there,

Utilise Collaboration Tools For Seamless Engagement

Another way to run effective hybrid meetings is to utilise collaboration tools for seamless engagement. Companies need these to overcome problems associated with sharing information directly in the meeting room and over video calls. Multiple issues can crop up, from people in the room being unable to see the video feeds of online participants to a lack of camera coverage.

Collaboration tools solve these problems by providing setups that work on a practical level. Systems provide features enabling participants to communicate effectively, regardless of location.

Actionable tips: 

  • Find reliable collaboration platforms that enable real-time document sharing, virtual whiteboards, and chat features. These services let meeting participants communicate more effectively, regardless of location.
  • Use tech tools to encourage remote and in-person participants to contribute ideas and feedback. Hybrid collaboration is more likely to occur when participants can more effectively share their ideas through multiple formats.
  • Ensure all parties share documents, websites, and images directly in the meeting chat, in person or remotely. Ensure everyone can participate.

Optimise Audio and Visual Quality

Firms should also optimise audio and visual quality. Time lags can make it challenging for remote participants to anticipate when gaps will occur for them to contribute. High latencies can make them feel awkward and unwilling to speak, even when they have something of value to say.

Likewise, poor video quality makes observing body language and taking visual cues challenging. Online participants can’t see what’s happening in the meeting room, and vice versa, leading to confusion, misunderstandings and, in some cases, arguments.

Finally, the poor audio quality of default systems can make it hard for participants to follow along. Attendees can miss important context or incorrectly hear words and phrases.

Fortunately, modern tools and approaches optimising audio and visual quality can solve these issues. Available solutions can improve participants’ ability to see and hear each other tremendously.

Actionable tips: 

  • Test audio and video settings before each meeting. Ensure you note the system settings once you find a combination that works.
  • Invest in high-quality audio equipment and encourage participants to use headsets or earphones to reduce background noise. Companies should enshrine the latter in their policies, providing attendees with equipment where necessary.
  • Leverage the power of video to improve the feeling of personal connection and engagement, ensuring everyone’s face is visible. People who can see each other are more likely to experience rapport and generate creative back-and-forth discussions.
  • Appoint someone in the meeting to monitor chat for messages concerning poor audio or video quality. Figures suggest 58% of employees view technical issues as a key challenge of online meetings. Fortunately, quick adjustments can solve troubleshooting issues, allowing each participant to make the most of the time.
  • Ensure the person running the meeting creates space on each agenda point for feedback from remote attendees. Online participants should have ample opportunity to comment, even on an intractable time lag.

Share Meeting Materials In Advance

Another powerful tactic for making meetings more effective is to share relevant materials in advance. Many firms get into trouble when they fail to provide remote participants with the content they need to contribute meaningfully. Not knowing the meeting’s agenda or objectives means they can’t plan what they want to say, forcing them to think on the spot (which may rob them of the time they need to form their ideas fully).

Sharing meeting materials in advance solves this issue. It gives employees time to think about how they can most effectively contribute to the meeting and drive the agenda forward. With proper preparation, individuals know what they should do and where they stand.

Actionable tips: 

  • Share all relevant materials in advance, including agendas, presentations, and documents. Provide these on a shared drive via the cloud, and send email reminders, informing attendees that the information is available.
  • Ask participants to attend the meeting prepared with questions or structured input. Prioritise the efficient use of meeting time and enable all relevant parties to make valuable contributions.

Framework For Running Effective Hybrid Meetings

The previous section listed various tips for running effective hybrid meetings covering common problems, solutions, and actionable advice.

This section puts it all together. We present a framework for effective hybrid meetings, running through everything you need to do, from pre-meeting preparation to post-meeting follow-up.

1. Pre-Meeting Preparation

Pre-meeting preparation includes all the activities required to make the meeting successful, except technical setup. The goal is to ensure the conversation has every chance of succeeding once it gets underway.

Start by setting clear objectives by email or chat in advance. Make these simple and actionable, sharing them with all participants in good time. Don’t send them five minutes before the meeting gets underway, and expect participants to digest them fully.

Next, create an agenda aligned with your objectives. Structure the meeting so the conversation and contributions can lead to resolutions.

Also, share materials and resources in advance. Give time for participants to run through them and incorporate them into their meeting plan.

Finally, communicate your expectations and guidelines to participants, as discussed previously. Ensure they understand how to conduct themselves in meetings and the standards you expect.

2. Technical Setup

The next step is to perform the technical setup. This process ensures everyone in the meeting can see and hear everyone else. Remote workers should have a full view of your in-office team and vice versa.

Correct setup may require some trial runs. Many firms run dress rehearsals involving multiple participants to ensure their systems work adequately. These usually take a few minutes to detect and resolve problems, preparing you for live meetings.

Naturally, the complexity of your technical setup depends on the tools you use. Arranging multiple cameras and microphones and leveraging video conferencing software can be challenging. Therefore, you may require technical assistance from a professional.

3. Running The Meeting

The third step is to run the meeting. Meeting leaders should facilitate active participation and engagement from all participants to ensure optimal time use. (Silent observers are rarely suitable for meetings, but it can happen).

At the end of each agenda point, stop and wait for remote attendees to give feedback. Waiting a few seconds for them to speak is a good policy, even if it feels a little awkward.

Throughout the meeting, have someone monitor the chat for audio-visual issues and software glitches. Instruct them to correct problems quickly and, if possible, without interrupting the conversation.

Set up separate rooms or chats for internal off-topic conversations. Interrupt and stop participants who don’t address everyone and instruct them to break into a smaller group later.

If your team requires ad-hoc image and document sharing, get them to do it in the chat. Don’t interrupt the conversational flow.

Finally, finish by listing actions for people to take and the next steps. Ensure every meeting generates value-creating activities. Assign responsibility to each person in the room and online, and double-check they understand their instructions. Have one leader or manager make the final call on how people should proceed.

4. Post-Meeting Follow-Up

Lastly, you need to follow up after the meeting to consolidate learning and confirm the next steps attendees should take. Start by sending an email recapping meeting outcomes and action items promptly. Remind participants of what was said and what they need to do next.

Also, provide meeting summaries to all participants. Give them quick bullet points covering discussion topics, outcomes, conclusions, and challenges. Participants should have opportunities to ask additional questions or leave feedback to improve future conversations.

If you can’t get valuable feedback, try hopping on calls with individual participants and asking them how the meeting went for them. Attendees will often identify potential improvements and give you ideas for the next round.

Conclusion

Running effective hybrid meetings requires careful planning, clear communication, and appropriate use of relevant technology. It sounds complicated, but any business can do it with the right system in place.

By implementing the framework outlined above and following the tips in the first section, your firm can enhance collaboration, engagement, and productivity in remote or hybrid teams, helping everyone work together more effectively. Participants feel better equipped to share knowledge, contribute meaningfully, and work towards a common goal.