The complete guide to synchronous meeting and remote communications
Before the switch into working remotely I had joined the team working remotely for the bank online. It was a constant experiment to use different types of remote meetings that were mixed, and most of them ran well.
However, it's not simple to improve efficiency or ensure effective communication during remote meetings. Or, to decide what type of remote meeting should be held at all.
This post (based upon my studies and personal knowledge) will assist you in knowing the various types of meetings that could be remotely held and the ways you can effectively conduct them along with some helpful strategies and suggestions for choosing the right tools for this task. It will also provide the most common etiquette for conducting virtual meetings.
A variety of different remote meeting
You may not have give an idea much thought until this point, but there's numerous remote meeting options (and most likely, you're acquainted of the idea). With the development of technology in this field, can now communicate with remote workers along with others in the group through one of the most common methods or the mixture of both!
Teleconferencing
In all of the types of remote meetings that we'll be discussing Teleconferencing may be the most well-tested and tried method. Because it's a phone call only using audio and the technology employed for teleconferencing is simpler and more sophisticated than other alternatives on the table.
The hosts will be "on the telephone" during the time of the conference and, then all others in the group can dial the conference using a specific phone number. This type of conference is ideal for smaller groups of participants who are unable to communicate with one another may cause confusion when several participants are talking simultaneously.
Video conferencing
After the spread of a particular epidemic, in the year 2020, videoconferencing was an integral part of the work environment due to features like Zoom meetings and Microsoft Teams.
Video conferences (conferences) are similar in model to teleconferencing in that hosts organize an online conference in which participants join by dialing a link or phone number. They are distinct in that they allow participants to to see each other's faces as well as use software that can make the conference more effective and entertaining.
Web conferencing
The third and most popular kind of virtual meeting is the internet-based one. It's easy to confuse this kind of gathering as video conferencing, but there's a difference. Web conference are generally used to host virtual events (like an all-hands gathering) and also online training or project collaboration with a touch of practicability.
It's a fantastic choice for large events as well as large business gatherings. It is possible to arrange it similar to a videoconference or require pre-registration or ticketed attendance.
To add a layer of different formats for meetings There is the possibility to sync meetings' as well as "async" the meetings.
What exactly is an Asynchronous Conference?
Meetings that are based on asynch can be a kind of meeting that's not time and do not typically require immediate responses.
Synchronous communication vs asynchronous communication
While working at the institution I mentioned earlier They always tried very extremely hard to ensure that workers who were remote had a sense of security and were part of the process of making decisions and updates of information, status and check-ins as well as team-building activities. For this purpose we had to make use of Asynchronous as well as Synchronous gatherings. Both has their advantages and disadvantages.
| Meetings that are connected | The benefits of synchronous meetings |
|---|---|
| Rapid feedback from the latest ideas | We can accommodate all times of the day. |
| Real-time collaboration | It could be more inclusive |
| Similar to meetings in person | Time savings |
The advantages of meeting synchronously:
- It's the nearest experience to an in-person meet.
- Instant feedback regarding issues or discussions.
- Live communication can allow you the ideas bounce off one another faster.
The down side:
- It is common to meet those who tend to be timid or insecure, and aren't able to consider themselves member of the community.
- In contrast, when everybody is discussing something, the discussion could quickly become chaos with participants arguing about one others.
- It's possible to experience technology issues or slowdowns in connectivity to the internet at this time the most.
The benefits of the synchronous conference:
- There's no obligation to speak all at once. Everyone is entitled to the opportunity to speak and have their voices heard.
- It wasn't necessary to arrange suitable time slots for gatherings that were global in scope or involving teams working night shifts (something my former workplace profited tremendously from).
The negative side
- Based on Buffer's state of remote Work report that 20% of those who participated reported feeling lonely as their biggest significant issue (which I'm capable of confirming) Sync meetings provide an opportunity for connecting to other individuals, therefore moving to asynchronous messages could cause a feeling of being isolated.
- If fast responses aren't needed, team members might not be able to respond or act in any way.
- The most frequent issue in remote work, according to Statista or can also be used for meetings that sync (since they are able to be moved in and out throughout the period of the) is that it's not possible unplug.
In the event you take into consideration all of the pros and cons There's no question it's all about choosing the right option for your particular event rather than selecting one of the two extreme. At the end of the day, I'll be focusing more on meetings which use async technology from here on out (since they're less recognized).
How do you organize a successful online conference
It's obvious what kinds of gatherings can be conducted remotely along with various choices of how they can be run But how can you manage an online conference? It's an issue for those who are accustomed to meeting in person.
As I have no personally-experienced experience in running meetings (only participating in meetings) I asked handful of experts, including a the former Project Manager, who later became freelance writer Laura Bosco, what they thought made for efficient and productive asynchronous meetings, here's her response:
"--the character and the context of messages sent async was an important aspect of my own experiences, and is still a major element in my interactions my clients.
Context: Certain kinds of feedback, announcements and even requests can be sensitive or easy to interpret incorrectly. For these situations, video is more efficient than text since everyone else is able to listen to your voice, and be able see your face. It reduces the risk of losing contact and could cause harm to the relationships you have.
Additionally, you are able to modify text. Bold, bullets, headers or italics when giving important requests...these do not devalue those who receive the message. They assist them in digesting messages . "
Laura does not stand on her own in suggesting that providing context is the best way to use async messaging. Michael Steele, CEO of Flywheel Digital (a technology driven, remote-first marketing firm) and a frequent user of Notion, Google Docs, and Slack to create their technology stack. The CEO also stated:
"A important aspect in getting the most out of asynchronous communications, for clients and employees can be a capability to communicate the situation. Everyone involved must be aware of the reason for communication and the most recent happenings or newsworthy, and have access to all important documents, including the marketing strategy, personas and performance reports.
In asynchronous communication, mistakes are common and the time being spent fixing them or making adjustments which could easily been made without the proper data available prior to the initial. "
Concerning the actual aspect of managing meetings, creator of ScrapingBee (a 100% remote-based company) Kevin Sahin says that aside from having extremely brief, instantaneous meetings using memos written by using Notion and Slack They also use Slack:
"Slack is used asynchronously, it utilizes Slack status to know whether our fellow worker is in contact or not. When we write an email using Slack and send it to Slack, we're not expected to receive immediately a response. It's just not the case. It is the general rule to select the most suitable program for your task."
For a successful asynchronous conference, one must ensure that you're employing the appropriate tools and supplying context, and that your problems are done in a manner that makes it simple and manageable.
9 helpful tips to plan and implement the ideal remote conference
If your meeting via remote is either non-synchronous or synchronous but there are few generally applicable tips to make your meeting more efficient. These tips are derived from new research and others are derived from personal experiences. These will be discussed before as well as following arrangements for those who prefer live meetings, but they are based on ideas could be used to help facilitate meetings which take place using asynchronous modes.
HTML0 in advance of this meeting
- Make sure only those with the greatest value are accepted. If you overcrowd the virtual meeting, such as online video conferences or Slack channel, information will likely disappear and fewer people will actually participate.
- Make a clear agenda. You can set agendas which are at a live or async meeting in any application you prefer and, like I did while working in the bank, We created Notion templates that used fill-in fields which reflected the issues we had to deal with, along with actions points.
- meets standards. Laura also mentioned one of the strategies she likes to use is to create and then distribute "how to work with myself" document ( like this one) to help define norms and expectations in meetings and different communication strategies.
During the conference:
- Begin and end simultaneously. This point is especially relevant for events which are located far away. There's nothing more frustrating than showing up to an event early or being late. The time of the people attending is crucial. The same is true of meeting that are scheduled in asynchronous manner. If you fail to reply promptly and in a timely manner, details could go unnoticed or deadlines could be delayed.
- Make it short. Similar to the above point, there's not anything wrong with having an hour-long live-streamed meeting. You can accomplish your goals by making use of async communication or shorter sessions. If you're using an async technique, be sure not to type long texts or slow pausing for long periods of time on video recordings.
- It's crucial to ensure that every person will be recognized or heard. As I mentioned earlier, not everyone are born with the personality which allows them to voice their opinions in live conversations but it's not always possible for those with no personality to speak up. If you are a manager or hosts, it's important to be vigilant about the involvement of participants.
After the event:
- You can get feedback from the guests. If you're experimenting using different kinds of gatherings, you must gather feedback from people who attended to find out what's working with regards to the method of communication and the manner of communications. Certain applications are more efficient when compared to other applications, based on the type of person.
- Provide a way to communicate with subsequent follow-ups. Generally speaking, it's recommended to create a process to communicate or an online space where participants can discuss particular aspects of the conference or updates regarding actions without causing chaos in the meeting.
If you're wondering now, "those tips are all wonderful and all however, what's the issue with software? " The next piece will give the solution to the question.
Software for remote meeting that allows meetings remotely
One of the primary factors to consider when conducting remotely-based meetings is making sure you're using the right technology first. In the case of meetings that are synchronous, the most used video conferencing software such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams/Skype, along with Google Meet do the trick pretty perfectly. But, it's not the same with regard to meetings which are not synchronous.
The most popular programs for asynchronous meetings (which can also be generally used to manage projects) The ones that were previously mentioned include:
- Slack
- Trello
- Google Docs
- Asana
- Notion
- Basecamp
- If you're a team of programmers, Gitlab or Github are fantastic alternatives.
Finding the right tool to host your virtual meetings
Most of the tools to collaborate I've included above include text or messaging, and some can also mix text, images or video. Also like Laura mentioned previously contextualization and context are important.
For simple project updates
If you're in search of a method to inform people about what the current status of the project, tools like Trello, Asana, and Notion are excellent to do the task. For me, for instance, I (and my previous work colleagues) make use of Notion boards to provide information on the current state of projects as well as the ability to go deeper to read comments.
You can do a similar board-style organization using each of the above mentioned apps.
For continuous updates
If your team or project requires a simple way to reach, but isn't requiring weekly meetings The majority of choices listed are suitable. Basecamp particularly is great but Slack is the best choice for this kind of task.
When I was at the workplace in which I was employed, every team had their own Slack channel where they could participate in most of the time synchronous stand-ups. They also served in addition to channels for corporate use, which could allow conversations that were more general. In reality, I don't have access to the particular Slack workspace. However, I do have access to some Slack workspaces I make use of:
to offer more complicated or delicate information
Similar to what Laura mentioned, specific types of information require a more human component. It's not a wise choice to share information that's unclear or buried amid the chaos of posts and articles. To avoid the chance of being misinterpreted, employ videos. It is possible to count on us for assistance.
Additionally, as an added bonus you will be able to check who's watched the videos as well as take part in comments.
It's sometimes hard to determine what program or method to employ because each team functions in its own method, and it's worthwhile experimenting in the beginning and being ready to alter your decision if something isn't working out for you.
The Remote Playbook: Etiquette for conducting virtual meetings
The last topic that we'll cover in this post is proper etiquette in meetings. A few of the ideas will be familiar from what we've previously covered. it's essential to understand precisely the typical ways of conducting meetings at an inaccessible location as.
When we've had synchronous meetings, we've been on a lot of Zoom calls in order to be aware of the basic principles (and at times, we've made an error in not following the rules):
- Be sure to not be talking on mute during the time you're speaking.
- Sit in a calm area to allow guests to focus on you (not the washing machine in operation).
- Take a look at the features you're interested in before deciding on a plan to make sure you're not trying to determine the right solution in the middle of the discussion.
It is possible that the situation will be different in relation to meetings which are synchronous, as well as how working depending on the mode of communication used or method of communication.
to channels that utilize text (e.g. Notion, Slack etc.)
- Make sure you're posting relevant content to the appropriate channel, thread, or page (or in the event that you're discussing some important issue, make sure you provide the URL to that channel or web page).
- Don't treat it like it's a mail. By that I mean accepting a message or even a task rather than putting messages into the inbox of your email (in Slack, it's possible to sign a message by using an emoticon! ).
- Take note that each person is living their lives in their own way. If you are using synchronous communication It's very simple to overlook the fact that you are not the only person at the same time as you. Determine if someone is in the area before sending the email.
Video calls which are synchronous
- Make sure your microphone and camera are sufficient for the audience to understand the subject matter you're talking about.
- Take a few minutes to write down a short message you'd love to pass on to the world -nobody is looking to binge watch a whole film without acquiring anything new.
They do not constitute a collection of general rules. It is possible that you are in a position to have the specific rules for communicating to one another and which tools to utilize. In this way, you will bear these while you figure out how you can apply to them, or even create these guidelines.
Start off with a positive beginning with an online-based conference
In the vast majority of relationships within our daily lives, effective communication is the key to an efficient day-to-day business that does not have to be done in the present.
Remote meetings that are synchronous will help you in having more productive conversations, involve members of the group in a larger amount and contribute to the development of a culture of transparency (since discussions that occur synchronously conducted are typically documented). If you're thinking of switching to an asynchronous procedure, try out a variety of options to figure out which will work best for you.
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