6 Tips to Increase Team Participation Virtual Project Meeting

Adapting to the New Normal: 6 Tips to Increase Team Participation in a Virtual Meeting

Berly Miller
October 7th, 2022
Project Management
No Comments

With remote offices becoming the new normal, all teams must master how to run a virtual successful virtual project meeting.

Remote meetings rely on various project management technologies that allow teams to interact virtually.

Many PMs face difficulties running traditional one-on-one meetings, and this trouble almost doubles in a virtual setting where everyone is away.

Many times, its success depends on multiple factors, including;

Your tech’s capabilities
Team preparedness and willingness to participate
Your general virtual meeting strategy
Internet connection, which can make or break remote meetings.
The general attitude toward the meeting

Beyond these basics, a competent manager should nurture the perfect virtual meeting environment to encourage team participation.

Even in-house teams can reap the full benefits of video conferences in cases where meeting virtually is more practical than bringing everyone together.

Sadly still, most PMs underrate remote meetings and hardly ever use the strategy.

What is a Virtual Meeting?

A virtual project meeting is a pre-planned conference held over video-chatting technologies like Zoom, and members attend remotely (from whichever location). These sessions play the same roles as face-to-face meetings in in-house teams.

Members are informed of the meeting’s date, time, venue (in this case, a video-conference app or software), and agenda upfront to enhance preparedness.

Most of these tools will need a strong internet connection to enable seamless video interaction and must be catered for early.

Like in one-on-one sessions, the manager runs the meeting while members take turns contributing to the agenda.

Top 6 Reasons a Virtual Project Meeting May Fail

As hinted earlier, a remote meeting’s success depends on multiple factors that must be dealt with upfront to ensure things run as planned.

Much group preparation and personal responsibility go into hosting and attending a remote meeting; no wonder disorderly teams face challenges.

A virtual meeting is said to be successful if all the team members attend, participate actively and contribute positively to the agenda.

Attendance, active participation, and solutions (or results) are the three most important success determinants.

So why would a virtual project meeting fail to achieve its purpose?

Each member is attending from a different location, which interferes with concentration and active participation in meetings;
Without proper guidance, a remote conference can turn chaotic
Meeting planners setting aside insufficient resources to arrange meetings beforehand and fail to do proper follow-ups.
An unhealthy meeting environment can affect participation as members are reluctant to express their opinion—however, these problems normally begin from deep within the organization; remote meetings only provide oppressed teams the perfect place to hide and hush.
Technical malfunctions can act as a barrier to passing your message on to other participants;
The lack of engaging interactions through these platforms hinders attendees from mingling and discussing as they would in a regular meetings.

With that in mind, how can managers trigger interaction and participation through virtual meetings?

How to Increase Participation in Your Virtual Meetings?

Members are informed of the meeting’s date, time, venue (in this case, a video-conference app or software), and agenda upfront to enhance preparedness.

Still, you must be ready for unexpected challenges. For instance, it is not easy to read cues on video. Or have the attention of all attendees all throughout the meeting.

Here are new tactics to try in your next virtual meeting.

Share the Agenda & Meeting Plan Upfront

Set things ready beforehand. Allow yourself ample to forward the agenda to team members. Include main points to discuss, provide login info, and all the important technical guidelines.

Be clear about your expectations during the meeting. What is the gathering all about?

As a project manager, you must make sure the team remains relevant throughout the meeting. Send everyone these set of guidelines and stress that everyone should adhere to them:

Keep away all potential sources of disturbance before the session commences.
Warn against side convos or multitasking as the meeting goes on (both online and offline).
Active participation is mandatory
Keep off the “mute” feature.

The manager should set the pace of the virtual meeting as he does offline. Be precise but touch on points by sticking to the point.

Make the gathering fun and thought-provoking by recognizing and appreciating team contribution and performance.

Online meetings must not be mind-numbing just because you are in separate settings. Create a relaxed environment so that ideas can flow in without fear.

You can add more expectations as you wish. Just make sure to inform members when you do.

Get Personal to ensure everyone participates

Are the team members actively contributing to the conversation? The project manager must go the extra mile to heat a virtual project meeting.

Get slightly personal:

Direct questions to specific members of the team
Mention people by their names and occasionally check-in
Look out for low participants and engage them by seeking their input on the relevant topic.
Alternate vocal and visual interferences to individuals or groups to keep up energy levels.

Allocate roles to team members, tasks such as note-taking, tracking time, and arbitration. This will streamline the flow of communication between you and your team.

It is also useful to rotate these roles to ensure that the participants stay focused and driven.

Accept when Attendees Interrupt

Yes, please do. Attendees have very short attention spans in virtual meetings because people in separate settings are easily disrupted.

Allowing team members to interrupt may not work for face-to-face gatherings because they lead to lengthy disagreements. But they could trigger involvement in remote meetings.

Pre-think of the ideas to discuss so you don’t waste time wandering off the agenda. The main challenge of hosting a virtual meeting is to ensure engagement and involvement.

So, you’re looking for a balanced flow of ideas from one person to the other. Pause from time to time, asking queries, and letting the group give suggestions through verbal exchanges.

However, virtual meetings do not provide the comfort of studying verbal cues and non-verbal responses. For you to rise above this obstacle, employ video conferencing tools, or you can request verbal feedback.

Once in a while, it is essential to check if you share the same thoughts with the team members. Check on them, conduct progress checks, or set checkpoints on instances.

Double-check your Connectivity

No matter how tech-savvy you are, you may still be prone to technical errors. Don’t wait for the meeting date; run thorough connectivity tests in advance.

Specify the software a week before to ensure everyone is ready. Have a specialist around to assist when you need help.

It’s wise to select a conferencing tool that meets all your virtual project meeting needs and fits all your participants.

Conduct short Q & A in between the Session

At the end of a meeting, Q & A is rarely as interactive as it should be due to exhaustion. Having to think of questions and time limitations are a few reasons for this low response.

Ask questions, and engage the team members in occasional Q and A breaks. This will keep them lively and cooperative.

Do a follow-up

You must review the meeting minutes and discuss them with the team. Explain to the members that they’re responsible for their roles.

Show team players how focused you are as a project manager by setting up the next meeting’s details.

Accountability brings a sense of trust and provides a better understanding of the project’s objectives.

Seek criticism from team members to know your weaknesses and strengths. Improve your weaknesses and keep up with your strong points. This allows you to assess the progress and results of the project.

Wrapping Up

Members are informed of the meeting’s date, time, venue, and agenda upfront to enhance preparedness.

A virtual meeting is said to be successful if all the team members attend, participate actively and contribute positively to the agenda.

Attendance, active participation and solutions (or results) are three most important success determinants.

Even in-house teams can reap the full benefits of video conferences in cases where meeting virtually is more practical than bringing everyone together. Sadly still, most PMs underrate remote meetings and hardly ever use the strategy.

Follow the above steps to organize an effective remote team meeting.

Blog