Have you ever been a part of a virtual team? Participated in an online meeting using technology? As virtual meetings between teams become more prevalent, new problems arise and new solutions are needed to combat these problems. One predicament that virtual teams can face is the monopolization of a conversation by one or two people on a team. Although it is difficult for everyone to have equal “air time” in meetings, it is important to find a means to allow everyone to contribute.
Here are 6 tips in order to remedy this problem and get all the members of the meeting contributing:
Tip #1: Have the team members introduce themselves at the start of the meeting
A simple step to take at the beginning of a meeting to help everyone get involved is a quick introduction of each individual. This provides an early opportunity for each team member to say a few words and become more comfortable in the meeting.
Tip #2: Establish basic etiquette for meetings
Another important step to take at the beginning of a meeting is to establish some meeting rules or etiquette such as a time limit for discussions and for each person’s response. Communicating these rules at the beginning of the meeting allows everyone to have the same understanding and creates a good flow to meetings with equal amount of “air time”.
Tip #3: Address members specifically to ask for input
During virtual meetings, the team leader needs to play a strong role to ensure all members have the opportunity to contribute. A simple way to do this is to, after any question or comment, to ask for a specific individual’s input. For example, “John, what do you think of Alex’s idea?” This will help get the quieter members involved and ensure all members are paying attention. We suggest that at the beginning of the meeting let your meeting attendees know that you will be calling on people by name for their input. This will help focus their attention on the meeting and encourage participation.
Tip #4: Have one-on-one meetings with the members of the meeting
As a team leader or manager, one-on-one meetings can also help promote equal participation and reduce the monopolization of meetings. These one-on-one conversations with each team member can help the team leader discuss issues that occur in team meetings in a safe environment. Whether the individual is monopolizing or not contributing enough to the meeting, it can be easily explained and dealt with in a clear and amicable way.
Tip #5: Designate a timekeeper in order to keep everything on a schedule
Keeping track of time is another way to reduce the monopolization of time in meetings. A common method is to designate a timekeeper to ensure team members stay within their time constraints. It is important to also acknowledge and validate the ideas contributed by the individual who monopolizes the meeting. Without proper recognition they may feel under-appreciated and this will hurt performance of the team as a whole.
Tip #6: Do not include people in the meeting if they are not relevant
The phrase “less is more” can be applied to virtual team meetings as well. Only include team members that are necessary for the meeting. Having a large number of individuals in a meeting will allow less people to express their ideas and create more congestion.
As the business world becomes more aware of the success of virtual meetings, the need for effective and productive virtual meetings is vital. Although some meetings can leave some team members silenced, with a few simple changes these meetings can become productive meetings with all members actively involved. Virtual meetings would allow the maximum potential of the members to be realized, changing the face of the business world as we know it.
