The past month has seen unprecedented changes in the way the world does business. With entire nations going into lockdown, travelling for meetings and conferences has become impossible. So companies are increasingly turning to video conferencing software packages as a means to connect their employees and ensure that the work flow and decision making processes continue unabated.
A lot of companies have already been successfully using video conferencing over the past few years for conducting executive level meetings due to the numerous advantages it offers, especially in terms of savings related to travel time and associated expenses. Some of you’ll reading this may be a part of this section of the business community which is already successfully transitioning to video conferencing and as a result you’ll will be quite adept in the technical aspects and etiquette involved in using it. For those of you’ll who are just starting to find your way around using video conferencing, there are certain do’s and don’ts you’ll should be aware of. Let us take a look at a few of the guidelines you should follow to ensure your corporate video conferencing experience is fruitful and free of any embarrassing moments.
The 5 Guidelines
- Dress Right – One of the most common faux pas people find themselves making is with relation to how they dress for corporate meetings via video conferencing (or online meetings as they are commonly known). It is so natural to get used to lounging around in t-shirts and track pants while working from home. Unfortunately this casual dress code transfers onto online meetings, which comes across as being unprofessional.
The rule of thumb to follow while dressing for online meetings is to dress exactly the way you would if you are attending a face-to-face meeting either with your employees or clients. This holds especially true for client meetings where dressing the part not only comes across as more professional but also helps in keeping you more focused and invested in the meeting. Of course you can utilise the limited focus span of the camera and wear track pants (provided you won’t have to get up during the course of the meeting)! So there is always a bit of leeway you can enjoy when it comes to online meetings.
- Punctuality Matters – The rule of having everyone congregate on time in the meeting room for a face-to-face meeting applies to an online meeting also, for having people connect at different times will end up defeating the very purpose of the meeting. In fact it is advisable to set an organisation policy where attendees are required to login 5 minutes prior to the scheduled time to sort out any issues related to audio, visual or connectivity related issues.
- Location, Location, Location – Another important aspect of ensuring the professionalism of the meeting is maintained is to pick a spot in your house which comes as close as possible to a meeting room. The backdrop of a wall (preferably in subtle shades), with appropriate lighting where your face is not in the shadows would be the perfect place to conduct your online meetings. Other secluded (we will look at the reason why) areas of the house are also acceptable as long as the background is not garish and cluttered. Having a stack of laundry or toys in the background can really distract the attention of the other attendees.
- Ensure Privacy – Choosing a secluded area holds special significance because you don’t want to be constantly interrupted in the middle of an important client meeting with family members inadvertently appearing in the background while going about their chores (the numerous videos circulating online is proof of this)!
However having said this if your toddler does come up to you while you are online, don’t be embarrassed or tell them off, for this is a part and parcel of working from home and everyone understands that. You can probably introduce your little one if it is a meeting within your organisation or in the case of client meetings, smile and apologise then carry on with the conversation, your clients will definitely not hold it against you (in fact it will provide some light moments and probably help break the ice!).
- Make Use of the Mute Button – Make use of the muting facility available on the numerous video conferencing software packages to block out any background noise. Again you could set a policy an organisation policy where attendees unmute their microphone only when they have anything to contribute to the conversation. In this way the occurrence of unavoidable background noise like traffic sounds, phones ringing, people coughing, dogs barking etc are blocked out.
By keeping these basic guidelines in mind you can master the art of conducting meetings via video conferencing and enjoy the benefits offered by this amazing facility, which looks like it may become the preferred method of communication in the future due to the sheer convenience it offers!
