Rethinking ‘the meeting’ for hybrid workforces
Rebuilding how we construct and participate in meetings will require both leveraging new technologies and reframing the outdated way we view attendance.
As the pandemic ushers in an era of hybrid or remote work environments, core workplace functions must be retooled for the new normal rather than retrofitting existing workflows. One of the most apparent examples of this need is the meeting. While companies emphatically replaced in-person meetings with virtual conferencing, the shift became a primary driver of what we colloquially refer to as “Zoom Fatigue,” or a feeling of exhaustion and anxiety from an abundance of video meetings.
Related: For those working remotely, meetings are shorter but the workday is longer
Many companies large and small are using different approaches to reduce Zoom Fatigue, from CitiGroup’s “Zoom-free Fridays” to mandating meetings only during certain work hours. These are excellent starts, but amount to duct-taping a problem versus rethinking meetings to completely adapt to virtual or hybrid workplaces. Rebuilding how we construct and participate in meetings will require both leveraging new technologies and reframing the outdated way we view attendance. Companies must address this issue as it could very well become the next frontier in delivering competitive benefits in the war for talent.
Introducing the “real-time optional” meeting
Much time and productivity are wasted because of myopic “autopilot” meeting structures with too many fly-on-the-wall meeting participants. In fact, research shows more than 35% of employees feel they wasted two to five hours in meetings each day with nothing to show for it. Moreover, Microsoft’s latest Work Trend Index found that people have doubled the time spent in meetings since the pandemic began leading to exhaustion and feeling overworked.
Instead of requesting someone “attend” or “not attend” a meeting, there must be a third option entirely: “real-time optional.” Restructure the meeting so invited employees that are not expected to verbally contribute to a meeting aren’t required to attend live, but can instead view a recorded version at a later date.
Only a couple short years ago, limiting meetings to necessary attendants and making it easy to watch asynchronously was more difficult, but the barriers and stigmas have been lifted during the pandemic. The first change was the normalization of recorded video meetings. Experiencing meetings that utilizes recording: a feature that had historically been used rarely and one that often created an uncomfortable setting, has now become commonplace. The second is the acceleration of certain digital technologies, mainly artificial intelligence, which can help improve how we engage with recorded video content, collaborate and extract the most important information.
Advances in AI, like natural language processing and emotion detection, have birthed video indexing and audio transcription services allowing every meeting to become a series of searchable, collaborative moments that can be skimmed by employees to engage with content only relevant to them and their needs. Achieving this outcome also creates a renewed demand for clearer meeting objectives, goals and talking points. Approaching every meeting like a panel session at a conference is a good benchmark. These types of best practices should be adhered to respect people’s time and also save money. It’s not just about limiting meetings, but also about changing the way people view and engage with meetings to be seen as an asset rather than a routine form of communication that is often wasteful.
Meeting recaps and topic bookmarking
Technology doesn’t only add value to recorded meetings, it can also improve continuity, flow, accountability and collaboration of the live meeting as well. This is especially important as partaking in too many unconstructive meetings is a key contributor to burnout, apathy and feeling unproductive. AI is capable of recapping previous meetings and sharing that information at the start of a new one to help synchronize team members on a topic over time, avoid confusion or misunderstanding, and hold others accountable for objectives. Simple tools such as shared video bookmarking, reactions, or searchable transcription for all meeting participants can also help with action items and alignment on next steps.
In considering the success of a virtual meeting, prioritizing flexibility to drive productivity may be a more effective prism than focusing on what is lost from in-person meetings. Generally speaking, while the greater business world sees innovation and advancement as a positive, some still cling to the outdated idea of a meeting rather than what could be moving forward.
Let’s not forget that before COVID-19 (when virtual conferencing transitioned from technology to buzzword), plenty of studies targeted the inefficiencies and wasted money associated with too many meetings – upwards of $399B estimated in the United States. These changes must be consciously implemented from the top-down within organizations and viewed as a key work culture differentiator. Unlocking the sweet spot for how we can create impactful and streamlined virtual meetings opens the doors for more productive, borderless companies.
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