10 Best Practices for Hybrid Meetings

Hybrid meetings are quickly becoming a preferred method of conducting business events and conferences, as they offer the best of both worlds: the ability to interact face-to-face with some attendees while also engaging with others remotely. In today’s post-pandemic world, hybrid meetings provide remote workers and others who cannot attend in person to attend and participate in meetings. 

What Are Hybrid Meetings?

Hybrid meetings are designed to offer maximum flexibility, allowing participants to join from anywhere in the world using a range of devices, from desktops and laptops to smartphones and tablets. This allows attendees who may not be able to travel to the in-person event to still participate and engage in the meeting. Hybrid meetings offer a range of benefits, including increased flexibility and cost savings, but they also require careful planning and execution to ensure that both in-person and virtual attendees have a positive experience.

Events are likely a microcosm of meetings in general. For example, before the pandemic, 19% of events were hybrid, whereas nearly 60% are organized as hybrid events—with an onsite and virtual component. Hybrid work models are dramatically higher post-pandemic as well, and higher performing companies are embracing them at a higher rate. An Accenture study, for example, found that 63% of higher performing companies use hybrid work arrangements. 

What Are the Desired Outcomes of Hybrid Meetings?

Hybrid meetings have various positive outcomes, such as engagement of a mobile workforce, inclusion of individuals and companies unable to attend in person, and reduced costs. Hybrid meetings offer several positive outcomes, including improved accessibility and inclusivity for attendees who cannot travel due to geographical, financial, or other constraints. This type of meeting also allows for greater flexibility and convenience as participants can join from their office or home, saving time and expenses related to travel. 

Hybrid meetings also offer increased opportunities for networking and knowledge sharing, making it easier to connect with people from different industries and backgrounds. This leads to more diverse and innovative discussions, increasing creativity and problem-solving abilities. Finally, hybrid meetings can be environmentally sustainable as they reduce the carbon footprint of travel-related emissions. By utilizing technology, businesses can cut down on travel expenses while promoting eco-friendliness.

Challenges of Hybrid Meetings

Despite the above positive benefits of hybrid meetings, they come with challenges. One of the biggest challenges of hybrid meetings is ensuring that both in-person and virtual attendees have a positive experience. This requires careful planning and execution, including the use of high-quality audiovisual equipment and interactive elements to keep attendees engaged.

Another challenge is the potential for technical issues, such as poor connectivity or bandwidth issues. This can impact the virtual attendee experience and lead to frustration and disengagement. To avoid these issues, it's important to test all equipment and connections in advance, and to have dedicated technical support on hand to address any issues that arise.

10 Best Practices for Hybrid Meetings

For anyone scheduling a hybrid meeting, there are some best practices you should follow to ensure your meeting achieves optimal outcomes. Seeking out on-demand meeting room providers like Davinci Meeting Rooms is important. 

1. Define Your Meeting Objectives

Organizations and professionals must define meeting objectives before they start planning their hybrid meeting. Objectives vary across the board: lead generation, brand awareness, education and training, financial decisions, and sales planning, among many others. Once you have a clear understanding of your objectives, you can tailor your event to meet those goals.

2. Choose the Right Venue

When it comes to hybrid meetings, choosing the right venue is crucial. You'll need a venue that can accommodate both in-person and virtual attendees, with the right technology and infrastructure to support a seamless experience for everyone. Consider factors such as the venue's location, capacity, and technical capabilities, as well as the cost and availability of the space.

3. Invest in Quality AV Equipment

One of the biggest challenges of hybrid meetings is ensuring that all attendees can hear and see clearly. To avoid technical issues and ensure a high-quality experience for everyone, invest in high-quality audiovisual equipment, including microphones, speakers, and cameras. Make sure you test the equipment in advance to make sure everything is working properly.

4. Assign Roles Before a Meeting

Assigning meeting participant roles before hybrid meetings can help ensure that the meeting runs smoothly and all team members are engaged. By assigning roles such as note-taker, timekeeper, and facilitator, everyone knows what is expected of them and can prepare accordingly. This not only helps distribute the workload but also promotes collaboration and ensures that everyone has a chance to contribute to the conversation. Additionally, assigning roles can help keep virtual attendees engaged by giving them a specific task to focus on and making them feel like an integral part of the meeting. By assigning roles, hybrid meetings can be more productive and inclusive for all participants.

5. Create Engaging Content

Whether your event is in-person or virtual, content is critical. To keep attendees engaged, create engaging and relevant content that is tailored to your audience. You should also use a mix of formats, such as presentations, panel discussions, and Q&A sessions, to keep the event interesting and dynamic. Consider incorporating interactive elements, including polls and surveys, to encourage participation and feedback from attendees.

6. Prioritize Attendee Experience

When planning a hybrid meeting, organizers need to prioritize attendee experience. This means making sure that both in-person and virtual attendees feel included and engaged throughout the event. Organizers need to provide virtual attendees with access to the same content and networking opportunities as in-person attendees, and make sure there is a dedicated staff member available to answer any questions or address any concerns that attendees may have. In the case of Davinci Meeting Rooms, lobby greeters come with each location of coworking spaces, day offices, and meeting rooms.

7. Provide Follow-Up Materials

After the meeting is over, provide attendees with follow-up materials, such as meeting minutes and list of action items, recordings of presentations and panel discussions, as well as any relevant handouts or materials. This allows attendees to revisit the content and continue learning and engaging with your brand.

8. Codify Processes and Procedures During Meeting

During a hybrid meeting, there are several best practices to ensure that all participants are engaged and the meeting runs smoothly. First, it is critical to introduce all participants, including their name and location, and to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for in-person and virtual attendees. Second, using visuals such as slides or videos can enhance the presentation and engage participants, especially virtual attendees who may be more easily distracted. Finally, encouraging participation from all participants by asking questions, seeking feedback, and allowing time for discussion can lead to a more productive and collaborative meeting.

9. Keep Virtual Attendees Engaged

One of the key challenges of hybrid meetings is keeping virtual attendees engaged. To overcome this, it's important to leverage technology to the fullest extent. While it may have been possible in the past to ask participants to put away their devices during meetings, our reliance on technology has made this impractical today. However, research shows that having video and audio on during meetings helps keep participants engaged and promotes a more natural flow of conversation.

To keep virtual attendees engaged, it's important to encourage them to keep their video and audio on whenever possible. This creates a more inclusive environment and helps remote team members feel like they are part of the conversation. Using video conferencing tools for virtual backgrounds, screen sharing, and interactive features can help keep attendees engaged and focused on the discussion.

Another way to keep virtual attendees engaged is to assign roles or tasks during the meeting. For example, you could ask someone to take notes, someone else to monitor the chat for questions, and another person to facilitate discussion. This not only keeps virtual attendees engaged but also helps distribute the workload and promote collaboration among team members.

It also is important to ensure that virtual attendees have equal opportunities to contribute to the conversation. This can be achieved by using tools that allow participants to raise their hand or use chat to ask questions or provide feedback. Additionally, the meeting facilitator should make a conscious effort to seek input from remote team members and ensure that their contributions are acknowledged and valued.

10. Collect Post-meeting Feedback

After a hybrid meeting concludes, it is important to take a moment to evaluate its success and identify areas for improvement. One way to do this is by asking for employee feedback and suggestions. This provides a valuable opportunity to gain insights into what worked well and what could be improved in your new meeting structure.

By gathering anonymous feedback from meeting attendees, organizations can identify challenges and make necessary changes to ensure the success of future meetings. Implementing feedback only helps improve meeting efficiency but also shows that you value their input and are committed to their success. Further, as adaption to hybrid work continues to maturate, organizations need to remain focused on developing long-term organizational practices that work for your team. By seeking feedback and making improvements, organizations can ensure that their hybrid meetings are productive, engaging, and successful in the long run.

Engage the Right On-demand Meeting Room Provider

Hybrid meetings are rapidly becoming the preferred mode of conducting business events and conferences, as they offer the flexibility of remote participation. Hybrid meetings offer several benefits, such as increased flexibility and cost savings, improved accessibility and inclusivity for attendees who cannot travel due to geographical, financial, or other constraints. They also reduce the carbon footprint of travel-related emissions. 

Organizations need to engage with on-demand meeting room providers like Davinci Meeting Rooms that understand hybrid meeting requirements and provide them with the technologies and services to execute hybrid meetings successfully. Davinci Meeting Rooms come with high-quality audiovisual equipment and interactive elements to keep attendees engaged is crucial to guarantee a seamless and productive experience for everyone involved. They also include a lobby greeter, catering, and business services like faxing, photocopying, and more.