Encouraging More Participation in Virtual Meetings

Virtual meetings are now the norm—to the point that the term “Zoom fatigue” has entered the lexicon. While some employees find themselves right at home in these digital conference rooms and many others can tolerate them, there’s a significant subset of team members who are actively uncomfortable with this type of collaboration. They may feel uneasy, they might shut off their camera, or they might not feel like they can or have anything to add to the conversation. If you have team members like this, there are some ways you can alter the architecture of your meeting so that everyone feels more comfortable. For starters, share questions—or at least an agenda—ahead of time. Providing team members who prefer to give problems a little more consideration before speaking up might find themselves with more to say. IT can also help to establish ground rules for participation centered around the purpose of the meeting. Finally, use the chat function to your advantage. For example, communicate that “while Kelly is speaking, share your thoughts about this topic in the chat” to provide a different avenue of participation for those who don’t feel comfortable speaking to the group.