Putting the "P" and "C" Back in Effective Meetings, Part 3

The final mode of meeting we'll consider in this series is the
videoconference. It is probably the closest in nature to an in-person
meeting while it still has some elements that allow for
depersonalization.

Video Conferences
As with web conferences, video conferencing has some limitations. As
with in-person meetings, video conferencing has some advantages.

The plus side is that at least the moderator can be heard and seen. The
opportunity to put a face and voice to the one who runs the show is made
so that you don't appear to be some distant demi-god who is not in touch
with your people.

If you have budget and equipment that allows this type of conferencing
at all of your locations, everyone can be heard and seen. You'll have
essentially bridged those tricky obstacles of location and logistics.

Yet another advantage of video conferencing is that if for some reason a
few cannot make the meeting at the noted time, you may be able to make a
tape of the session so that they can see (and hear) what happened at a
later time. In this case, it would be good to do a follow-up with those
who could not attend in order to get their feedback on what happened.
One of the reasons for having meetings is to get feedback and comments
so that you have continuous growth.

The downside of video conferencing is the cost. Some systems are very
reasonable and won't break your department budget. The other issue is
making certain you get people to actually attend these meetings, whether
in real time or via a taped session. If they do not attend the real-time
session, you've lost some of the gold of having the meeting -- the
interaction of all of your participants with one another.

Having Meetings
These are just a few options on some "new" ways to have effective
meetings that increase the personal contact and nurture colleague
collaboration. The important issues are realizing that there is a
purpose, a goal that is achieved with each mode. So it's imperative that
the right type of mode is used to cost-effectively achieve the results
you're seeking.