Hosting Video Calls in a Changed Business World

With a large proportion of the workforce still confined to their homes, virtual meetings have proven a remarkably effective way for finance and accounting firms to align remote teams and keep workers connected.

However, best practices for using of this technology are still evolving and the learning curve continues. Here are my golden rules for professionals charged with hosting video calls:

• No agenda, no meeting — Having an agenda is vital for keeping attendees on task at any meeting. But in a forum where people are often distracted and tempted to multitask, following an agenda is even more critical. Create a PowerPoint presentation that can hold people’s attention and make the first slide a depiction of the agenda. Include the purpose of the meeting, the objectives that need to be achieved and how long the discussion will last. After a brief on-camera welcome, share your screen and start the PowerPoint deck you’ve prepared. Refer back to the agenda throughout the meeting as a visual reminder of what’s next as the meeting progresses.
• Use visual stimuli — The rest of your PowerPoint can include infographics of the main points you want to make to your CPA team. This gives them something to focus on while you’re speaking. Just be careful when you share your screen that you have minimized anything that’s not for public eyes.
• Have a backup plan — Technical issues can be a headache and a huge waste of time. In your meeting invite, include a phone number that people can dial into should the video call fail. Being ready to revert to a telephone conference allows discussions to continue with minimal disruption. If you don’t, you could lose valuable time and cause people to tune out even before you’ve begun.
• Get everyone involved — Keep an eye out for anyone not actively participating and invite them to share their thoughts.
• Set some ground rules — To help the meeting run smoothly, kick it off by letting attendees know how and when to ask questions. They can, for example, raise a virtual hand or use the chat function. Advise them to turn off their microphone when they’re not speaking.
• Video on, sound off — If bandwidth allows, ask participants to keep their cameras on. Not only does this allow you to read visual cues but it makes it easier to spot if someone isn’t paying attention. Let them know your plan in your meeting invitation so people know in advance they’ll be on camera.
• Keep to time — Communicating on a screen is more tiring for the brain than in-person discussions, making it harder to maintain concentration. Turn your camera back on yourself regularly during the meeting so people aren’t just staring for long periods at what’s on your laptop.
• Show empathy. Don’t forget that people are stressed in all kinds of ways during these long months of operating out of their homes. They still need a human touch, but how do you provide it in a virtual meeting? At minimum, start the call by simply asking participants how they’re doing during this unprecedented time. Depending on the relationship you have with attendees, maybe it’s bringing your child or pet in front of the camera to say hello.
• Always follow up — Sending a summary of discussion points to participants post-meeting where you flag any actions and deadlines sets a tone of accountability.
• Consider alternatives — Tech issues, interruptions and over-scheduling are just some of the factors that can lead to ineffective discussions and video call fatigue. Could that reconciliation statement be with an old-fashioned phone call? If a group discussion is more appropriate, keep the guest list to a minimum. The fewer people involved, the easier it is to facilitate a productive virtual discussion.