By now, we’ve all learned a lot about virtual-first work, like for example, virtual meetings or events are best in chunks or small bits that are easy to digest before the screen fatigue sets in.
From the virtual leader and team effectiveness programs our FlashPoint team has facilitated in the past 6 months, we’ve gained many lessons. Here are some things that we like about virtual training (some of these surprised even us!).
One thing that is no surprise to our team of learning and development experts is that the best ways to avoid screen fatigue are similar to our leadership development design best practices, which also suggest it’s best to spread learning opportunities out over time to encourage application and avoid information overwhelm.
In a virtual meeting everyone can engage all at once by using chat features to comment or cheer other participants on while sharing. Our team member Linda is a chat aficionado, often heard saying: “Where else is it possible to get every participant to give feedback and engage all at the same time?” Whether you ask participants to share thoughts, list small group discussion takeaways, chime in to echo a shared experience, or more, the chat is a great feature to engage everyone in the room.
Engaging and effective virtual trainings foster back-and-forth dialogue and polls are a great way to do so! Poll functions can create an easy warm-up discussion or better understand specific challenges with the skills or content covered. Skilled facilitators can use polling to personalize a session to participants’ needs, quiz participants on their understanding of topics, or invite examples of how they apply to their daily work. Polling can create a unique ice breaker – like asking participants their favorite candy – or encourage vulnerability by giving participants a more anonymous way to express how they feel about a statement or action.
We’ve also been pleasantly surprised to see how small group breakouts allow for deep vulnerability and bonding. Younger generations are accustomed to technology-mediated sharing via social media and other platforms, so there often is a built-in level of comfort. We’ve also seen that it’s even easier for some to engage with others, perhaps because it feels like a more private and comfortable environment. After all, the odds of someone overhearing from another table are slim and if participants are working from home, they may find themselves more at ease than a conference room. Rapport has come easily in full group sessions as well – participants often want to have a virtual “lunch” together with their fellow session participants, rather than logging off, to continue to get to know each other.
Virtual meetings can “lower the bar for participation, so you have an opportunity to glean thoughts and insights from people who ordinarily might not speak up in person.” Since everyone takes up the same box of space on the screen, it can be an equalizer, making it feel easier to speak up with a thought or idea. When asking for comments of feedback during in-person sessions, individuals might not feel comfortable speaking up, or get accidentally overlooked. Simultaneous chat allows for everyone to give their valuable input, in real time.
We also polled our facilitators for their top tips. If you are just getting started with virtual training, or just want to know what others are finding useful, here’s a quick list of helpful hints:
These are just a few of our insights based on what we’ve seen so far in our shift in this current climate to primarily virtual training. What are you seeing as you’re doing more virtual leadership and team effectiveness programs? We’d love to hear how your participants are finding new opportunities for connection and learning opportunities.