Suddenly Virtual

CHAPTER 15Preparing for the Next Normal in Our Suddenly Virtual Meetings: The Converged Perspective

Now, here we are, perhaps in the next normal, perhaps expecting another normal down the line. For so many of us (more likely all of us) who were caught unawares by the dramatic impact the pandemic would have on our work lives, the desire to plan for future disruptions is very real. Unfortunately, no one has a way to predict with absolute certainty what we need to plan for.

The good news is best practices for making any meeting work are relatively resilient to change. Sure, they may require some adjusting and tweaking to fit a new dynamic, like a more targeted purpose or a different cadence. For example, when an organization moves to mostly remote operations, perhaps the biweekly team meeting needs to be a twice‐a‐week team meeting to ensure everyone is aware of project progress and priorities. However, the crux of what makes meetings effective in moving business forward is adhering to science‐based principles that have stood the test of time. But the gravitational pull to revert to bad habits is strong.

In this, our final chapter, we hope you will turn the magnifying glass on yourself and your team meetings, regardless of the current form they are taking. We begin with a discussion of common pitfalls that will diminish the value of any meeting and how to mitigate the risk of falling prey to them. Then, we ask you to look back on all of the checklists you've filled out over the ...