The urgent need
The corona virus has dramatically increased the need for organisations to video conference (VC). But the advantages of using VC skilfully were becoming ever more compelling before the crisis started.
a) Environmental
The Climate Emergency makes reducing carbon emissions a key objective for all organisations. VC makes a significant contribution to cutting your carbon footprint, whether you need to strengthen team or client relationships.
b) Changing working behaviours
The increase of flexible, home and part time working over multiple sites makes it harder to bring together a whole team in one place. VC fits well with these changing behaviours and schedules, restoring the flexibility that was being eroded.
c) Saving travel costs and working time
Quite apart from the environmental costs, the costs of meeting ‘In Real Life’ (IRL) are considerable, both financially and in the lost opportunity costs.
d) New generation’s tech familiarity
As new workers join the workforce, they’re increasingly comfortable using technology such as VC to communicate. Embracing and encouraging VC as an integral, rather than a ‘bolted on’ part of organisation’s communications and working practices strategy helps attract and keep newer workers.
e) More reliable records and decisions
Unlike informal, face-to-face meetings, video calls are easily recorded and can help ensure information and decisions are reliably shared and acted on.
What is the challenge?
But. Despite the many advantages VC has over IRL meetings, there is usually also a significant potential, perceived downside.
Personal contact and understanding. One of the major drawbacks mentioned most often by people using VC is the simple fact that it doesn’t ‘feel real’. There is general agreement that people find it harder to ‘read’ people’s reactions and responses when they’re not in the same room, breathing the same air as others, living the same environment.
What ‘BeingThere’ gives you
We developed BeingThere to help organisations build the strongest relationships between team members and between clients. VCs have stolen their way almost unnoticed into business and organisational life. But the hard truth is that the skills needed to make them the most successful part of modern communications are not a natural part of people’s skill sets. A VC is, in essence, a mixture of a meeting and live TV. The skills and behaviours needed to make the experience powerful and compelling can be learned quickly using the same approaches and techniques that successful screen actors and directors use. So ‘BeingThere’ gives participants the awareness and understanding about how to use the VC medium as well as the practice to start to make real progress in mastering it.
How is ‘BeingThere’ different from technical virtual training?
- Develops skills, behaviours and relationships
- Platform independent
- Based on success of PresentPerfect (our popular and communication and presentation skills course)
- Individual feedback to accelerate awareness and skills learning
Practicalities
BeingThere is designed to be delivered either onsite or completely remotely. Therefore it is possible to run the workshop internationally, paying attention to, for example, mutually convenient time zones.
We recommend running it as a series of three 2 hour or four 90 minute workshops to keep interest levels high and screen fatigue low.
Course outline
What’s STAR? S.T.A.R. stands for Sound – Together – Action – Room (see below for a fuller explanation). It’s an easy to remember acronym to help people focus on the four key areas in their VCs. So they achieve the greatest impact as simply as possible.
Introduction
- Clear idea of workshop structure and VC etiquette during the training
- Present vs virtual – what are the differences? Good understanding of features and benefits of both sorts of meeting
Sound
- Using your voice to create interest and engagement
- The right energy: why is it important?. What does that mean practically? How can you change your energy to create different moods, responses and effects?
- Speed: Understanding how second languages and people not being present demands differences in vocal pace
- The art of surprise: How to use vocal variation and emphasis to reenergise participants
- Different languages Vocal techniques that help increase understanding
Together
- Involving everyone: Using name checks, questions, positive language
- Signing off How do you leave people invigorated and ‘wanting more’?
- Clear actions Clear outcomes and actions
Action
- Framing: Understand and able to use screen size for greatest impact and engagement
- Posture: How posture affects how you and your audience feel
- Hand gestures: Hand gestures that accentuate presence
- Leaning in: Using screen size to re-engage and emphasise
- Eye contact: How to use eye contact to engage all VC members. How eye contact and naming participants helps engagement
- Using the breath to feel and appear calm under pressure or in high stakes meetings
Room
- Create the best impression
- Lighting: Overall lighting and key lights
- Background: Creating the best impression
- Dress : The right audience