The practices of virtual communication vary greatly in a remote working environment. The use of the camera, chat functions and reaction buttons are encouraged in some meetings but not in others. How can we navigate this maze of different practices and preferences? A good place to start is to agree on the principles, routines and the use of camera with your meeting participants. This tip tells you how to foster effective communication during virtual meetings and agree on camera usage.
What do I need to do?
Set expectations for the meeting
The way we act online affects the actions of others. If participants are unsure what is expected of them and how they should contribute to a meeting, they are less likely to actively provide input and ideas. You should inform the participants of the type of meeting in advance (if it is not immediately obvious), so they know what to expect. Let them know whether they will be expected to turn on their camera and microphone.
If you are worried that the participants might being reluctant to turn on their cameras, you can map out their preferences with an anonymous Zoom poll or a Microsoft Forms query.
After you receive their responses, you can discuss camera usage with the participants and provide reasons for turning on the camera. You can also divide the participants into small groups to discuss the use of camera and the other features available in the virtual meeting platform, such as the chat tool. Agree on the practices together and stick to them. The fact that all the meeting participants, not just the host, are responsible for ensuring effective virtual communication should be stated out loud.
It is also worthwhile to agree on other shared practices. To stimulate discussion, you could ask the participants, for example, the following question: How should we act as a group to ensure effective (virtual) communication and a positive meeting experience? The effectiveness of meetings and adherence to the agreed practices should be assessed every once in a while. It will be easier to analyse and reflect on the meetings later on if you agree on the practices and principles at the beginning of your round of meetings. You can also agree on them later if you notice that there are problems with communication. Most importantly: if things are not working, you need to say so as change rarely happens by itself.
When to turn your camera on and off?
When you host a meeting, write down when any why you and the other participants should turn on cameras. State these reasons to the participants, too. Sometimes it is easier to listen and focus if cameras are turned off because they can be distracting. However, if the participants turn their camera off for a minute, they may not turn them back on anymore. You can establish a routine by systematically taking a moment to remind the participants to turn on their camera when it is time to do so. Stick to this routine; it will reward you in the long run. Give a friendly nudge to those who do not turn on their camera.
However, sometimes it is best to give people the option to keep their camera turned off. For example, a participant who is feeling the first signs of an oncoming headache may prefer to have his or her camera off. Even if you have agreed on something, it does not mean you cannot make exceptions for a valid reason. You should state this fact out loud, so participants who have a valid reason for an exception know that they can still attend your meeting.
It can feel strenuous to run a meeting if you can only see a couple of participants on camera, because it is difficult to determine how your message is being received. But besides a camera, there are other ways to check for understanding. Use polls, chat functions and the reaction buttons in Zoom to keep the participants engaged and collect feedback and responses. Make it a routine to invite reactions and responses to check that everyone is staying alert. This shows you encourage all the participants to actively provide input – whether they keep their cameras on or not. You will also set a good example for others on how to increase active participation during virtual meetings.
What should I take into account?
- Share and find tips: You do not have to draw up all the instructions yourself. You can, for example, share the guidelines provided by Tampere Universities for using a camera in virtual meetings with your meeting participants. Or the instructions you are looking for might be included in the IT Services handbook, TLC’s website or the Digital Toolkit.
- Profile picture in Teams and Zoom: Add a photo to your Teams and Zoom profiles and ask the meeting participants to also customise their account profile with a recognisable photo. Then you will at least see a photo of the participants instead of a blank screen.
- Distracted by seeing yourself on camera? You can hide your video on your screen in Zoom as it is hard for people not to look at their own face if they can see it on screen. Right-click your video to display the menu and select Hide self view. To show your video, click Show self view on the top right.
- Consider the flipped approach: You could consider recording your lecture or information session in advance if it is not strictly necessary to have others present at the same time. Share the video in Panopto, and then invite the group to a virtual meeting to discuss the content. To read more about the flipped approach, please see, for example, the website of the Teaching and Learning Centre.
- The meeting experience is not the same for all: Take different emotions and experiences into account. Keeping the camera on is not a problem for some people but knowing that one is physically on camera can be stressful for others. It is important to openly talk about preferences and experiences. We are all learning how to act and behave in a virtual meeting and trying to find the middle ground.
The authors Piia Jokiranta, Johanna Järvelin-Suomela and Eeva Kaarne work as university instructors in speech communication at the Language Centre of Tampere Universities. This text was written as part of the project titled “Fostering effective communication during virtual teaching and meetings” and is based on workshops held in the autumn of 2020.