Step-By-Step: Inclusive Remote Workshop for 20 People in 90 Minutes

Online meetings cause many of us to check out as the threshold to open your mouth is higher than in other meetings. Here´s one simple and straight-forward way to run a meeting where everyone´s contribution is needed.

Screenshot from a meeting with Helsinki´s Culture and Leisure Division´s managerial bi-weekly COVID-19 call.

Our work has changed dramatically. But as there are many positive aspects in remote working, the dynamic in meetings has changed dramatically. I take part in dozens of online meetings every week, chairing around half of them. In many ways the meetings have become efficient on the cost of a sense of shared discovery. As a chair, I often struggle with reading the room and feel exhausted due to the lack of responses. As an attendee, I notice my attention drifting away easily as there is little to no social pressure to seem active and alert. I have truly understood the importance of the pre and post chit chat now when it has decreased to a minimum. There´s no “hey, how are things” with the person sitting next to you.

Last Friday in a meeting of around 20 people I tried something new and it seemed to work. It changed my own experience as chair. I felt we developed something together. Based on the responses — both in and after the meeting — the participants felt that this worked for them as well.

Here´s a slightly developed version of what happened:

1. Send an invitation with explicitly explaining the goal of the session. Attach background material with explicit instructions to read it before the session.
2. Start the meeting with your camera on and with a bit of small talk. Someone might react.
3. Check if there are new people in the meeting. If there is even one new person, everyone should introduce themselves. If so, run a quick introduction round with everyone just saying their name and with a few words explaining who they are and why they are in this meeting. You need to moderate this and give the floor to people so it is efficient and you avoid people speaking over each other. Ask people to put their camera on while speaking.
4. Clarify the purpose of the meeting, i.e. what you should achieve today. Write that in the chat field as people adopt information differently.
5. Refer to the background material. Say that your assumption is that people have read it. If you feel it is necessary, use maximum five minutes to sum up key points but don´t start presenting it. This way you teach your team to prepare for meetings.
6. Ask if people have any clarifying questions about the material. Emphasize that you are now asking for clarification needs, not opinions.
7. Ask if people have any questions about the goal.
8. Explain how the first part of the meeting will run:
   First you will all take 3 minutes of silent working time to prepare statements.
   After the three minutes are done, you will conduct a round with everyone having exactly 1 minute to say their key points. There will be a sound alarm to indicate when you should wrap up.
   Everyone should stick to their prepared thoughts even if someone else has already mentioned the issue. This is to understand how the attendees as individuals have approached the issue and identify stronger themes in the discussion. Ask people not to refer to previous speakers. This is easier said than done.
   While listening to others, ask people to listen actively. Ask people to have a pen and paper ready and write down ideas, concerns and perspectives, which differ from your their own views.
9. Ask if anyone has clarifying questions about the method.
10. Start the timer for 3 minutes. Keep your microphone on so people can hear the alarm go off.
11. Once 3 minutes is done, ask everyone to get up and stretch a bit and take a deep breath.
12. Remind people of active listening. Stress that everyone´s view is valuable, equal and should be respected.
13. Start by going through the list of participants you can see in your application. Start by saying:”So we start with Joe. After Joe it´s Kamala´s turn. Joe, go ahead.”
14. Start the timer for 1 minute when the person starts talking. Keep your microphone on so they — and everyone else — can hear the alarm go off at 1 minute. Keep the alarm going off for a few beeps.
15. Thank the person by mentioning their name. Name the next person and the person after them:”Thank you, Joe. So, now we listen to Kamala. After Kamala, it´s Mike´s turn. Kamala, the floor is yours.”
16. Don´t leave yourself last but speak somewhere in the middle. Announce your own turn in the same way as you do others.
17. As you have gone round the entire group, take a 5–7-minute break. Ask people to get up and stretch a bit, maybe get a glass of water. Write in the chat what time you will open the meeting again.
18. Use this 5–7 minutes for identifying key themes from the round. Prepare a short message to the chat, which you will publish once the meeting continues. Leave it consciously unpolished so people feel like their contribution is needed.
19. Start the meeting summing up your thoughts. Post your message. Stress that this is the first rough draft and you need people´s help as forty ears hear better than two.
20. Clarify how much time you have left in the meeting. Remind people of your shared goal. Say that now the important thing is to create links between things and prioritize issues. Ask people to refer to previous speakers as they speak. Ask people to speak briefly so as many as possible can chip in. Welcome people to comment also in the chat as some people might feel more comfortable doing that.
21. Give people one minute to read through your draft in silence.
22. Ask people to notify in the chat (or whichever function your app has) of their willingness to speak.
23. While people are speaking, edit your conclusion message in the chat or repost it. List also issues where there are disagreements on or which need further clarification. If you want, you can ask in advance that another person helps you with this.
24. As you are approaching the end of the meeting, notify people of the time left. If you notice that there was an opinion on the first round that has gotten lost, ask that person to resurface it. State that it is important that we look at this issue from multiple perspectives and understand each other. Here is a great opportunity for you as a leader to amplify minority voices (a theme I wrote about in another post).
25. Give people one minute to read through your draft in silence. Many people need silence to adopt information.
26. Get last comments on the summary.
27. In the last minutes of the meeting, ask people to write in the chat what they learned today. What was an issue they had not thought of?
28. Thank people of the session and close the session in time.
29. Send people the draft directly after the meeting and lay out next steps.