With many employees now at almost the two-year mark of working from home, Zoom burnout has set in big time. In fact, nearly half of all employees report feeling stressed and overwhelmed from hopping on camera for yet another meeting.[1] Despite that, online meeting frequency has increased considerably as businesses focused on social distancing, contributing to outright employee burnout. As a result, millions of employees have been putting in their resignations each month, leaving brands searching for a way to stop the loss of their top talent.[2]
The fact is, however, that virtual meetings are here to stay. So, it’s time to think about how to create more engaging, productive, and efficient meetings for your employees. Thankfully, we’re here to make that easy to do with this step-by-step guide on how to keep employees engaged in all your digital meetings.
Even before the remote work revolution began, a stunning 71% of senior managers deemed their meetings unproductive and inefficient – and it has only gotten worse since then.[3] The solution is rather simple, however, and it all comes back to creating a roadmap to success from the very start.
You just have to use a smart tool, like MyAgenda, to map out the meeting, complete with detailed line items and timestamps. After that, send it out for your employees to review ahead of time, and then follow it as written to create the most productive meetings possible.
To best keep Zoom burnout at bay, you need to take a novel approach to holding remote work meetings: transport your employees to an immersive virtual environment.
Exquisitely designed offices. Luxe boardrooms. Outdoor auditoriums. They’re all within reach with help from 6Connex, so you can reinvigorate your meetings from the ground up. You can even customize each virtual venue to your brand, creating an exciting event space for all your meetings, seminars, and training sessions.
While important, customizing the meeting space is just the beginning. You’ll also want to let your employee in on the fun by letting them match their Zoom virtual backgrounds to their personality.
Upon downloading the free backgrounds to their desktops, your employees can pop in ready for a flight to space or while chilling in a serene garden. Not only do the backgrounds make things more fun, but they can help reduce the stress of hopping in front of the camera, which is a leading cause of Zoom burnout.[4]
To build strong connections between everyone on your team, always start your digital meetings with lively introductions. Give everyone a minute or two to introduce themselves to the group, plus encourage them to state what they hope to get out of the meeting. If small talk naturally arises during the intros, let it go for a few minutes to help strengthen relationships even more. Since you definitely want to stick to the agenda, make sure to allot time for small talk at the beginning of each session.
When chatting through hybrid events software and other virtual channels, far too much emphasis lands on the spoken word over other aspects of communication. Namely, body language often gets left behind, making it difficult to make a great first impression.[5] Even your tone and inflection can get lost in translation, which further decreases your ability to clearly communicate your message. To get around that issue, lower your tone of voice a bit, speak a tad slower than usual, and go big on the personality. On top of that, use all the hand gestures you’d use while speaking in person. Don’t forget to smile from time to time as well, as that helps listeners better engage with your message.
As you go through all the line items in the agenda, check in with your employees by asking for their feedback. You can do that by going around the virtual room and asking each person about their thoughts on the presented material. Push them to go beyond simply saying they liked it or hated it by asking what they would improve. Then, take their insights and perspectives to heart going forward, so your employees know their contributions matter in the grand scheme of things.
Now that you know just what you need to do, it’s time to experience an all-new way to approach your meetings: The Better Way to Do Virtual with 6Connex. While exploring the virtual environment, you’ll see the endless possibilities for employee engagement offered in that space.
You can then capture some of the magic for your own brand by holding all your meetings in a virtual venue built for efficient, productive, and engaging meetings. Ready to get started? All you have to do is schedule a live demo to learn about what 6Connex can do for you, and then zoom through to create the virtual event platform of your business dreams.
Sources:
1. Virtita - Study Finds Nearly Half The Workforce Is Fatigued From Video Call
2. Time - The 'Great Resignation' Is Finally Getting Companies to Take Burnout Seriously. Is It Enough?
3. Harvard Business Review - Stop the Meeting Madness - How to free up time for meaningful work
4. Science Daily - Turning cameras off during virtual meetings can reduce fatigue
5. The University of Texas Permian Basin - How Much of Communication Is Nonverbal?