Design your workshop with your purpose, team and the restraints and benefits of remote working in mind for the best results.Īsynchronous communication and collaboration tools are key factors of any remote team, but there is enormous value in real-time workshops that are expertly facilitated. You might consider employing a remote design sprint or open space style format. Remember that choosing the right workshop methodology and process is as vital in an online space as in a live setting. In these scenarios, online sessions are not only a bonus, but they’re a necessity for teams that wish to be productive while also being distributed. While virtual workshops employ many of the same techniques and methodologies as live workshops, online workshops have special considerations, challenges, and potential benefits.Ī well designed online workshop can help remote teams align, generate ideas and solutions, build trust and relationships, and strengthen remote team culture. Remember that meetings that include face-to-face communication can be hugely important for keeping distributed teams connected and engaged, and that any challenges of the remote setting can be overcome with thoughtful facilitation and well-designed sessions.
Like all meetings, virtual meetings should have a clear reason for being run and a specific goal in mind. These might include daily-stand-ups, all-hands meetings, discussions and more. Virtual meetings for remote teams are incredibly common and remote workers will likely attend many virtual meetings every week. Here are just a few things you may have to facilitate online for your team as they work from home, co-working spaces or elsewhere. Online product demos or customer onboardingĪs companies employ increasingly virtual teams or you find yourself suddenly working remotely, you may be asked to run meetings, workshops and much more of your traditional working practice online.Delivering online coaching and mentoring.Ensuring workshops or meetings can go ahead even in difficult circumstances ie: with staff illness, travel bans or environmental concerns.Hybrid meetings where some people are in one location and several remote workers call in.Distributed teams with remote workers spread over several locations.Some situations where you might use remote facilitation: Online facilitation for a virtual meeting or remote workshop is no different. The effectiveness of any meeting or workshop is often predicated on the skill of the person facilitating and the process they have designed. That said, bringing together people into an online setting alone is not enough to guarantee success. The cost of flying large teams out for live meetings or bringing together people across time zones can be high, and using online tools to hold meetings or workshops can make this process easier and cost-effective. Let’s dive in! Why might we need to run virtual workshops?Īs more teams and organizations become globally distributed the need for workshops, meetings, and training sessions that can be delivered online also rises. Whether you are a seasoned facilitator wanting to make the move to remote facilitation or the manager of a remote team, the guide and best practices below will help you and your team make the most of the time you spend together online.
Developing the skills and resources to be an effective remote facilitator will future proof your team and business and enable you to work with virtual teams and remote workers. Many experts think remote facilitation and the running of online workshops is going to be increasingly common and important in the future. As more organizations and teams become remotely distributed and have staff spread out all over the world, the need for facilitators to help facilitate workshops or meetings in a remote setting is growing. Traditionally, facilitators work with groups in live settings, facilitating workshops, team development days, training sessions, and more.
By employing trusted facilitation techniques and methods, the best facilitators help teams move towards their desired outcomes in a structured manner. They do this by guiding groups through a process, helping to develop understanding, and by improving participation and collaboration along the way. In simple terms, a facilitator is someone who makes a group process or task easier. Save time planning online meetings – it’s free! What is remote facilitation?