4 Reasons Why In-Person Meetings are More Productive
Raise your hand if you feel personally victimized by virtual meetings ✋
While virtual meetings used to be utilized for special circumstances or for those that worked from home, they are now a part of most employees every day schedule. The days of dropping by a colleagues desk to speak about a matter have become far and few between; instead with the click of a button you can connect with a coworker across the world.
Virtual meetings may have become more frequent, however studies show that the benefits of in-person meetings outweigh the convenience of virtual meetings. Read more on the four reasons why in-person meetings increase productivity and communication in the workplace:
1. Better Communication Through Body Language
When you are sitting behind a computer screen (sometimes with your camera turned off), your colleague or collaborator is missing key movements in your body language that contribute to the point you are trying to communicate. This premise begins with how you greet one another. In an in-person meeting it is customary to greet with a handshake (if your environment ensures the safety to do so, due to the pandemic) as it shows a sign of respect. Virtual meeting do not have the same affect, as the standard greeting is “Good morning! Please put yourself on mute.”
Your body language contributes to communication. Movements in your face, hand gestures and your posture all send key signals in expressing yourself and communicating your feelings. Eye contact with your peers symbolizes confidence and capability, both of which are characteristics you want to possess in a conversation. Without these key signals, perceptions can be misconstrued, attributing to negative feelings or lost opportunities.
2. Productive Conversation
There is nothing more frustrating than having a team meeting and not being able to contribute a word to the conversation. In-person meetings allow natural pauses, creating space for coworkers to add their opinion to the conversation. However, on virtual meetings it is incredibly hard to know who is speaking and anticipating the right moment to jump in with your voice.
On the contrary, virtual meetings allow quite a bit of awkward silences where neither party knows who is speaking next or if they should lead the conversation. These moments are unnatural and happen because there is a lack of ability to read the room.
3. Lack of Distractions
When meetings happen in multiple different environments, it is impossible to control all of the outside distractions. Doorbells ring, dogs are barking, connectivity issues come up, people walk in and out of the room – it is less than ideal when trying to have a productive conversation. In this case, in-person meetings win the gold because the environment can be controlled. It is just you and your colleagues in the same physical environment, face to face, meeting about the tasks at hand. Distractions not included.
4. Attentive Colleagues
Just as in-person meetings increase the lack of distractions, they also increase the attentiveness of those attending the meeting. Without outside distractions from each person’s environment, the meeting attendant is free to focus on the subject of the meeting. Colleagues that have trouble speaking up are given more of an opportunity to do so, as they are able to speak their mind during the natural pauses of the conversation. They do not have to constantly wonder when the right time to jump in (if they have the courage to do) because the environment creates that space for them.
Conversations are better distributed to each personality on the team and are more productive people the team is focused. Productivity is increased, as well as efficiency.
Virtual meetings have created many positive avenues for the business community. They have made working possible during atypical circumstances and are incredibly convenient for workers of all kinds. However, convenience is not always the best path to take. There are so many positives and benefits to in-person meetings. As return to work increases and working in-person becomes safe again, consider switching off your computer and pulling out a chair in the conference room with your colleagues. Your business will thank you.
