5 Tips for Successful Global Meetings
Online meetings using tools like Zoom are great ways to get your message out, but that doesn't always mean it's a good way to communicate. I use Zoom and video as much as I can to capture as much of the non-verbal communication I can get.
Start On Time at a Good Time – Start at a good time for your audience that won't kill your ability to deliver a good session. A 6 AM all-hands preceded by a 5 AM managers call may require some extra coffee, but it may also be the best time for your audience to understand what you have to say.
Sites like WorldTimeBuddy make it easy to see how well a time slot can work for people around the world. Other tools like FindATime are useful when you want to set up a time more collaboratively with participants. Also remember that in some countries, people work a different 5-day week, or may need to follow local guidelines about when they can and can't be on a call.
Speak Clearly and Concisely – Introduce yourself to connect the people to your voice, especially when you will have multiple speakers or will be sharing slides and other things on the screen. Accents can be a problem for others to understand, especially for people who speak a different native language, so keep it simple and direct.
Send an Agenda – Give participants the opportunity to understand the terms, concepts, and topics you will go into before the session. This helps understanding immensely during the session itself. Your Japan team is not going to interrupt you with questions until the end, even if they have no idea what you are talking about for the first 40 minutes.
Send the Materials – Available bandwidth to participants varies a huge amount by location. Just because you intend to deliver video with your session doesn't mean everyone is planning to see it. Share what you are presenting before you share it. Your Google drive link isn't going to work in China, but the guy dialing in from Brno probably gets better bandwidth at his house than you do in Mountain View.
Have fun! – If you're having a terrible time, that translates very well to people everywhere, even more easily than the message you want to share. If you're having a bad time, your audience will have a bad time, stop paying attention, and retain what a bad experience this was for everyone. When you're having fun, you're more dynamic and engaging, your audience has a better time and retains more from the session. Jokes don't translate well, but a great attitude and the sound of a smile are global.