Online board room meeting helps to reduce the need for physical meetings, and also saves on travel costs. It also provides flexibility to participants, who can attend from any location. Like any new technology, there are challenges in the process of implementing this tool. Before using the software, board members should be familiar with it and understand how it operates. They should also establish clear communication protocols and expectations.
The most significant issue is making sure that the remote participants are fully engaged in discussions. In an online meeting it is not difficult for the participants to become distracted and lose their focus. It is therefore essential to keep them engaged by ensuring they can clearly hear the speaker. It is also beneficial to have a clear agenda, which facilitates efficient discussion and prevents the meeting from going over. Ideally the agenda should contain 20 percent fewer items to allow enough time for discussion. It is also recommended to schedule the meeting away from regular meal times in order to avoid eating in front of the camera. The chair should also suggest to the board members to turn off the mute option when they are not in conversation so that background noise isn’t distracting.
Another challenge is making sure that the virtual conference and board portal work together seamlessly. A good solution will allow you to manage the video conference as well as the documents through a single hub. The system will also make it easy for users to download and read agendas in PDF format, even if they are offline.