What Meetings Should be In-Person vs Remote

I am a firm advocate of remote work not only because it gives you a wider array of talent than what is available around your company headquarters, but also because it gives employees flexibility to manage their personal lives. If done right, it’s a win-win. 

Despite that, companies need to find the right balance of in-person and remote meetings in order to build the most productive and effective work environment. It’s a delicate balance between seeing colleagues when needed and allowing for the flexibility of remote meetings.

While I think most meetings can be run successfully remotely, which we learned during the pandemic, there are certain meetings I recommend be done in person whenever possible. Those meetings include:

• Interviews

• Offsites

• Team Building Social events 

• Strategic meetings where your company is making a large-scale change (e.g. layoffs and reorganizations)

Interviews

When you are interviewing a candidate, you want to get the most information possible in the short amount of time you have scheduled for an interview. One way to do this is by meeting with the person in the office so you can pick up on body language, engage in small chit chat between interviews and generally get a feel for who the person is outside of answering your interview questions.

On the opposite side of this, as a candidate, going into a company’s office gives you a sense of the company culture. You can get a feel for the office space and see what other employees are doing. Is everyone sitting by themselves focused on work? Are people collaborating and working together? Do people look relaxed and happy in the work environment? The company culture will affect your work life so pay attention to what is going on and make sure you are evaluating the company during your interview process. You want to find a job that is a good fit for you so use the office visit to pay attention to social cues so you can decide whether you believe you would enjoy working for the company. 

Offsites

Part of what helps a team execute is a clear vision and a strategy that they can implement. Having a meeting once a quarter where you define your strategy and create an execution plan is an essential part of helping your team deliver their best work. 

These quarterly offsite meetings are best done in person where it's easiest to communicate and collaborate with each other.

Team Building Social Events

When remote teams meet once a quarter at an offsite to develop strategy, it's imperative that they also spend some social time together. Studies show that it’s hard to build trust when you can’t see someone’s face, which is why video meetings are better than phone calls. With that in mind, taking advantage of the time you have with teams together in person is really important to build trust. Not only will it allow you to create a strategy and execution plan more easily, it will give you time to get to know each other on a personal level. The more strong personal bonds team members form, the more solid the team dynamic becomes. People enjoy working with people they like and we are more likely to build friendships with people as we spend more time with them. 

Strategic Company Meetings

This year has included a lot of layoffs in the technology sector and companies are often in a position where they have to make difficult decisions and pivot on their strategy. Whenever possible, have meetings to announce reorganizations, layoffs and strategic changes in the company direction in person. Employees are going to be feeling worried and unsure about their future at the company and seeing leaders in person, confidently announcing changes will bring assurance to the employees that you want to be a part of the next chapter of your company. It also adds a human touch to business decisions when you are willing to face the people who will be affected by the change. The last thing you want is to lose valued employees at pivotal points in your company so this small gesture of taking the time to do this can make a huge difference.

If you don’t take time to be deliberate around what meetings need to be in person, you are going to end up doing what is easiest and that might not be the best thing for your company. Spend a little time being tactical about what meetings will be held in person and what will be remote and your company and your team will reap the benefits.