As more and more companies go remote first, video conferencing is becoming the norm. Using video to simulate an office makes it easier to engage with your teammates, build trust, and create a sense of camaraderie. While it may come with many perks, there are also some challenges to overcome. Having the right tools and knowledge, however, can make the process more seamless.
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Disadvantages of video conferencing
Poor Internet connection
- Nothing’s more frustrating than your Internet connection going in and out, especially in an online meeting. In order to simulate the office, it is vital that you have plenty of bandwidth; otherwise, you’ll waste too much time just trying to connect to the call. Many people use Skype or Link, which require a lot of bandwidth. Other tools like Zoom and BlueJeans require less and the video quality is better.
Chaos in the background
- Lighting is something that many people don’t take into account. Science shows that if you’re backlit, the level of engagement decreases. If people only see your silhouette, they’re likely to lose interest in what you’re saying.
- Background noise is a distraction. If you’re out and about in public, if there are children screaming in the other room, or if a dog is barking it can be disruptive and annoying, especially if there’s more than one person on the line with bad background noise.
- A bed in the background, disarray, and people walking around behind you are all things that can also be off-putting and not very professional is some situations. If your room is your office, get a room divider and make sure you’ve tidied before hopping on that call.
Technology
- Nothing’s more irritating than someone fumbling around trying to figure things out. Be sure you know how to use the technology – headset, webcam, extra monitor and applications — well before the time of the meeting.
Camera Shy
- Some people just don’t like to be on camera. While this may be challenging to overcome, it is important that you find ways to make it easier for you. Not engaging in the call might come across as disinterest and people may say you’re not a team player.
Limited amount of people
- When we’re video conferencing we can’t look around the room to connect with people the way we can if we’re in a conference room. Because of this, we have to limit the number of people on the call, usually to no more than 15, in order to make it interactive.
No etiquette on how to behave
- From eating to moving around, what’s acceptable to one might be offensive to another. There’s also the problem of people not knowing how to interject, which could cause interruptions. Creating a list of “do’s and don’ts” for your team is a great way to keep things running smoothly.
Virtual Fatigue
- Having too many virtual meetings and sitting in one place for too long can be exhausting. Unlike being in an in-person meeting, being online doesn’t allow you to look around and see different perspectives; you only have the view in front of you. It’s important to take breaks, walk around, and go out for some fresh air in between meetings.
Cost
- If you’re in an organization and you need to have everyone on a video conferencing system plus conferencing rooms equipped with these systems, the cost can start to creep up. This needs to be taken into considerations when you’re thinking about switching to online meetings.
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Hello Lisette,
I’d like to add another challenge to your list of videoconference downsides I came across quite often:
Mixed meetings with partly local and partly remote participants can be very unsatisfying.
Well known is the problem that remote attendees can easily get out of the conversation, either because they are not heared or they cannot follow local chats.
Less often discussed is this problem: Many local participants stare at the monitor with the remote participants and focus on them, while ignoring local colleagues.
“A running TV catches always the attention.”
Afterward many complain, that the focus of the meeting layed mainly on the remote attendees. Though they were the ones ignoring everything that happened local.
A solution to this might be: If at least one person is on video call, EVERYONE sould be on video call.
(see Trello’s tip #3 https://blog.trello.com/6-mistakes-when-you-work-in-office-but-have-remote-team-members).
– Steffen, @stclj
What you describe is lack of skills in setting-up and facilitating blended meetins, not something set in stone 🙂 Some of my teams have ONLY blended meetings and both people in the room and people on screen regularly share positive feedback. Sometimes – because it’s thier turn – people on screen even facilitate that kind of blended meeting. It can work, but team and facilitators need to learn how to do it in a way that’s comfortable for all involved.
Good tips Lissete 🙂
Another tip: mix staring into screen with staring straight into webcam 🙂 That simulates eye to eye contact and improves human connection between people having on screen conversation.
Thank you! Great tip.
Hybrid meetings are tough! I agree that having everyone be on a video call is a good solution. If it’s only 1 or 2 remote participants, I would buy Kubi’s for them and have them attend via telepresence – https://www.revolverobotics.com/
I did a podcast about hybrid teams a while back. It doesn’t specifically address hybrid meetings, but it still might have some good tips: https://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com/69-when-one-person-is-remote-the-whole-team-is-remote/
Which gets me thinking… hybrid meeting tips would be a great podcast episode!! Thanks for the idea – I will credit it you when it comes out. 🙂
Hello,
using a Kubi for remote participants seems a reasonable idea. This way they won’t enthrone on a big screen high above the others.
I guess in larger group the “Kubi Enhanced Audio Kit” might be necessary.
Does anybody know, what happens to Revolve Robotics? Since May Kubi is sold by Xandex.
Is Kubi still a product with a future?
– Steffen, @stclj
The company (Revolve Robotics) has wound down, but the manufacturer continues to produce and sell the Kubi. So the Kubi lives on!