One question that I usually get is how to make virtual meetings more inclusive so that everyone’s thoughts are heard.
With leaders that manage large remote teams, what typically happens is that only a handful of team members actively participate, and several others stay silent.
This happens due to several reasons, such as team members who are naturally quite or others who are naturally more vocal.
Over time, it feels like the same few people are the only ones participating in the conversations, and the voices of several others are drowned out.
As a team leader, it’s critical to make sure that each of your team members voice is heard so that you create a more inclusive environment.
Here are a few tips about how to get quiet team members to speak up during remote meetings.
1) Acknowledge the challenge upfront on your next call
Here’s a sample script you can use in your next meeting:
“Team – I noticed that a few of you have been actively participating in our conversations, and I want to thank you all for your valuable feedback. However, I’d love to hear more from others who haven’t had the chance to speak up and share their thoughts during our calls. In an effort to be more inclusive, I want to encourage you all to use your voice and share your point of view. Everyone’s thoughts matters.”
Addressing the challenge you have upfront and explaining why you’d like to solve it helps encourage some quiet team members to speak up.
2) Build structured participation during the meeting
In other words, you might want to consider calling on someone to share their thoughts. For example, after a short presentation or update, you might want to say something like:
“Stacey, given that you have worked on something similar to this in the past, I’d like to hear what your thoughts are on this?”
Make sure you start out with their name before you ask the question so that you don’t catch them off-guard.
3) Address the lack of participation during 1:1 meetings.
During your one-on-one calls with any members who have not been actively participating, it’s a good idea to also reiterate tip #1 above with them and hear what they have to say.
Sometimes it could be that they’re a bit more reserved, or maybe they feel they’re isolated or don’t get the opportunity to speak up. Those might be some challenges you can address directly.
4) Micro-affirmations
When someone does change their behavior by speaking up during a meeting, give them a shout-out after the call (with a quick instant message or email) to recognize that they spoke up.
Thanking them helps reinforce their behavior and encourages them to continue to participate in discussions going forward.
By applying one or more of those four strategies, you’ll motivate your team to contribute to your conversations during meetings and increase the overall level of cohesion and intimacy among your team members.
