Tips To Make Your Teams Meetings More Productive

Our work days are busy, and we want to make the most of the time we spend in virtual meetings. Here are some best practices for using Microsoft Teams, whether you are the meeting host or attendee.

Tips if you are hosting or moderating a meeting:

• Have an agenda. When you schedule a Teams meeting, send the agenda to let attendees know the purpose of the meeting and topics that will be covered.
   
• Start meetings on time and end on time. It’s common to wait a few minutes for key stakeholders to join your meeting, but set a limit for waiting so your meeting does not go over the scheduled time. If the meeting runs over, it may put attendees in an awkward position to either leave during the discussion or to be late for something else. If you have covered all the items on your agenda and there is still time remaining, end the meeting early. Meeting attendees will appreciate the gift of extra time.
   
• Schedule meetings with a time buffer. Set the duration of your meeting to give attendees time between back-to-back meetings. For example, schedule your meeting for 25 minutes instead of 30 minutes to give attendees time to wrap up or prepare before their next meeting.
   
• Stay on topic. Try not to stray too far from the planned topic. You may think of something you need to discuss with another meeting participant, but that can leave everyone else in awkward silence. Follow up on minor items after the meeting to make better use of everyone’s time.
   
• Record and transcribe your meeting. Meeting hosts can record Teams meetings. When the meeting starts, click Start recording from the meeting control panel, then click Stop recording at the end of the meeting. The recording will be saved in Microsoft Stream, where you can set viewing permissions. You can also view the meeting transcript by opening the video in Stream, clicking View settings, and selecting Show transcript.
   
• Take meeting notes. Notes can help you and other team members recap important points. Click More actions (…), then click Meeting Notes to open a side panel (similar to chat) for jotting down notes in Teams. When you first add a note, a message will be posted on your behalf in the meeting chat.
  

Tips if you are attending a meeting:

• Be prepared. If you received an agenda or documentation for a meeting, review it ahead of time so you know what is expected of you. If you have questions about the agenda, reach out to the host before the meeting for clarification. Also, test your camera, microphone and speakers before you join a meeting to ensure your technology is working well.
   
• Stay engaged.  It’s tempting to multi-task during virtual meetings, catching up on email or doing other work. But it’s obvious to others when you are not engaged. The response “Could you repeat the question; I couldn’t hear you very well” has become synonymous with “Oops! I wasn’t paying attention.” At the start of each meeting, close all other windows and documents so you can be fully present. 
   
• Raise your hand to prevent interruptions. Even with our cameras on, we often lack the visual cues and body language of in-person meetings that let us know someone has input to share. To avoid multiple participants speaking over one another during a meeting, click the hand icon at the top of the meeting window to "raise your hand" when you want to speak. This lets others see you have a question or input, and the moderator can guide others to allow you to speak. Click the hand icon a second time to lower your hand. If you are the moderator, be sure to keep an eye on the participant list for those who have their hand raised.
  
   
• Know when to mute and unmute. The rules are simple: Mute when you aren’t speaking, and unmute before you speak. Help prevent background noise and distractions by muting your microphone when you enter a meeting. If someone else has their microphone unmuted and their background noise is a distraction, or if they are trying to speak when muted, let them know in a respectful way. Most of us have made this mistake at least once!

Questions?

Contact the Technology Service Center via Edison or by phone at 540-224-1599 (71599).