At our recent Supporting Successful Collaborations Session, one of the topics of discussion was effectively replicating face-to-face interactions in a virtual environment. How can we take the personal interactions our users and clients enjoyed, such as networking and brainstorming sessions, hands-on support, and product demonstrations, and move these experiences online?
Image Description: Laptop drawn on notepad, with coffee mug
A session participant talked about how effective and fun her face-to-face interactions with her users had always been. She typically worked with multiple users at one time in the same setting, hopping from user to user as they needed support, with easy access to whiteboards and other tools. Moving her services online has meant a significant increase in interactions, with individual Zoom conferences and email and text exchanges added to group meetings. Trying to replicate her face-to-face interactions has been draining her time and her energy. And would this approach of increased interaction work as well with new users, who hadn’t already had the experience of working together face-to-face?
Over many conversations and in presentations, I’ve encouraged leaders to step back and consider their goals before moving forward with a transition to online services and tools. While virtual environments are rapidly improving and increasingly seeking to mimic in-person interactions (Remo, LunchPool, and Zoom’s Breakout Room feature come to mind), adopting these technologies may have unintended impacts on staff time and might be out of reach for some organization’s budgets. Rather than merely selecting tools to imitate in-person experiences, go back to the purpose and desired outcomes of the service or interaction and consider how those goals can be best served in a virtual environment. You may find that a different type of interaction or access to content using tools you already have (and with which your users are already comfortable) will also support your goals.
How has your organization managed the transition to virtual? Are you trying to replicate face-to-face interactions, or have you moved in a different direction? I’d love to chat with you and hear about your successes and challenges!
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