People desire to establish good relationships with others. Whereas these relationships may start with an online chat on social media platforms, the best relationships are face-to-face meetings. Sometimes, people go back online and keep in touch for a couple of months, meeting offline and online over months and years. But the personal meetings develop real connections and relationships.  

Most team members and upper management today belong to the millennial era. They have become a bolder type of people than their younger counterparts; they use more information and want instant accessibility. Nevertheless, Gen-Z people are born in the digital age. This generation of people expects to do all things digitally. This expectation affects the workplace, together with meetings and conferences. 

With the ongoing global pandemic, most business operations depend on technology. As the government eases restrictions, people think of the future workplace setting. But even these two generations of team members agree to it; face to face meetings have undeniable advantages.

9 Advantages of In-Person Sessions

1. Brainstorming, especially if it is about a fast-moving project, all members should discuss the details face-to-face. This way, they can share and answer comments and suggestions and make decisions out of it.
2. Team members feel entitled to say what’s on their minds when they see everyone in-person
3. Interviewing an applicant or appraising performance is much better when they are facing such a person. It is a lot easier to discuss companies’ policies and values.
4. For some teams, technology does not always give the best communication channel. Some hindrances are poor internet or no electricity. And inadequate communication can cause many problems for organizations.
5. Online discussions can sometimes be unclear. Booking a room to discuss it in-person can help it push along.
6. As mentioned earlier, poor internet is not an issue when they have a meeting face to face.
7. Team members can accept accountability for tasks delegated during meetings quickly.
8. They can focus more on an in-person meeting, mostly because of the meeting room where they gather everyone in a closed-door room.
9. Team members tend to have professionalism when everyone is together in person.  

Face-to-Face Meetings Are Still Possible

Meetings and conferences are changing but will never be out of trend. Nowadays, most group meetings are counting on virtual tools as a replacement for gathering everyone in the same conference room.

Most organizations are taking advantage of their team member’s online connectivity. They continue to allow individuals and teams to work remotely, as they know that they can communicate and work together through chat and email as quickly.

Even with the remarkable improvements that technology brings, there is something that it cannot replace, such as expressions, enthusiasm, and team dynamics. The ability to see a co-worker in-person and respond to their body language can help explain a project or solve an issue.

An even more awful moment is when a colleague cracks a joke and is ill-taken by his co-worker. It will lead to a lower trust between them and slow down the project they are currently working on. In these kinds of situations, it is better to take the conversation offline.

Meetings offline can easily avoid these communication failures because they can use hand gestures, body language, and vocal expression to get what they meant. 

Frequently Asked Questions for Virtual Team Meetings

Not every team member can be adept at virtual team meetings. Other team members may have some reservations regarding video conferencing calls. Some people are not comfortable looking at themselves in video conferencing. Others are adamant about the idea of exposing themselves in front of the camera.

Here are the frequently asked questions that team members inquire before attending or conducting virtual team meetings:

• How can I access the virtual team meetings?
• Is there a registration process for the meeting?
• What application or virtual platform will the team use?
• What is the itinerary of the virtual team meeting?
• Will the meeting be recorded?
• Will we receive a reminder email?
• Will there be a follow-up email after the meeting?

Aside from the frequently asked questions, there are no smooth transitions from the traditional face-to-face to virtual meetings. Even if most team members have experienced video calls, expect challenges to appear when organizations turn to video team meetings. Everyone who used video conferencing apps must have experienced awkward moments when a team member talks and overlaps while you are still talking. Getting your point to everyone will be difficult, especially on a group call. It can be challenging when somebody interrupts someone.

Some meetings require more teamwork and brainstorming sessions than just one person leading, thus prompting face-to-face meetings. Through the actual in-person meetings, team members can communicate, perceive expressions and body language, and increase efficiency. It also fosters good working relationships among teams.

The threat of Coronavirus in the workplace compelled many companies to ensure their workers’ health and safety. Thus, companies create remote communities in Slack, Zoom, or Skype while letting their teams work from home. However, virtual meetings don’t mimic real-life conversations. You can’t speak to the person next to you as you would do in a circle. There is a chemistry that happens when teammates work together in person.

There are many benefits to virtual team meetings in the workplace. However, if you have never met any team member or spoke to them face-to-face, it can be challenging to feel you belong to the team or the company and collaborate with your team members. While virtual collaboration provides easy and convenient access, sustaining a virtual company culture forever is probably next to impossible.

 

How DeskFlex Helps Organizations for their Face-to-Face Meetings

After several months of online meetings, most team members expect all the benefits they can get when they meet their fellow workers in person. From more possibilities for creativity to better collaboration, face-to-face meetings are still the perfect way to build relationships within organizations. 

Conference Room Scheduling

DeskFlex room reservation software can help companies with organizing and managing the scheduling of their conference rooms. With room reservation software, team members can quickly make reservations via their company’s intranet or a kiosk.  

Access Anywhere

Users can view room availability and book a desk even from home with the DeskFlex booking desk software. Any setting works for the DeskFlex room reservation software. It can be universities, libraries, or even publicly shared clubs. Best of all, it is a complete meeting room scheduler, manager, and asset scheduling system. 

Easy Room Booking and Scheduling with DeskFlex!

DeskFlex room scheduling software provides quick scheduling of meeting rooms and equipment. The effortless, user-friendly, and affordable room scheduling software helps the company make their workspaces more efficient. It allows reserving a room in advance through an easy to use and well-organized interface. The DeskFlex room scheduling software prevents frustrations and confusion caused by double bookings and makes the most of the available rooms. With excellent room scheduling software, organizations can avoid conflicts, overbookings, and lost reservations with just one ideal tool. 

DeskFlex booking desk software helps team members to reserve a desk or conference room efficiently to save time. They can use the booking desk software with ease. Its user interface allows them to see and adjust reservations with only a few steps. A reliable room scheduling software can provide useful features that can enhance productivity in an organization. The DeskFlex room scheduling software offers Outlook integration for the 2013 and 2016 versions.