Organisations tend to think they want diversity, and then they go about getting people to ‘fit-in’. We recruit people from a range of different backgrounds, cultures and experiences. But, before long, they are contributing ‘just as well’ as everybody else. We employ diverse people, but to what extent do we encourage them to bring the fullness of that diversity into our meetings?
In our article Do virtual meetings support diversity? we explore this question more deeply.
what if we keep our meetings familiar?
The fact is, if we do what we always do, we will get what we’ve always got! If we structure our virtual meetings as a reflection of our past physical meetings, we can expect little change. We will get an environment that inherently rewards the status quo, the established wisdom, and the things that are easy to hear.
But if we use more of the potential of the web within our meetings. If we use multi-channel inputs rather than just the single stream of dialogue. And if we embrace the different in what we do. We will be more available to embrace and encourage the different in what we hear and see and say.
If diversity is important to you, then embrace it. Not just in people, but more widely. Please read the article. It may be a bit different, but isn’t that the point?
Useful links:
About the Meeting Toolchest blog: We have recently rearranged to Toolchest Blog for a number of reasons. Firstly, we wanted to reflect a greater volume of relevant content. And we wanted to include content from a wider range of sources. Secondly, we wanted to make blog items short and pithy. In this way we wanted to convey an overall sense of key developments without bogging people down in detail. Although, we do provide greater detail in our Articles section, and through external links. Thirdly, we wanted a means to more easily engage people. And we wanted something that could be easily shared via social media.
We want to increase people’s familiarity with developments in virtual meetings. In this way, we hope that it is more likely that they will try things out. And as a result, they will increase the quality and participation in their own meetings. We hope this will generate happier and more effective work places, and a reduction in workplace stress.
If you have a moment. And, if you felt this item was of value. Please help us in our quest by sharing it with others.
Track your progress to ensure the efficacy of this strategy.