Hosting an effective hybrid meeting requires forethought and careful planning by the hosts—even more so than planning a completely virtual or an entirely in-person meeting. Some may say it’s double the work since, in essence, event organizers need to think through both virtual and in-person participation. This can require additional costs and staff time for planning and implementation.
It can be a challenge to accommodate the needs of two different types of audiences. This includes handling connection issues and making sure questions and contributions of remote participants are taken into consideration. If these aspects are not thought through, there is a risk that the focus of the meeting will shift from the content to the technical logistics. That negatively impacts the experience for everyone. Finally, for virtual participants, hybrid meetings may limit the ability for informal networking (such as during coffee breaks in between sessions). Personally connecting with virtual participants, which often spurs collaboration and innovation, is also hampered.
Despite the additional preparation, hybrid meetings offer a wealth of opportunities. For example, more participants may be available to attend the meeting given there are fewer associated costs, including:
- Traveling to/from the venue.
- Paying per diems.
- In-person technology costs.
Aside from reaching a larger audience in general, hosting a hybrid meeting may allow for a broader set of experiences or perspectives, with people from various geographies potentially in attendance.
The first step in hosting a hybrid meeting is deciding if hybrid is the right format for your meeting. Some meetings may benefit from all in-person attendance or all virtual participation. We recommend that you select the format based on the objectives of the meeting and the expected attendees. Be realistic about what will be feasible to achieve with the format selected.
If you’ve decided to host a hybrid meeting, we recommend implementing the following practices before, during, and after the session.