Face-to-Face
Let’s get together!
A face-to-face meeting is the richest and most effective form of communication that we have — but as the adage goes, sometimes “that meeting could have been an email”. The UBC community is a busy one, so it’s important to use good judgement when bringing people together.
Considerations
This channel is best when
- sharing sensitive information or for circumstances where relationship or trust-building is important.
- you need to keep groups — teams, departments, stakeholders, etc. — connected and moving together.
- building engagement or gathering meaningful input. Quick follow-up questions can open up information a lot faster than surveys.
- urgent, time-sensitive, or immediate action is required.
- you need to be clearly or deeply understood. Seeing people in person is the richest medium of communication.
When to change the channel?
- sharing sensitive information or for circumstances where relationship or trust-building is important.
- you need to keep groups — teams, departments, stakeholders, etc. — connected and moving together.
- building engagement or gathering meaningful input. Quick follow-up questions can open up information a lot faster than surveys.
- urgent, time-sensitive, or immediate action is required.
- you need to be clearly or deeply understood. Seeing people in person is the richest medium of communication.
Details
Most members of the VPFO team use Microsoft Outlook to set meetings. There are a variety of meeting spaces (boardrooms, meeting rooms, etc.) available for booking in that platform. Some operational groups, like Facilities, rely on administrators to organize and gather front-line workers.
Many groups in the VPFO have developed schedules of regular meetings to establish ongoing communication that you may be able to access — check with our senior leaders or their administrators for more information.
Other types of face-to-face channels
Video calls
When you just can’t be in the same room
Although the effectiveness of in-person meetings is difficult to replicate, video calls are about as close as you can get. Video call technologies, like Zoom and Microsoft Teams give attendees some of the benefits of face-to-face interaction while allowing them to take part from anywhere in the world with a stable internet connection.
Considerations
This channel is best when
- you cannot get all of the team together in person or want to avoid booking a large room.
- groups are in two or more locations. Note that a hybrid video/physical meeting can help connect venues.
- you need to keep groups — teams, departments, stakeholder, etc. — connected and moving together.
- urgent, time-sensitive, or immediate action is required.
- special effort is made to create a sense of team and connection.
When to change the channel?
- Large meetings can be expensive, as combined salaries alone can cost thousands of dollars per hour.
- Leader’s toolkits can help local leaders share information face-to-face in existing meetings that their team expect and are comfortable with.
- Being authentic on video can be much harder than in person. Consider some training or practice first?
- Some information is better shared with individuals first, rather than surprising a large group of people at the same time.
- Video meetings can be disrupted by technical difficulties (e.g. requires a stable internet connection) or security issues.
Details
Many members of the VPFO team have access to Zoom or Microsoft Teams and are able to host video calls. Only the host is required to have a software licence to hold a meeting — attendees simply require a url link, and possibly a password, to join.
Resources
UBC IT provide support for tools used to make video calls through the IT Self Service Portal.
You can learn how to hold effective video calls in our online workshop “Engage your team with Zoom video”
Featured Resources
Template
Briefing note template
A briefing note distills complex information into a short, well-structured document to quickly to informs a decision-maker about an issue so they can speak with authority.
Template
Information toolkit template
Create a framing document for leaders that presents your communications plan in small, usable pieces so they are equipped to brief their teams.
Template
Memo template
Memos are more targeted than bulk email and you can be more specific and direct in your language — as you will likely know the recipients and their communications style in some fashion.
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