An in-person meeting is a meeting that takes place face-to-face rather than over the phone or on a video conference call.
An in-person meeting is a meeting that takes place face-to-face rather than over the phone or on a video conference call.
Relationship Building
As the pandemic taught us, not even the best asynchronous communication tools can replace face-to-face contact. Meeting in-person helps quickly build relationships with one another, especially in a work setting.
This allows team members to engage in implicit communication: reading body language, observing facial expressions and more, leading to increased trust and rapport. In-person meetings can also help with collaboration, making it easier to ask questions face-to-face and get projects moving forward.
Better Communication
Face-to-face communication is often more immediate, as individuals don’t have a screen to separate one another. If an employee has a pressing question or issue, an in-person meeting can be the ideal place to have it addressed as conversations are more fluid.
Other collaborative activities, like brainstorms or client meetings, can be more effective when conducted in-person. This can lead to enhanced creativity and uninterrupted conversation not bounded by Zoom chat time limits or other digital distractions.
Learning and Knowledge Sharing
An employee has more opportunity to demonstrate skills or display knowledge in an in-person meeting. In-person meetings also allow other employees to readily learn from one another, observing the habits and questions of colleagues and potentially learning a unique way of doing things.
Improved People Management
In-person meetings provide greater opportunity for leaders to observe and assess their employees’ behaviour and performance. This can aid in promotions or annual reviews. It helps the employer better understand each team member’s strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement.
More and more, workplaces are adopting hybrid and remote-first environments, but in-person meetings remain valuable. In fact, many remote-first environments will still organize in-person meetings as a way to build relationships, foster connection, and conduct team building.
Human connection is crucial, so leveraging in-person meetings, whether through a hybrid work environment, dedicated team building activities or mandated in-office days, can be beneficial. Organizations can increase productivity, foster greater teamwork, and improve the overall success of the business.
