In March last year, everyone’s lives changed as Covid-19 made its sinister impact around the world. And it had an impact on the SEGC (Small and Emerging Growth Community) a wonderful group of solopreneurs and small businesses who meet once a month. I have been leading this group for several years and we used to meet every third Thursday of every month in West End Plaza, St Louis Park. But like everyone, we could no longer have physical meetings. We took a month off and the Board and I learnt about how to use zoom and how to run breakouts. Duly studied and ready we started virtual meetings in April.

We managed the technical zoom part of the meeting well, but the breakouts just weren’t working effectively and although it allowed people to network in a cosy environment it wasn’t adding to the experience or learning from the speaker content.

We needed to change something – so we did. Here’s what we learnt…

Have A Structure

Guaranteed to fail is having no structure, no beginning, no end and no deliverable. We got the 30 second introduction by everyone right as an ice breaker but then the rest of the time became a free for all with the loudest voice tending to dominate the conversation. We learned that we need to tell everyone how long they have and how long each segment will last and what was expected.

Appoint A Facilitator

When everyone is in charge, no-one is in charge. So we have nominated facilitators who are picked for their ability to facilitate. They time the segments and ensure that everyone gets a say.

Set Time Limits

One of the biggest faults of breakouts is having no time boundaries. If you have unlimited time it will be filled, just for the sake of filling it. However, if the breakout is time bound with the structure, we found there was energy and efficiencies that had lacked before.

Provide a Written Brief for Facilitators

Good facilitators prepare. “Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Painfully Poor Performance.” To help them do so we prepare a simple summary of the exercise for the breakout, the deliverables and timing for each segment. Ideally, this should be provided a week in advance.

Don’t Overuse Breakouts

Breakouts are still viewed by many as a new shiny object to be played with. However, they should be treated as a tool to aid the networking and learning process. Breakouts for the sake of breakouts can defeat the object of the exercise. So, define what that objective is and THEN decide whether a breakout achieves that.

Involve Your Presenter in the Process

When planning the session, ensure you involve the presenter so they are part of the process and they understand both the value and where it make sense to have it and its purpose. That way the breakout aids the presenters ability to engage the audience and reinforce their message.

We have learned a great deal, and I would like to thank the Twin Cities SEGC Board and our great bunch of professional facilitators for continuing to learn, evolve and improve the value of the meetings for our community.

 

Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash