Who’s that snoring on this conference call? Nancy Settle-Murphy's advice about virtual meetings

Virtual meetings have two big advantages over the face-to-face kind: they save on travel costs, and we can catch up on our email while the air hogs ramble on. It’s no secret. Most of us multitask (or nap) during teleconferences. But really, can you blame us? A whopping 96 percent of companies use remote collaboration to some extent, but not many focus on making those conversations fully productive. And without body language, facial cues or huge yawns as a guide, it’s easier for a few people to dominate while everybody else drifts away. According to Nancy Settle-Murphy of Guided Insights, it doesn’t have to be that way. A professional facilitator who specializes in remote collaboration, she advises Fortune 500 companies about how to bridge geographic and cultural gaps in team communications. A good place to start, Nancy says, is on the phone. On today’s Collaboration Pizza Nancy dispels a few myths about multitasking (if you’re Twittering as you read this, you won’t like what you hear), explains how to leverage the power of silence, and shares tips on how to keep the agenda moving and people actively engaged during a virtual meeting. If you’re part of an international team, you’ll be particularly interested in Nancy’s advice about dealing with language barriers and minimizing time zone disadvantages. Perhaps most important, she offers practical suggestions about when to wrap up and say goodbye. (Sooner is better than later.) Nancy is a member of the International Association of Facilitators, the American Society of Training and Development, and the Boston Facilitator’s Roundtable. She is a volunteer facilitator for the Communities for Restorative Justice of Concord, Massachusetts and a cum laude graduate of Temple University in Philadelphia. Contact her at nancy@guidedinsights.com or www.guidedinsights.com Collaboration Pizza is sponsored by @Yakabod Knowledge Sharing Systems. Email host- Aparna Sharma asharma@yakabod.com