With all the attention on using Zoom these days I figured I’d share how we used it at my local ATD chapter to provide a semi-formal online learning event with the video meeting tool.
Last October we executed a 1/2 day conference using Zoom Video Conferencing platform (for meetings). It went really, really well. And as I said, this was the Zoom account type that most companies have, NOT the version for Education or Webinars.
Here’s what we did, why and for whom:
I sponsored the idea and with the aid of our CNY ATD Chapter Managing Director and my Emerging Committee team we fleshed out the logistics, content, speakers and marketing plan. Take what you will from this if you want to do something like this inside your organization.
A few principles drove our design:
Relevant Content: This was primary. We knew our audience well and their needs (in this case, learning professionals).
Known Experts: Being relatively well connected in this space and having several friends I could tap into made selection and securing talented folks like Mike Taylor, Tracy Parish and Bianca Woods a bit easier.
Short Sessions: The name of the Event was Take3. This title emerged from the idea that we wanted only 3 sessions with a focus on 3 practical takeaways in each. We determined that 15 minutes was ample for each takeaway (objective) and that would make it easier for our speakers to design to. Each session then was 45 minutes with a 15 minute “Open Office” in between. If you do the math, the whole program was only about 3 hours.
Social Engagement: Social connection is important for learning. Because of this, we selected the speakers not only because of their depth of knowledge and presentation skills but because they are really approachable, humble, giving people. These traits come through online, making a distant experience highly engaging and warm. The chat feature in Zoom was open throughout even though mics were off during the presentation. The speakers and attendees engaged in chat and then mics open in the “Open Office” for final Q&A and back-n-forth.
Low Friction Experience: To make the event smooth using a video meeting tool took some thought, specific roles and timing. I was the MC. In addition to doing intros, addressing content questions in the chat and facilitating the 15-minute Open Office transition time, the Host control was mine. I opened the program sharing my screen and then would, on a cue, pass control to each speaker and then back again. Speakers were to have their slide decks up 5 minutes before transition so attendees had a seamless experience. Our Managing Director, Brenda took on the “producer” role behind the scenes. This was tricky as when people signed up they were given the code to attend. So, of course, they could share the code with non-paying attendees. Brenda would monitor who was joining to ensure the registration matched. Additionally, she, being Admin, had to manually turn on and off mics and video. Fortunately, in both cases, attendance was not overwhelming but lessons were learned if we want to try again.
Summary:
Some parting thoughts:
“I was impressed with the caliber of the speakers, content and takeaways. The tech was smooth and there was wonderful responsiveness to the Chat stream. Great mini-conference!” – Amy B.
“Thank you, Mark and Brenda, for your tremendous efforts in making this happen. I was able to join the last session which was a compilation of tips to help with the development of eLearning solutions using Articulate Storyline. I was able to join with no issues easily and took away what I will be able to implement immediately in my development.” – Donna Y.
