Virtual or In-Person?
You’re looking to book a professional development opportunity for your team. You're not sure what method is best, virtual or in-person. This article will help you to determine which mode of delivery makes the most sense for you and your team.
The Costs + Benefits of Virtual Sessions
A virtual session takes place online, usually on a platform like Zoom, RingCentral, or Microsoft Teams. Typically each of your team members is at home or in their individual offices or workspaces on individual devices such as computers, phones, or tablets. The facilitator is also in their own space on their device.
The Benefits of a Virtual Session
#1 - Cost
Usually virtual sessions are cheaper than in-person sessions because you don't have to book a venue or provide refreshments or meals. There are no supplies and materials costs for the activities. Most activities take place over a tech platform like Miro or Jamboard or Zoom Whiteboards.
#2 - Great for Remote Teams
Virtual sessions also make it possible to convene team members that may be in different cities, states, or even different countries. Virtual sessions are a great option to convene them without paying for travel expenses.
#3 - Less time
Virtual sessions tend to take less time—the industry standard for human beings being in online sessions and staying focused is 2-3 hours. This means that your staff can still have half a work day after they have attended the training, making it possible for your staff who may be doing jobs that require responding to requests or immediate needs of clients not have to take the entire day off.
Drawbacks of Virtual Sessions
#1 - Not the Best Forum for Team or Trust Building
Virtual sessions are not a great modality for team building. It is difficult for team members to have genuine authentic interactions in virtual sessions. The things that build relationships and trust are being silly together, perhaps participating in some play or artistic expression or creativity or sharing thoughts and experiences while looking into each other's eyes and watching body language. These things are not impossible, but are difficult to do through a screen.
#2 - Limited time
Due to the limitations of the human attention span with regard to online sessions it is best to keep online sessions to 2-3 hours, which can make it difficult to have enough time to effectively cover a topic or skill.
#3 - Limited Learning Styles Engagement
It is challenging to incorporate multiple learning styles into virtual sessions. For example, activities that involve movement are more difficult whereas activities that are discussions, lectures, or team challenge style activities are easier to facilitate in that forum. If you have a team that likes to get up and move around and interact, the virtual space is not ideal.
#4 - Requires Some Tech Savviness
Due to the limitations of incorporating certain learning styles into virtual sessions, a facilitator may incorporate digital platforms to make the session more engaging and interactive. If your staff is not well versed in these platforms, or if they have a difficult time learning how to use new platforms quickly, it can be a challenge for them to participate fully in the activities of the day.
Benefits of In-Person Offerings
#1 - Human Interaction
In-person offerings make human connection much easier due to being in the presence of others physically. You have the advantage of being able to see people's full bodies, to watch body language, to look into another person's eyes, making it easier to foster connection and to tackle difficult issues or concepts. In-person sessions are best for team building retreats or for covering sensitive or emotionally charged topics.
#2 - Engagement
It is easier to ensure that all of your team members are engaged in the topic or content of the day when you're in person. There are no cameras to turn off or mute buttons. Everyone has to be present and engaged in the day's activities. It also makes it easier to observe team dynamics in person so that you can design and curate responsive offerings and support for your team based on your observations of them interacting with each other. In addition, it’s easier to do interactive and physical activities in person, which oftentimes is better for cementing learning, driving a point home, or landing an idea.
#3 - Connection with the Facilitator
If the facilitator is someone that your staff is unfamiliar with, it may be a good idea to do at least one session in person if possible. This makes it possible for your team to feel more of a connection to the person leading them through the workshop. This is not a requirement. If the facilitator is skilled, they will be able to create connections virtually or in-person.
#4 - Doesn’t Require Tech
In-person sessions are typically more reliant on analog forms of engagement such as chart paper, markers, post-its, worksheet, art supplies, etc. These things tend to be foolproof and thus make it easier for everyone to participate no matter how tech savvy and makes your session less reliant on Wi-Fi connection.
Drawbacks of In-Person Offerings
#1 - More Costly
In-person sessions require several elements that increase the cost of providing professional development. For example, venue, food, materials (post-its, chart paper, markers, worksheets, etc.), as well as more indirect costs such as commuting to the venue, setting up the space with chairs and tables, breaking down the space after the session, parking costs or subway tickets, etc. This can more than double the cost of a session. In addition, if you have a larger team that is spread out across the city, state, or country—or are bringing in a facilitator from another state—in-person sessions can add more robust travel and lodging costs.
#2 - Requires More Time
Typically an in-person session takes half to a full work day, which may require your team to not be present at a site that they work at or not see any clients that day. Depending on the kind of work you do, that may or may not be prohibitive when it comes to in-person engagement.
#3 - One Day Only
Unlike virtual sessions, in-person sessions are not recorded so the team members that are unable to attend will miss that content and experience, and there's no way to catch them up—other than offering them another opportunity to engage if you offer the session multiple times, which will also increase costs.
#4 - Spreading Illnesses
Bringing people together in-person, especially in the post-COVID era, is always risky in that it exposes the people in the room to illness, especially in winter months or during cold and flu season. It is possible to ask the team to wear masks during the session, however masks can make it difficult to recognize facial expressions and sometimes are a hindrance to team building and communication.
Hybrid Sessions
Hybrid sessions are sessions where some portion of your team is remote and the others are in person OR your team is in-person and the facilitator is online.
If you choose to opt for a hybrid session, there are some best practices that make this format work better:
#1 - Preparation is Key
Whatever the arrangement is between the people who are online and the people who are in person, it should be worked out BEFORE the session. For example, if the facilitator is expected to engage the people online they should be made aware of that in advance so they can incorporate more time into their session to ensure that they can check in with the folks that are online and adapt activities for the group doing the exercises online.
#2 - Provide In-House Support
It's a good idea to have a staff person dedicated to sitting in the room and monitoring the online group so that they can raise their hand for them if they want to participate in the discussion or ask a question.
If you are choosing a hybrid session where everyone is in person except the facilitator, here are some things to keep in mind:
#1 - Have the Appropriate Amount of Devices
If your team is in person and the facilitator online, it is best if everyone is still on a device or small groups are sharing one device. This makes it possible for the facilitator to engage with the people in the room directly. If you have a group of six or less you can project the facilitator’s presentation and screen onto a screen and have one laptop or device sitting at the center of the room so the facilitator can see the participants and folks can hit the unmute button and participate in discussions. If this configuration is what you go with, it's also really important to have someone acting as a logistics person in the space on behalf of the facilitator. They're helping the participants get into groups, they are keeping track of the time, and acting as a communication conduit between the facilitator and the people in the room during small group exercises.
#2 - Test Your Tech In Advance
Make sure that you collect a techrider (a list of necessary tech) from the facilitator so that you know what they will need to have a successful session. We also highly recommend having a speaker to amplify the sound. Sometimes it can be difficult to hear the facilitator in large groups or spaces.
There is no right or wrong way to carry out professional development for your team. What’s most important is to select the most appropriate mode for your team based on the time you have allotted, the size of your team and where they are all located, the sensitivity of the topic, the purpose of the session, and the level of trust. If you're interested in working with E4E, schedule a discovery.