When the Covid-19 pandemic removed the possibility of face-to-face meetings, MIWA had to find a new way to communicate with our members. If there is an upside to the pandemic, it’s that it has taken place at a time when technology has enabled us to remain connected at all times, and so we were faced with a wide range of meeting platforms to choose from.
With the National Executive and Regional Executive meetings having taken place recently, Microsoft Teams was selected as our primary virtual meeting tool. Unsurprisingly, many of our executives were a little uncomfortable with this new way of doing things at first, but they have since embraced it wholeheartedly. We are especially proud of how our team has fought through initial teething problems (particularly around bandwidth and connectivity), giving their utmost commitment to ensure seamless, productive meetings. In fact, general consensus holds that online meetings may have several advantages over physical get-togethers, particularly in terms of flexibility, cost and time-saving – factors which have been especially important as members hurry to ensure their workshops are Covid-19 compliant ahead of the Lockdown Level 3 reopening. With this in mind, there was consensus that Microsoft Teams meetings will remain in use even after the pandemic has passed, as shorter, more frequent meetings appear to be a useful tool in helping us meet our objectives.
