The Record - Issue 19: Winter 2020

53 and when, based on the time allocated for each topic. “Having that kind of structured agenda available right in the Teams experience is a prior- ity for us,” says Solberg. “Time tracking will help meeting participants to address each point on their agendas in the allocated time, giving them a higher degree of discipline. Making this kind of contextual information available throughout a meeting is super-important in terms of keeping everyone engaged.” Users can also easily access relevant documents through the new integration, for example ena- bling them to see shared notes and files, as well as personal notes about agenda topics, all while being able to see the other meeting participants. Solberg also believes the new features will add real value to meetings with larger numbers of participants, such as council or board meetings. “Small virtual meetings are typically easier to run, but as they get larger, you need more structure to ensure things flow smoothly, and I think that’s where large organisations have been struggling,” he says. “When there are close to 100 people on a call, you need to make sure that everybody is heard. We are enabling this. We even offer features to securely collect votes on official motions, simplifying the experience for everyone involved.” And how will a return to normality change the work-from-home routines that employees have become accustomed to during the Covid-19 pandemic? “I think there will be a new normal after this,” says Solberg. “People are used to adapting to new working patterns and embracing new dig- ital tools, but the pandemic has brought about a permanent change, with ‘hybrid’ as a key word. While many may choose to return to the office on a full-time or part-time basis, there may be others with health conditions or that live more remotely that may choose to join meetings from home via Teams. “There is also a cost aspect – many organisations fly people all over the world to attend meetings, so they see a real benefit to removing that element of travel. Travel and sustainability considerations will become even bigger trends as a result I think, so we are working to ensure that everyone can participate fully in meetings, whether they are physically present or remote.”