Virtual Meeting Basics…. Are Virtual Meetings Here to Stay?

By Ryan Newton

​We have learned association meetings have changed over the last year. In 2020 we saw many Associations push back meetings in the hopes of being able to still meet in person at a later date. Most associations had to adapt due to local gathering restrictions and in-person meetings were not possible.  

As time went on, many HOA’s started using online meeting platforms to allow “face to face” meetings. This has drastically changed the meeting landscape for associations with both positive and negative outcomes.  
With the shift to a more technology-based platform for meetings, we probably won’t be seeing them go away, at least any time soon, even with gathering restrictions being lifted.

There are a lot of benefits to an online meeting format; owners from other locations can attend, trends show that meetings are shorter, managers/staff save time from commuting and have an improved work/life balance, and ownership attendance has increased, helping keep more people informed.

Like with everything, there are negative effects as well; relationships can be harder to foster, voting is more complicated, it is harder to ensure everyone has a chance to be heard, secret attendees (people that can’t be seen) and for some, an online style meeting is not feasible.

Regardless of the pros and cons, meeting format has changed, and it is important to establish clear guidelines on how meetings will be handled moving forward. Below is a list of items managers/boards should review while putting procedures in place for future meetings.

PLEASE NOTE: these are general suggestions and may not be applicable to your HOA. You may want to review with your HOA attorney before making any adjustments to meeting procedures.

Understand Meeting Requirements
Regardless of meeting in person or online, you cannot forget about your notice requirements for meetings. Be sure to review your governing documents and/or state statutes to ensure your notification requirements are met.
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Understand State Law and Update Governing Documents
Work with your association manager or attorney to ensure your rules include the necessary information/changes to how meetings are handled. This could be a resolution or possibly introducing amendments. The purpose for this is not only to make it easy to comply, but also so owners have a clear understanding of how meetings will be handled moving forward. Your attorney can also help you understand what laws are currently in place and how they impact online meetings and how to structure open and closed portions of the meeting.

Create Meeting(s) Format
To help owners and board members understand what to expect, it is important to establish a clear format to the meeting so everyone involved has a chance to be heard. Here are some things to consider:

1. Understand participants needs. This can be different for each community. Some will take nicely to an online only meeting structure. Others will push back and want to meet in person. Depending on your set up, accommodating both may be easy. For example, a community with a meeting room and internet, could allow for in-person and online attendance. Also, communities can alternate between online vs. in-person. For example, if a community meets monthly, it could have one in-person meeting a quarter and then the other two meetings are held online.
2. Choose a platform and stick with it. There are many online platforms to choose from. Zoom is a popular tool, but there is also Google Meet, Google Hangouts, join.me and others. Once you choose your platform, stick with it. The first two meetings may have a bit of a learning curve for residents, but with time it will run more smoothly. 
3. Use platform with phone access. Not everyone has internet. It is safe to say everyone has a phone. Use a platform that allows for owners to call in but try to encourage online participation.  
4. Provide meeting information upfront. This can be accomplished when sending out meeting reminders via email. This is most crucial with your annual meeting. Try to send out the complete meeting packet with the notice for the meeting. This helps get the information in front of owners quickly and well in advance to be better prepared for the meetings. Also, it gives the owners who are on the phone the information in hand since they won’t be able to see a screen.
5. Share your screen. Share your screen so others can view it. Be sure to keep your open and closed meeting documents separate to avoid sharing the wrong information.
6. Login early Log in at least 10 – 15 minutes prior to your meeting start. Encourage owners to do the same. This way you can easily do role call and ensure everyone is accounted for.
7. Inform owners on process for submitting questions/participating. When meeting in person, many HOA’s use an attendance form and a time in the beginning of the meeting for residents to address the management team. We no longer can see everyone and with sometimes spotty internet connections, talking over each other can be a problem. Have a clear process in how owners can be heard:
   1. Use the platform chat feature. Require owners to submit their questions in the beginning of the meeting. The meeting moderator can then either read the questions aloud and answer or ask the user to unmute and discuss their topic.
   2. Set time limits. Let owners know they only have a certain amount of time to discuss their topic. 3-5 minutes should be more than sufficient but still be short enough to get through all of the agenda items.
   3. Make it clear where the closed portion starts. In the beginning of your meeting, you will want to remind owners that at a certain point they will be asked to leave. Once that time comes, make sure everyone that should no longer be on the online meeting is removed. Also, be sure to confirm with your Board Members or other parties participating in the closed portion, that no one else is on their side of the call.
   4. Mute attendees. There is nothing more distracting then hearing someone type, breathe, or talking to someone else when trying to present. Try muting everyone for the majority of the meeting unless they are needing to communicate. This also helps avoid gaffes. We’ve all seen at least a few on YouTube this last year… Let’s avoid those.
8. Have a policy on recording meetings. If the question hasn’t come up, it will at some point. Our recommendation is to avoid recording the video of the meeting. The Minutes are the official record of the meeting and are to record the actions taken. A video recording can be taken out of context. If the board is wanting to record the meeting to refer back to for the purpose of Minutes, set a documentation retention policy that allows for that outlines the purpose of the video recording and how/when it is deleted.

Annual Meetings and Voting
Annual Meetings are typically the most attended meeting by community members each year. With putting this meeting online, it can increase participation from owners, which for most associations, finally makes it feasible to meet quorum with just one meeting. Most Annual Meetings (and some other types of meetings) have a purpose of owners voting on items (budget, board members, etc.). Voting brings in another level of complexity to ensure it is easy and every owner has the ability to cast their vote.
The below items are ways in which you can prepare for Annual (and other) Meetings and how to vote. These are general items to be reviewed in conjunction with your governing documents and state statutes to ensure you are meeting your requirements.

1. Notice: make sure your notice includes the information needed to login into the online platform and the phone number and codes needed to call in. If the notice is sent digitally, make the link a hyperlink in the document so users can just click on it and don’t have to type it out in their browser.
2. Provide meeting documents before the meeting: this is good to send out with your notice.
3. Proxy form: make sure your proxy form includes the information needed to meet requirements. A common language for proxy forms is that they must be submitted prior to the beginning of the Annual Meeting. Whatever the requirement is, make sure it is clear on how they are received. Provide both a digital and mailing option for submitting proxy forms.
4. Voting: this is where some meetings can get complicated. Some of it depends on the item being voted on (board members, amendments, budgets, etc.), but the notice should be clear on the requested vote, how to turn in the form (digital and mailing options), and the deadline of when the form needs to be RECEIVED. A good practice is to require the ballots be returned within 7 calendar days of the meeting. This way it gives time to those who need to mail it.  

 
While we work with hundreds of board members and thousands of residents, there will always be mixed feelings on how meetings are held moving forward. Every manager and board member knows, we cannot make everyone happy. It is our job to ensure we are providing them with information, options to participate in meetings, and following the guidelines specific to our communities to meet those tasks. ​