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HINTS AND TIPSFOR ONLINE FACILITATION

EUROPEAN UNIONEuropean Regional Development Fund

EUROPEAN UNIONEuropean Regional Development Fund

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HINTS AND TIPS FOR ONLINE FACILITATION

By URBACT Experts Ileana Toscano, Sandra Rainero and Eddy Adams

JUNE 2020

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1. INTRODUCTION1.1 Making these hints and tips _41.2 The context _4

2. ABOUT ONLINE ACTIVITIES2.1 Understanding terms, dynamics and features _82.2 Enabling and disabling factors _10

3. FACILITATOR? AVATAR? MEET THE FACILITAR3.1 The changing role of a facilitator _113.2 New rules for a new game _12

4. METHODS AND TECHNIQUES FOR VIRTUAL FACILITATION4.1 Ice-breakers and energisers _174.2 Stakeholder analysis _214.3 Idea generation _234.4 Action Planning _254.5 Presenting and sharing in virtual settings _27

5. A WORD ABOUT PLATFORMS 5.1 Things to consider _325.2 What’s the best platform for us _325.3 What’s out there - and how best to use it? _33

6. FINAL THOUGHTS AND NEXT STEPS _34

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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 MAKING THIS HINTS AND TIPS

This set of resources was produced in the spring of 2020, during the height of the Covid 19 pandemic across Europe. They were a first response to a rapidly changing environment where URBACT networks and ULGs suddenly had to halt their physical meetings. A small core team worked on the content, drawing upon the knowledge and experience of the wider URBACT community.

Although created to meet an urgent, short term need, these tips start to address a long-term question. How will transnational activity be sustained in the light of the Climate Emergency? As we look to reduce our carbon emissions, we are likely to meet face to face less frequently than before. The sustainable future of transnational working is therefore likely to be a blended experience of virtual and physical activities.

This resource anticipates that shift, which is already taking place. As we state at the beginning, it is a small step towards supporting URBACT networks to operate differently. It is, by no means, a definitive guide. However, we hope that it’s a helpful start.

1.2 THE CONTEXT

SMALL STEP TOWARDS NEW URBAN NETWORKS AND COOPERATION

The world is changing. Events like the Climate Emergency and the Covid 19 pandemic urge us to revise behaviours. What does this mean for cities collaborating across Europe? Face to face contact will always matter, but in future working models are likely to be blended: a mix of physical and virtual collaboration. Fortunately, a growing repertoire of methods, technologies and tools allow us to operate in remote settings with increasing effectiveness.

The URBACT community remains committed to transnational cooperation and to supporting the exchange and learning activities that represent the programme’s core business through in-person social interaction and collaboration. In this respect, the main URBACT strategic processes of participatory, integrated urban policy development remain a primary goal, whether they take place in-person or through virtual meetings.

The information and tips contained here represent a first – small - step to rethink the overall URBACT method at a more structural level. It builds on the experience of current networks that are forced to switch their activities online, reflecting a wider trend of using digital and virtual platforms: this is becoming the “new normal” in all facets of our lives.

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Therefore, we start a new journey towards a hybrid form of URBACT’s established methods. It aims to retain existing strengths of the programme’s approach - effective, sustainable and flexible – whilst encouraging innovative practice.

WHO IS IT FOR?

We intend to build the capacity of URBACT Network practitioners who are directly involved in the organization, implementation and facilitation of typical URBACT activities.

> URBACT Local Group (ULG) coordinators > Network coordinators from Lead and other partner cities > Lead Partners and URBACT experts

The resources contained here however, can be useful also for the broader community of urban practitioners interested in participatory urban policymaking.

Our primary audience here is not those who are already conversant with online collaboration. Rather, it is for those taking their initial steps in the design and delivery of online group sessions. But we hope, of course, that there is something useful here for the entire URBACT community.

THE PURPOSE

> Offer a one-stop shop for URBACT and urban practitioners on the basic issues relating to online collaboration: facilitation guidelines, examples of techniques, resources and tools

> Provide some general information on the differences and commonalities between in-person and online activities

> Define the competencies of the virtual facilitator

> Offer some concrete examples of techniques and tools to use in digital and virtual settings

LOOKING AT THE BIG PICTURE AND FOCUSING ON THE URBACT REALITY

Many of us spend increasing amounts of time in online meetings, trying to juggle the many platforms and digital tools in play. Fortunately, there are dozens of, resources, apps, and guides to support our remote work, and we don’t want to duplicate their functions here. Instead, our aim is to give targeted support directed at the URBACT community’s specific needs – with hints and tools that can be useful for urban practitioners even when they are not directly involved in URBACT Networks.

These disruptive digital transformations will have a lasting effect on the URBACT method, the core components of which include:

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Cooperation among cities to develop integrated solutions to common urban challenges. This is done through networking, learning from one another’s experiences, drawing lessons, and identifying good practices to improve urban policies on two levels:

- Transnational (to share, exchange and learn) - Local (to further learn and improve action planning and transfer of good practice in urban policy)

> Participatory, integrated sustainable urban development, underpinned by the cross-cutting principles of equality, equal opportunities or accessibility with a gender perspective: In this respect, the table below is a list of typical URBACT activities that could go virtual whilst still requiring group facilitation and teamwork. Further support on all the listed activities is available on the URBACT Online Toolbox.

TRANSNATIONALNETWORKACTIVITIES

LOCAL ACTIVITIES

TRANSNATIONAL NETWORK MEETINGS URBACT LOCAL GROUP MEETINGS

Stakeholder analysisStudy visits / City walks

Capacity building / training / ExplainingDeep dives

Bilateral meetingsReviewing/assessing

Ideas generationParticipative Decision making and planning

Peer ReviewsULG coordinators training and networking

Webinars for NetworksCoordination meetings

Motivating and keeping teams engaged

Sharing and capitalising transnational activitiesDiscussing / reviewing / giving feedback/ ensuring

all perspectivesDecision making / ranking/prioritising

Ideas generation (adaptation of Good Practice, ideas for planning etc.)

Participative PlanningSmall-group ULG meetings

Motivating and keeping teams engaged

When applying blended or hybrid forms of URBACT activities and processes, it’s good to bear these two simple concepts in mind:

> Tame (ok, well at least ….own) the technology. Stay on track - don’t forget the URBACT values and specific operational context.

THE PERKS AND PREDICAMENTS OF VIRTUAL GET-TOGETHERS

No doubt, meeting online or on your mobile device is “not the same” as doing it in person. We’ll come back to the underpinning reasons why it feels so different! But now we make our case why virtual and digital meetings can be beneficial – in spite of some bewilderment you may find yourself in - for many a reason, whether you’re the facilitator or a participant.

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ONLINE EXPERIENCE FOSTERS EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

Young carers, most often mothers, and people with disabilities, working for municipalities can struggle to attend Transnational Meetings. Combining online meetings with face-to-face ones can encourage a more gender-balanced participation model. The online formula could support the involvement of both male and female staff workers with care responsibilities in the project. Blended meetings could also foster the inclusion of people who struggle with long journeys due to disability. Listening to more voices can help us design more accessible transnational work environments.

This also works also at the local dimension.

ULG members with small children can find it difficult to ensure continuous participation in all meetings, especially if they are planned in the evening or during mealtimes. In most cases this affects women. Disabled stakeholders could benefit by attending meetings from home, overtaking problems of accessibility. This doesn’t of course, mean that our physical meeting spaces should be any less accessible to users. The opportunity of combined physical and online meetings could help all ULG members to make a full and active contribution.

Using online tools to chat, meet and share insights can also help reduce the digital divide. People with reduced access to digital tools or with weaker I.T. skills are disadvantaged in an increasingly digital world. Municipalities can use this opportunity to boost the local digital transition of their communities. They could invite their citizens experiment in an online meetings

formula, also promoting a novel blended communication approach. Creative local initiatives, included those promoting the intergenerational approach, are welcome to foster the participation of the most excluded such as the elderly and people without ICT tools.

BENEFIT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHSGrowing number of different options available, cost savings, decrease of travel, reduced carbon emissions, improvement of digital skills for business, save time, efficiency

CHALLENGESThe digital divide, broadband or flawed connections, social divide, multitasking, does not replace completely in person, different rules of engagement, etiquette, proficiency, limitations or rules against use of digital platforms especially for public agencies / municipalities

OPPORTUNITIES Synchronous and asynchronous options, open source, variety of tools and meetings, learning platforms, management, planning and development

REWARDS Real time, some activities get immediate results

EFFECTIVENESS

EFFICIENT- cost efficient RELIABLE – possibility to record without losing content on the wayUSER-CENTERED – taking account of gender, disability and translation issuesAPPROPRIATE – tailored to precise user needsINTEGRATED – it can be blended with in-person meetingsEQUITABLE – peripheral location no longer a disadvantage

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2. ABOUT ONLINE ACTIVITIES

2.1 UNDERSTANDING TERMS, DYNAMICS AND FEATURES

CLEANING UP OUR TERMS: DISTINCTIONS ABOUT VIRTUAL, DIGITAL, ONLINE, TOOLS AND METHODS

Science fiction has accustomed us to an array of virtuality that goes from avatars, holograms and space-bending devices. Such technology may seem far-fetched, but it actually gives us imaginative examples of how the virtual world, supported by digital technology, is developing and how it is already transforming our lives. Working with remote or spatially dispersed or distributed teams implies using TOOLS that operate via technology, mostly through DIGITAL means.

The term VIRTUAL refers to the optical convergence of rays that create the illusion of images formed by software or systems that use technology to create such images via video/audio calls, or in other DIGITAL settings such as Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality.

Other tools that we use in dispersed work (email, electronic documents etc) are DIGITALISED content. The actuality today is that we are spending a lot of time in front of a screen and connected ONLINE. This is how we can simply call all these virtual and digital activities of conferencing, emailing, producing content.

If Zoom, YouTube, Outlook, Google docs and WhatsApp are ONLINE tools, the way and the purpose for which we use them gives structure to our online working METHODS.

We use Google Hangouts, or GotoMeeting as methods to meet and discuss in real time (synchronous), Outlook for Emails and other production software to communicate, inform or produce in a self-timed (Asynchronous) way. Methods therefore comprise a knowledge of the mechanics of online tools and our choice to apply them for a task or result.

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HUMAN COMMUNICATION GOES ONLINE

Let’s not be misled by the notion that we need to forget about all we do and know about communicating when we go online. Many of us are digital adopters rather than natives, this means that when we go online we tend to replicate the behaviours and attitudes of in-person meetings. In virtual/digital settings the essentials of interpersonal communication remain the same. In this regard, plenty of literature and established theories in the fields of psychology and social studies such as the pragmatics of communication of the Palo Alto Group, constructivist theories and Neuro Linguistics Programming up to neuroscience research all indicate universal mechanisms of human communication and interaction, that - from very different study fields - tend to converge at least around few common principles.

Looking at the basics of human communication gives the opportunity to explain why - with the currently widely available and affordable technology- “online meetings and work are not the same” and pinpoint how the communication environment is unique in online meetings.

Ever heard of the saying “monkey see, monkey do”? Neuroscience has proven a scientific base of this: according to extensive research, the so-called mirror neurons (initially studied in monkeys) play an essential role in social life and are key for the child development, as well as relationships and learning. Mirror neurons are types of brain cells that are activated by incoming sensory information (a movement, a sound, a smell) and reflect the observed action like in a mirror. This is the reason why we tend to weep when someone is crying or giggle if someone else is. They are embedded in a complex network of brain activity, connecting with other parts in the brain that process meaning. The limitation of visual or other sensory activities (like watching the facial expressions of someone during an online meeting) also limits the capability of mirror neurons to carry out their important learning and social function.

If neuroscience is too much for you, keep in mind these pragmatic communication fundamentals:

Communication is a different word to describe behaviour; it has both the function to convey and exchange content (information, knowledge, orders, feelings etc.) and to establish the ground for human relations (colleagues, hierarchy, friends, other roles etc.). In URBACT, our meetings are shaped in a way to embody the main principles and goals of the Programme: to share and learn, to plan or transfer (content) and to do these in a peer-to-peer or expert/facilitator to group (relation).

During meetings, our body and non- verbal language tally with the largest chunk of what is communicated to others, and the tone we use accounts for much more than all the words we say. This is why, for example, the use of symbolic or explicative visuals during presentations make them more effective and help convey the content of communication so that our interlocutors give meaning to our communication. Activity or inactivity, words or silence all have message value, and online the perception of all this is skewed.

Truth is that we have five senses that we consciously or unconsciously use during our meetings and interpersonal communication: hearing, vision, touch, taste and smell. In online meetings we make a limited use of our senses, mostly reduced to hearing and reduced vision. This also enhances what is known as “digital fatigue”. Available virtual technology can only replicate visual and auditory means of communication. In order to make the best of online meetings we need to focus, refine the use of certain means and make the best of these two senses… and be creative in finding ways to bring back the other senses into the virtual world.

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2.2 ENABLING AND DISABLING FACTORS

The term noise may best describe the disturbances to the communication process. During in-person meetings it may be a particularly noisy AC, someone whispering or moving around during a presentation, a cell phone ringing, too much light or too dark, an under- or overheated room. All these external sources disrupt the communication flow, divert the attention and make communication less effective. In face-to-face meetings, most of these disruptions may be handled quite easily because most of the time you can make adjustments both to the behaviour of participants and the environment.

Online meetings also have typical noise sources and they refer to the environment, which is limited to …the hardware: the screen, the camera and the microphone but also include the software and its quality.

First, noise can be produced by the slowness and low reliability of the online connection, but other sources relating to the personal behaviour of participants, such as distractions in the house, increased multitasking, but also a different screen attention span and concentration, and finally proficiency of use the tools and personal/cultural bias against virtual activities. Online meetings, especially when people are at home, allow for little direct control in terms of adjustments of the environment. For example, you need to rely on the stability of the WI-FI /connection and software, but you are allowed greater leeway in terms of behaviour and organisation/preparation of the meeting and its structure.

COMPARATIVE TABLE ON IN-PERSON AND DIGITAL/ONLINE SETTINGS

WHAT AVAILABLE IN-PERSON AVAILABLE ONLINE

READ NON-VERBAL CLUES AND COMMUNICATION

USE MANY OF THE5 SENSES

CREATERELATIONSHIP

USE PAUSESAND SILENCE

USE THE BODYAND PROPS OR OBJECTS

RECORD INSTANTLYAND SHARE

IMPROVISE

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YESNO

NO

NO

NO

YES, BUT...

YES, BUT...

YES, BUT...

USE PAUSESAND SILENCE

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3. FACILITATOR? AVATAR?MEET THE FACILITAR

In the previous section we introduced the context for these resources. We provided some definitions dealing with communication, impact and blended way for organising interactive activities.

In this chapter we wish to define how the role of a facilitator will change when meetings have to be organized online. When we say “facilitator” we think of project coordinators, local animators and experts who have a key role in providing interactive meetings to foster the participatory process both in the transnational and local dimension.

Although the tools for organising online meetings are different from the physical ones, the successful facilitation of participative group discussions requires similar tasks and approaches. This still rests on our ability to facilitate the discussion, lead the group, and mobilise positive energies for sharing problems and designing common visions for a better future.

To see how we do this online it’s time to shine the spotlight on the role of the facilitator who is now called to work in the virtual dimension.

3.1 THE CHANGING ROLE OF A FACILITATOR

The Facilitator is charged with organising and leading interactive sessions, fostering good effective collaboration between participants. S/he is responsible for ensuring the exchange of learning and enabling the achievement of expected results. The facilitator is the designer and animator of participative processes that support democratic and engaging approaches for co-designing common solutions. S/he accompanies groups of people, helping them navigate the process.

In the URBACT context, the main facilitators at Transnational Level are the Lead and Ad-hoc Experts and at the local dimension the ULG coordinator, however also Lead and Project partners may need to facilitate meetings or events. In a changing dimension where meetings have to be organized in a virtual way, the facilitator maintains the same role where s/he is asked to:

> Deliver engaging meetings; > Foster the creation of a welcoming, friendly environment; > Use different animation techniques to involve all participants in the discussion; > Animate the stakeholders in the co-design processes.

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Clearly, the facilitator in leading a virtual interactive process cannot count on the ability to use body language as an important tool to help shape the discussion. In the virtual space s/he cannot use the typical physical elements of the facilitation methodologies such as the room setting or the facilitator’s dress code. In an online setting, wearing casual clothes will not convey the message that the atmosphere should be relaxed and informal.

As we’ve noted in previous sections, s/he can only count on the limited use of 2 human senses: hearing and sight. But there are other skills and competences for creating effective and engaging virtual meetings. Key amongst these are:

> A clear understanding of the group and the meeting objectives;

> Knowledge of the technology and suitable platforms;

> Confidence using visualization tools to help participants understand complex concepts using images or infographics;

> Ability to make meetings short but effective;

> Capacity for empathy and emotional intelligence to create a relaxed supportive learning environment;

> And…. the composure to stay calm in the face of technical hiccups.

Moreover, each facilitator has her/his own style of facilitation, which stems from her/his values, skills, attitudes and professional field of expertise. It can also be shaped by the type of groups s/he is working with. This personal and professional uniqueness cannot and should not be completely altered when someone creates their Facilitar (Hybrid between facilitator and avatar). The virtual facilitator indeed builds on and rethinks her/his strengths, weaknesses, as well as those of the ULG members or partner cities, adapting them to the remote situation.

3.2 NEW RULES FOR A NEW GAME

BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR A POSITIVE ONLINE EXPERIENCE

Facilitating an online meeting should be considered a different way to play the game. Like all games, there are tips that can help you achieve success.

First of all, there some helpful rules for fostering a positive online experience.

To avoid distractions, noise and confusion it’s good to share basic principles with participants before the meeting together with the agenda and the invitation, as suggested by Nils Sheffler from the ALT/BAU network:

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> “Don’t get distracted” – Mute your smartphone, telephone, close your door.

> “Ensure a good sound experience” – Use headphones and mute when you are not talking.

> “Foster a better group feeling” – Turn on the gallery view so you can see everyone.

> “Contribute for a better discussion” – Raise your hand and wait till the addresses the word to you. Say someone’s name if you are addressing a question directly to a person.

10 TOP TIPS FOR ONLINE MEETINGS

Virtual meetings can be stressful for participants. Stressed, anxious people learn less well and absorb information less effectively. What can we do to make sure our online meetings encourage participants to relax and engage effectively?

Perhaps our biggest learning point so far echoes the motto of the architect Mies van der Rohe: “Less is More.” When planning an online meeting a facilitator should be wary of packing the agenda too much. There should be space to pause, to reflect and to take breaks, acknowledging the intensity of online activity.

Beyond this overarching message, here are 10 easy but useful tips to help facilitators organise engaging and fruitful meetings that foster participant interaction.

1. FOCUSED MEETINGSWhether in the physical or digital space, effective meetings start with clear objectives. The online meeting has to be organized to tackle specific topics to discuss with participants. It’s recommended to focus on a reduced number of issues to keep participants’ attention high and to frame a useful and productive discussion.

2. WELL ORGANISED AGENDA - WITH CLEAR TIME PLANThis is always a key point of successful meetings. Even more so for the online version. The facilitator needs to prepare 2 agendas: 1 for participants, very clear and well organized to be sent some days before the meeting and 1 for herself/ himself and the co-moderators, clarifying who has to do what and when. The latter will detail the facilitation team roles and responsibilities, including the technical aspects. During the meeting, the timing of the agenda has to be followed meticulously to avoid delay and having to miss parts of the agenda.

3. SHORTER TIMINGVirtual meetings can generate state of anxiety. They can also be exhausting! Short online sessions are more effective. The timing for a good online meeting ideally varies between 30 to 90 minutes. In the longer version, you should build in a break, even with fresh coffee!

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4. CO-FACILITATED SESSIONSIdeally, the facilitator will create a facilitation team whose members will co-facilitate the online meeting with different roles during the session. Typically, the team will comprise a lead moderator/facilitator charged with leading the session, a technical assistant to manage the platform tools (polls, voting, Q&A, etc) and help solve any technical problems, and a third person to filter participant content (i.e. chat contributions and generate instant reports).

In the URBACT framework, the Transnational Network Meetings, the Lead Expert could involve the Ad-hoc experts for co-leading the session or someone from the city partners as co-moderators. In case of the ULG, the coordinator could co-facilitate the session with 2 other members, giving a specific role to them during the interactive online meeting. As we’re all on a steep learning curve here, people are often keen to assume an active role as a way to build their own skills and experience.

According to Béla Bèzy, from the TechRevolution Transfer Network, “As a facilitator you have limited tools to coordinate the meeting, feel the vibe and intervene when necessary - so you need to be on top of your game, be aware what is happening, and intervene if something is going wrong. Having someone who supports you as facilitator (with technical issues, managing the online voting, whiteboarding, etc.) really makes a world of difference”.

5. MAKE FULL USE OF AVAILABLE ONLINE TOOLSThe facilitator should exploit the online tools available in the platforms as a new way to collect information or boost the follow-up (see tip 6). There are online flip-charts, surveys (to be submitted before the meeting) polls, etc. As these are quick and easy to set up, they provide opportunities to check the group’s situation throughout the process. Sessions can also be recorded, enabling us to build a bank of experiences and to share with missing participants.

6. USE OF VISUAL FACILITATIONIn virtual meetings we need to focus the attention on the topic of our discussion, visualization tools such as slide decks, pictures or questions written in capital letters could help concentration and encourage higher focus levels. Some online events employ graphic facilitators to produce a visual capture of the key points.

7. STIMULATE DISCUSSIONExperienced facilitators are comfortable with silent moments in physical meetings. These can be used in a variety of ways. However, silence is harder to manage in online sessions. At times, technical glitches or small misunderstandings between speakers can lead to blips in the flow. However, these are generally minor issues.

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It is more awkward when the discussion dries up. Although we have advised not to ‘overpack’ the content, the facilitator should make sure that the flow and logic are coherent. As ever, it’s a question of balance – and experience. At the design stage, the facilitator should clearly identify and brief the key contributors, bearing in mind that a mix of voices is refreshing. As ever, bear in mind the gender balance here too. Also, think carefully about effective ways to bring a contribution to life – again perhaps through images, objects and unexpected cues.

Experience has also shown that although we discourage wordy PowerPoint slides, some text is helpful in supporting participants to follow the thread – particularly if there are sound quality issues.

8. KEEP ATTENTION LEVELS HIGHKeeping participant attention levels high during virtual meetings is the main challenge for moderators. Providing unexpected elements during the session can help with this. Playful short sessions for Icebreaking and group energizing can foster a friendly and relaxed atmosphere among participants (see 4.1). It can also help build team spirit.

“With online meetings, participants’ presence is reduced to thumbnail talking heads, and meetings’ attractiveness should be enhanced by rotating moderation, surprise guests, using physical objects such as a timer in additional windows”, says François Jégou, the Lead Expert of the BioCanteens Transfer Network, in “How to re-design online collaboration?”.

9. RECORD SESSIONSThe online meeting offers the opportunity to record the session, giving to others the possibility to watch and listen to later on. Often, it is difficult to watch recorded meetings in their entirety. If you have the technical capacity in house, it can be worthwhile to produce a short edited highlights video of the session.

10. SHARE A POSTCARD OF THE ONLINE EXPERIENCEThink of taking a screenshot of participants, in virtual mode, as a good way to fix the memory of the participation at a common discussion! These outputs can also be used on social media to let the world know that your work continues.

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4. METHODS AND TECHNIQUES FOR VIRTUAL FACILITATION

Section 3 painted a picture of the virtual facilitator. We’ve seen that although this is a big shift, lots of our well-established rules apply. Detailed planning still matters. So too, do clear objectives. Like facilitation in the physical space, our online confidence and ability grow with practice. In time, what starts as a steep uphill curve becomes the new normal. Along the way we appreciate the difference between ‘real’ time and online time. We better understand group energy levels and we become adept at enabling the flow of sessions. In short, we master our craft anew.

But what about tools? What activities and methods can we bring to our work to support our networks to get good results?

Previous sections have explored our new working context and examined the principles of effective facilitation in the digital setting. The final section spends time considering the available platforms. In this section we take a close look at the activities that URBACT networks typically engage in, reflecting on the tools and methods available to us in our online meetings and events.

In URBACT we can typify some situations when online meetings occur:

> Meeting with an established dispersed/remote group – examples: Transnational meetings going online, capacity building or monitoring meetings with ULG coordinators

> Meeting with local stakeholders – example: ULG meetings

> Meeting for the first time with a new group – examples: Kick-off meetings, coordination meetings for project managers or new staff

> Dissemination (local) or capacity building / training – example: a meeting where the ULG meet other stakeholders to explain, communicate/ divulgate specific topic/results

> As to the typical activities of the Networks, we might assume that a facilitator will have somewhere between 8 to 20 participants in such meetings. This may be different for capacity-building, dissemination, or other kinds of meeting such as webinars.

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4.1 ICEBREAKERS AND ENERGISERS

PUMP UP THE GROUP’S SPIRIT!

Effective icebreakers and energisers are among the facilitator’s essential tricks of the trade, and they can go from quite simple small-talk or breakouts to more physical or articulated activities. Choosing if and how to use them once again reflects the facilitation style and the atmosphere that you intend to create before you move on or back to the “real business” of the meeting.

Icebreakers and energisers in meetings are like Capital letters, indents, punctuation marks, and new lines in a book. They help support the group dynamics, set the mood, and pace the interaction depending on the participants in the online meeting, their number and individual characteristics, and roles.

HOW THICK IS THE ICE?

Icebreakers and energizers perform many functions in meetings. Their spontaneous or organized use reflects social norms and human behaviour that are typical of group formation and performance: They facilitate:

> Introductions and mutual exchange of information on the participants > Establishment of relations and communication lines > Trust building and sense of belonging

They may also provide ways to:

> Put down a marker for a programme – “this is how we do things” > Define the blueprint or the trademark for the meeting’s tone, purpose and results > Send a signal that the mood music is changing > Regenerate attention and creativity > Take pressure off > Break down conflict > Foster mind- or playfulness.

In virtual settings, the same basic rules on icebreakers and energisers that pertain to physical meetings apply. So too, do the general points of attention already described in the previous section such as simplicity, rules about using technology and – more generally - the principle that participation is always voluntary.

In transnational settings you especially need to bear in mind cultural factors or the comfort zone of participants: with such groups it’s better to use visual approach; if you use humour, stick to basic and neutral issues that lower the risk of offending.

For recurring meetings, for example ULG periodical meeting, it’s good to establish an “energising” routine, using some of the suggested activities or creating your own.

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You should think about your icebreakers in advance, as part of prep work, and rehearse the technical aspects.

Here are some basic technical functions for ice-breaking activities that you might want to make available before the meeting starts, they are basically the same you use in many other activities of virtual facilitation:

> A virtual flipchart (a whiteboard such as Zoom, templates in Miro or Mural, if you work with a Google suite environment an empty Google doc, or Google slides or Jamboard will work)

> A way to share multimedia material online. If you use a “share” function of your videoconferencing platform, make sure that audio and -if relevant – video sharing from your computer works. Perform a dry run to check the sharing.

> It may be useful for some teams to create a WhatsApp group or list where you send links directly to mobile devices.

Below you will find some virtual icebreakers that can be used for new or dispersed groups.

CHITCHAT / SMALL TALK

To set the stage and create connections you can start a meeting by asking or sharing simple information among the participants to break the ice.

1. You can start with simple questions requiring a simple or one-word answer:

“What’s the adjective /colour that describes your work or life since we last met?”“Whom did you miss most from the team? Why?”

If the team is new, ask personal and professional questions:“What are you best at doing at your job?”“What adjective would you use to describe yourself, and what do others normally use?”

If you use this technique, ask your participants to write directly on a prepared template or sheet on the virtual board, or if you don’t use tools that allow multiple people to access them, collect or have your co-facilitator collect their answers and put them on a shared board.

If you want inspiration on what to ask, you can go here for plenty of pre-prepared questions.

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2. Sherlock Holmes

This works well for new or newly formed teams and you can use it as icebreaker or as energiser during the meeting if the work is intense and you need to cool down.

You will need to prepare this in advance, by contacting each participant and asking them one secret that they think the others do not know and that they are willing to share. Then prepare a board or a table.

State or show the secret and ask participants to say or write on the board or the chat whose secret it is. At the end, the secret’s owners will have to reveal themselves and tell the story of the secret.

A popular variation is to ask participants to share three facts concerning themselves, two of which are true, and one isn’t. This is also called “two truths and a lie”. Ask another team member to guess what is true or false, this continues until the lie is uncovered. Yet another version is Hidden Talents. Participants cite something they’re really good at, which people might not expect. They have to guess who is who. It can also tease out gender stereotypes!

You can also use polls or quizzes to play these games.

POLLS

Polls are another way to share information, measure the feeling and mood of the team, as well as to softly introduce specific issues or topics that you may want to tackle during your meeting.

Polling requires, needless to say, preparation of questions and answers, you will have to do it in advance. You can use the small talk games described above and transform them into polls, but you can create other questions for opinions, feelings and standings. Polls are also great for democratic decision-making (see section on consensus building).

The most popular videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom and Cisco Webex have built-in functions that allow polling, otherwise there are separate platforms that allow real-time, including Google forms, slido or Mentimeter.

QUIZZES

We don’t mean quizzes like in school, or do we? Whether they are structured as personality tests or forms to check knowledge or inputs, they are normally a fun way to gamify the meeting and activate attention, sometimes curiosity and creativity, and (why not?)...friendly competition.

As for polls, prep work is needed to create quizzes, and in virtual meetings the use of quizzes normally requires that participants use two screens or two devices. Two screens or devices is

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the easiest way to juggle through different windows and applications. If you send a link to your WhatsApp group, this may become easier and faster to open and take the quiz on the mobile and watch the common screen or results on the other device.

There are some cool free online tools to create quizzes and personality tests, but you could also use ready-made ones, just go on your search engine type “personality tests” and you will find thousands of such tests ready to be taken.

Some tools to create quizzes include: Kahoot and Google forms, and popular platforms such as Typeform. There are also many other options from survey platforms such as SurveyMonkey.

1. “Get to know yourself and others” quizzes

You choose or create a personality test and ask participants to take it, then you can share on the screen the personality type options and ask (in your chat or through a raised hand function) to share the results. This kind of icebreaker is not about the results but about creating momentum for sharing and setting the mood for the meeting.

For the URBACT Transfer Network Campus (April-June 2019), a personality test was created on Uquiz on learning styles.

2. “Check and introduce topics of the meeting” quizzes

You can also create a quiz that covers the topics of your meeting (Kahoot is game-based and fun in this regard, but you can use any other platform). For example, if you have a meeting when you need to work on the progress of a specific task and want to make sure that all participants are on the “same page”, you may ask a few questions regarding the task ahead.

While this activity is fun, it is also a good way also for the facilitator to get information on issues that may require attention or more time during the meeting.

CREATE HYBRID ACTIVITIES

If you are one of those facilitators who like to use creative tools or simply want to bring the outside world into the screen (yes it may be boring and limiting to sit in front of your screen even when you are motivated to participate in a virtual meeting), all the activities that we have mentioned above can be carried out with different variations, by using simple props and visual or multimedia material.

For example, instead of small-talk questions you can ask your participants to share objects that relate to their environment, moving the camera, or showing close-ups of an object that has significance. You can ask to send pictures (for example on WhatsApp group and showing it on the screen using WhatsApp for Desktop, in this way you’ll avoid everyone looking at their phones and remain on the screen).

The objects are the cue for sharing meaning and breaking the ice. It could be anything: from

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makeshift protective masks, to other accessories like toothbrushes or shoes, or different ob-jects like books, food etc.

For polls and quizzes you can also use pictures, emojis or memes instead of written answers.

How do feel our plan is going since last time we met?

Visual and auditory props can therefore be used also to this purpose.

Finally, energisers can also get physical; there’s no reason why you should not use your body other than your eyes and fingertips. These types of activities are beneficial for the sedentary nature of virtual meetings. For example, you can put on some music and ask – open micro-phones – to sing along, dance or clap hands.

You can organize a short “stretching out time”, maybe asking someone in the group to lead this, stand up from your chair, or flex your arms using books or get up and get your tea/coffee mug. The connection between the body movement and the mind will fire some brain cells and help increase the energy level.

4.2 STAKEHOLDER ANALYSIS

Knowing who your stakeholders are is key in participatory and integrated (sustainable) urban planning. Also, this is probably one of the most challenging aspects of the URBACT method and in general of the planning process. Stakeholder analysis means that you need to look at, involve or manage a wide array of individuals or representatives of institutions and interest groups. Not only will you need to identify your stakeholders, but also assess which ones you absolutely need on board, those that you need to encourage and those that you need to placate in order to move forward.

Importantly, Stakeholder Analysis is a planning step that may be used in many different mo-ments of the URBACT network’s life, such as:

> Creation of the ULG > Action planning activities that require extensive collaboration > Transfer planning or implementation

Because the involvement of stakeholders has such a crucial role in the URBACT networks, the programme promotes Stakeholder Analysis as one of the basic tools for city practitioners.

Among the many possibilities and tools, three techniques with related templates have been used by several URBACT networks: The Stakeholders’ Interest Analysis, the Stakeholder’s influence Matrix and the Stakeholders’ Ecosystem Map. All these techniques can be trans-posed for online settings. While the Stakeholders’ Interest analysis is more linear, the Matrix and the Mapping are more visual. The choice to use one or another, as always, depends on the complexity of the issue and on the group you facilitate.

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1. Stakeholder’s interest analysis

This is probably the most “linear” tool to be used. It’s a simple table with four columns where for each identified issue and identified category of stakeholder, on each column the partici-pants analyse and write down on these three topics of analysis:

StakeholdersInterests and how they

are affected by the issue

Capacity and motivation to bring

about change

Possible actions to address stakeholder

interestsStakeholder 1Stakeholder 2

Etc.

This tool is easily workable online. Like the following two tools, the preparation of a shared template is the first step in order to use it as a canvas for joint work. You can use a simple shared Google doc or slide or a customised board on Miro, (Jamboard - if you use Google tools also does the trick). For this method, which may require some time to be completed in a collaborative way, it may be useful to use a synchronous /asynchronous method for filling up the table. For example, you may share the table before the joint meeting and have participants work on their table by populating it, so that during the meeting there are already pre-elaborated individual or small-group analyses to discuss and to feed into the plenary debate.

2. Stakeholder’sinfluencematrix

The importance/ influence Matrix is a tool used to prioritise stakeholders, to discuss and think of ways to deal with them according to their level of interest and influence the issue you are working on.

3. Stakeholder’s ecosystem map

The Stakeholder Map is similar to the Matrix, and is visually made of concentric circles, where the issue at stake is at the centre. It can be used as an add-on to the stakeholders’ matrix or as an alternate method, to better place stakeholders (their interests and influence) and policy sectors visually closer or further away from the core issue.

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For the tools above, you can easily draw or find templates on collaborative platforms such as Miro and Mural and use sticky notes, you can also create and share simple Google slide/docs in advance and on the virtual meeting screen. You can alternate group breakdown and plenary sessions.

In both cases (matrix and mapping) you may want to prepare some guiding questions for discussion such as:

> Are these stakeholders going to be helpful for your purpose or are they going to oppose or hinder it?

> Are there potential allies that do not know / are unaware of your project? > How engaged are the stakeholders and how engaged should they be?

> Do we need to have all stakeholders at the same time?

> What kind of engagement should we foresee? Consultation, information, approval, act or perform specific tasks or role?

4.3 IDEA GENERATION

BRAINSTORMING

“Brainstorming” could be considered the most used participative methodology, because it allows each participant to take part in the discussion by writing his/her opinion on, for example, a sticky note. The facilitator is charged with collecting all contributions, reading and clustering them to go from the divergent phase to a set of common propositions. This technique could be used for problem analysis or sharing common visions.

For setting up a virtual brainstorming session, the facilitator could create a group discussion by inviting participants to take part by using an online platform (among others: Miro.com, Zoom.com, Webex.com). These tools allow participants to work synchronously to create a virtual canvas for sharing ideas by using virtual sticky notes and other accessories.

But, beyond the platform and the online tools, as in traditional physical facilitation, what is most important is the facilitation technique. Here are some tips to follow for effective online idea sharing:

• One Easy and clear Question: participants need to focus on specific tasks. The best way to obtain clear and focused answers is to provide easy, short and clear questions. It’s better if this question is related to only one topic linked to the goal of the session. In a virtual session, the facilitator could use the ICT tools by writing the question in the screen in capital letters. Reading the question helps participants think of better ideas to share.

• 1 minute to think 1 answer: the facilitator should give time to participants to think the answer. A good approach for finding innovative ideas is to ask them to prepare 3 answers

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and then select the best one to share with other participants

• Write the answer: participants have to write their answer in the virtual sticky-note. If a person would like to share more than 1 answer, it is important to remember that only 1 answer has to be written in 1 virtual sticky-note. This approach helps the clustering stage.

• Read out all the answers and ask for an explanation: in the virtual interactive session this step should be easy. In a ‘normal’ setting, facilitators might struggle to read some participant’s handwriting. Fortunately, reading ideas on virtual sticky-notes should be clearer and faster. But, as this is a crucial phase of the ideas generation where different opinions can help tackle common problems, it is important to give the floor to participants to explain their point of view. While doing so, the facilitator should try to contain the discussion and keep a close eye on timing.

• Take time to cluster: facilitators need time to cluster the answers and make patterns visible. It’s good to invite a pair of participants to do this, in both the standard and virtual settings.

• Agreement and conclusion: in the end, the facilitator needs the consensus of participants on the emergent clusters. If something is not clear, the facilitator should be flexible in modifying clusters or moving some ideas from one cluster to another. Again, digital tools allow for this period of exchange and reflection – although it may take more or less time than when we are in a room together.

• Recordingandfinalshot: one major asset of a virtual meeting is the opportunity to record the session to let those who couldn’t attend to watch what has been done. The recording can also help the facilitator in the reporting phase.

• Last but not least: don’t forget to take a screenshot of your virtual meeting! Capture the moment for posterity!

The methodology described in this section could be used also for organising Focus or Topic groups, dealing with a specific topic or with a homogeneous group of stakeholders.

Some of the techniques set out here are also employed using the virtual OPERA model described in Section 4.4.

VOTING, PRIORITISATION AND CONSENSUS BUILDING

Clear decisions from the clustering process are often needed to help drive the future stages of a participatory process. These are taken by participants through voting the on the priority clusters. In the virtual setting, this important phase for taking common democratic decisions could be managed by launching an open poll, where participants can select their favourite options.

The facilitator should prepare the poll, which is a standard tool of most digital platforms. Participants are then invited to vote on a limited number of clusters. The number of available votes to choose the proposals has been fixed by the facilitator (for instance, from 3 to

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6 options of voting). Once launched, the online poll gives a short timeframe for making the choice (e.g. 2 minutes). When the time is over, the poll shows the results with the most votes.There are other platforms and virtual boards (MIRO for example) that allows voting in more visual way, but simple virtual hand raised or using emoji may be enough.

Then, the facilitator should select the most popular suggestions and drive the discussion to generate deeper insights on those topics.

Prioritisation is a common tool of participatory processes for building consensus by playful and visual method. This helps participants take collective decisions, driving the process towards results.

N.B. The facilitator should bear in mind that organizing an online poll requires time. S/he could ask the technical co-facilitator/supporter to prepare it while discussing the content of the clusters or making a break with an energising exercise!

4.4 ACTION PLANNING

Action planning is a core component of all URBACT networks. As the name suggests, it’s the main output from the Action Planning Networks (APNs) in the form of the Integrated Action Plan every partner creates. In the Transfer Networks, the replication of the Good Practice has required a planning dimension, first elaborated in the Transfer Plan.

URBACT applies a particular set of principles to its action planning activity. The programme expects networks to adopt a participative approach. This means ensuring that the right stakeholders are involved, as we’ve already discussed. It also requires an awareness of the groupdynamics – for example around power imbalances – and an awareness of how to address these, as a facilitator. You don’t have to be involved in an URBACT network to apply the method, action planning techniques are useful to urban stakeholders at large involved in defining or re-defining participatory urban policymaking.

In the physical space, various factors can be applied to support this. The layout of the room, for example, and the allocation of seating, can be used to strategically place people. Also, varying levels of interactivity and group sizes can help to sustain energy levels but also to manage any more dominant personalities in a discreet way. Good facilitation is often about knowing when to control and knowing when to let go.

The digital setting is different in many ways. Yet although some familiar tools are not an option, others are in play – and we don’t just mean the mute button for talkative participants!

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Under the broad heading of action planning, URBACT networks adopt a wide variety of tools and approaches. There is a growing number of online platforms and tools to support these, but for the purpose of this section we will focus on three which are popular within the URBACT community. The first is the Planning Canvas which has already been used by a number of transfer networks including Tech Revolution and BluAct. This was originally developed as a tool to support business planning, closely linked to the lean start-up culture. The canvas is a highly visual tool that typically supports a collaborative approach to populating the key fields of a business plan.

Although the collaborative experience differs, there is a good range of digital tools offering canvas templates that can easily be adapted for use by URBACT networks. Two of the most effective, in our experience, are MIRO and MURAL. Both offer easy to use canvas templates that allow for low-threshold collaboration.

In lean management use, the canvas is one of a number of complementary tools used to support collaborative planning and decision-making. Another is the sprint method. This is a short intensive (usually five-day) process for answering critical business questions through design, prototyping, and testing ideas with customers. The output is a prototype that can be used to gauge the potential of a product or service. Innova:Tor is one of the transfer networks exploring the use of these such business planning tools. An insight into the options for adapting these to the digital environment is here. Another widely used planning tool is the customer journey. This is only one example of the repertoire of service-design approaches associated with systems thinking. Like the canvas, these tools have evolved from commercial usages but are now commonplace within the public sector. Basically, the approach is to create a persona, the profile of a target service user, which is then used to design the service experience around. This approach places great emphasis on customer feedback loops as part of a cycle of continuous improvement. Again, MIRO, MURAL and other tools have easy to use templates for these client-centred approaches.

Although each of these tools is being used by transfer networks, a more commonly used methodology is the OPERA method. This is a collaborative method for action planning. The process applies a number of steps, through which a group generates ideas, filters, prioritises then sets actions addressing an identified challenge. The online toolbox fully describes the method, but the key steps, are:

> Own suggestions

> Pair suggestions (participants share and combine ideas)

> Explanation – where pairs share their ideas with the group

> Ranking, where the group prioritises the range of options

> Arranging, where the facilitator, together with the group, makes the final schedule

One of the strengths of OPERA is that it requires different types of interventions whilst encouraging a dynamic within the group. The final result often has a strong sense of ownership.

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OPERA is an effective planning tool that can be adapted for the virtual setting. For example, MIRO and MURAL have the facility to design an OPERA grid, to create post-it notes and to enable participant voting and prioritization. The image below shows the results of an online OPERA session – and also gives you the chance to practice your Hungarian ☺

Much of the above relates to tools we already use in the physical environment. The focus has been on testing their feasibility in the digital setting. We are mindful that this reflects the period of transition we’re in and, at such times, the value of having familiar things around us. However, within the URBACT community some, like François Jégou, have blogged about the need to completely reinvent, rather than risk clunky adaptation. Here, the key message is “Don’t mimic face to face meetings!”. As is often the case, this transition period is likely to be messy, and each of us will follow their own path. As we do, completely new tools are being designed and existing ones adapted and tested. This creates a rich space for learning and experimentation, with much to share. As this hybrid way of working is likely to continue, we’re keen to hear about those experiences within the URBACT community, and we return to this in our closing section.

4.5 PRESENTING AND SHARING IN VIRTUAL SETTINGS

The Exchange and Learning process is a central pillar for URBACT Networks. In the Transnational Meetings, this can relate to sharing local experience between cities, highlighting the positive impact of project activities or detailing problems to be tackled during the implementation phase. All of these elements are key aspects of a Network lifespan. At the local level, the focus on lessons learnt or good practices replicated provide opportunities to build the skills and competences of ULG members.

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In traditional meetings, the URBACT Method recommends stimulating the discussion by using creative interactive sessions avoiding long and boring PowerPoint presentations (check the ‘Speak up! Time for your presentation’ Guide). The same rules are still valid for online meetings and the facilitator could provide engaging meeting experiences by adapting established participatory process into virtual resources.

However, some adjustments on presentations/slides are required in this context. Keeping in mind the distractions of the online environment, the presenter should consider including summary slides or more recap phrases to reiterate main points.

WORLD CAFÉ

World café is a widely used methodology for fostering group discussion by dividing participants in small groups and focusing the attention on specific questions to be answered in a given time, usually around 20 minutes. This methodology enables the group to rotate and tackle different aspects and cluster the emerging conclusions at the end of the session.

It is possible to organize an online session of world café using platforms such as Zoom or Webex which allow to for participants to be split into small groups discussion. As in the physical meeting, the facilitator should appoint a “table host” per group who remains at the same table for all rounds, while the others serve as travelers or “ambassadors of meaning.”

The travelers carry key ideas, themes and questions into their new conversations, while the table host welcomes the new set of travelers. To encourage participants to share and write their ideas, it’s possible to make available a canvas on the platform or to create a shared document on Google drive, for instance.

The meeting could be organised as follows:

• 10 minutes - introduction and presentation of the technological aspects • 3-4 rounds 15 minutes each – 1 key question per table • 2 minutes for rotation; • 15-20 minutes for sharing, clustering and conclusion

When using online platforms, there are different ways to break participants into groups. As ever, preparation is needed before the meeting takes place and the introductory part should serve to clarify the process and the technicalities. If you use Zoom, you can activate the rooms function, where you can split the participants into subgroups. You will want to prepare the rooms before. Groups can use the whiteboard (Zoom or another product) to discuss the topic and appoint one person (the “host” in the World café) to annotate.

Another way to create this, is through MIRO boards. You will need to create separate MIRO boards and work there. MIRO allows to use video and chat for teams, as well as using sticky notes and comments.

Whatever tool you use, it’s important that you share in plenary the main results. Again, this can be done by having your co-facilitator help you sharing screens and creating a summary board or whiteboard.

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To help organise sessions, the PechaKucha website has created a platform where anyone can upload 20 images with a voicetrack to share online through a browser on a laptop, tablet or smart phone. Joining the PechaKucha community, each speaker could also take inspiration from other published presentations.

In the URBACT dimension, this session format could be very useful for sharing “the State of Art” of partner cities during transnational meetings and giving the voice to all city representatives.

VISUALISATION TOOLS

Visualisation is crucial in virtual meetings, especially related to building the capacities of participants. In organizing online activities both for the local and transnational dimension of the URBACT Networks, the facilitator should make wider use of visualization tools, as these:

In designing visual tools for Virtual meetings, a facilitator should consider the following suggested tasks:

Create Engaging (but short) Presentations; Use infographics / Pictures for introducing complex concepts in easy way; Underline the discussion topics by writing the Key Points or the Answers in capital letters; Surprise participants with short videos and other visual material; Introduce a Speaker with a creative slide.

Support the process of exchange and learning by sharing information also in the remote dimension

Help participants by focusing on the important topics to discuss

Foster the comprehension of complex issues in an accessible way

Started in 2003 in Tokyo with the first PechaKucha Night, the PechaKucha is a presentation format where speakers should present 20 slides in 20 seconds of commentary per slide, around 7 minutes. That is an engaging and playful storytelling tool for inviting participants to reduce the length of their talk and to use visualization more for expressing their concepts.

In promoting this resource for virtual meetings it’s possible to reduce the number of slides and the available talk time. In any case the facilitator should invite participants to create engaging slides with big pictures and few words.

PECHAKUCHA

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To make effective and playful use of visual tools, the facilitator should remember that launching and managing an online meeting is a collaborative activity. S/he could engage someone from the network to provide support around visual outputs. Fortunately, in the URBACT Networks, there is usually someone skilled in producing creative and visual outputs to transpose key concepts into pictures, illustrations, videos or infographics. Those people could be members of the ULGs, municipal staff or ad hoc experts. The facilitator could appoint “a visual facilitator” to design visual materials needed for the session.

Existing examples of visual outputs can already be found in the diaries and vox-pops produced by Transfer Network partners.

Last but not least, we need to bear in mind that we don’t’ start with a blank sheet of paper when designing visual content. There are several online resources for producing nice materials. Among them:

> For creating Slide decks, there are: Prezi, which helps create animated and original presentations; Adobe Spark, for finding templates and styles and eventually exporting the file in a video format; Sway, as part of Microsoft Office package, which enables presentations designed as storytelling decks.

> For producing Videos, there are many online platforms for video editing, as Shotcut and KineMaster or as Plotagon for making short video animations. Do not forget to check the URBACT guide on how to make videos using your mobile phone.

> For searching good quality pictures or icons to capture the audience attention, there is Unsplash, an online source of freely-usable images and TheNounProject, an online library of free icons, Freepik and Pixabay are also free, provided you attribute the images to the authors.

Credits: François Jégou

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DEALING WITH THE MURPHY’S LAW OF ONLINE MEETINGS

So, here’s some advice on this:

> Test the technology and the potential strengths and flaws more than once before the actual meeting. Perform dry runs and spend time to learn and try out all the functionalities you want to use. > Encourage participants to explore the tools as well. > Create and share the etiquette beforehand and at the beginning of the meeting: muted mics, raising hands before talking, etc. > Facilitators should check that their connection is strong enough throughout the meeting, in case this is not possible, appoint a substitute for the task. > Share the material with participants – for example if you have a presentation send it my email or use any shared repository (Basecamp for URBACT networks is perfect, but Dropbox, Google Drive or shared clouds work as well). > Make arrangements – ideally with a co-facilitator – so that access to the online platform is monitored - sometimes people lose a connection and their request to re-enter may pass unobserved. > It’s a good idea to have a group (Messenger, Whatsapp etc) where you can communicate simply with your smartphone if the platform crashes, so you can “resume” the group for further action. > Keeping meetings shorter will also make it easier to reschedule them if everything is down. > Make a choice for a backup platform if the one you are using crashes: go back to basics…. Skype will do so will Google hangouts (now Meet),so communicate this to the participants. > Whenever possible, ask participants to continue working on specific activities or think of assigning tasks that they carry out asynchronously – you can continue brainstorming or even feedbacking using a simple Google doc or Slide.

Sometimes though not even plan Z can anticipate technological blunders or virtual meetings, in that case a positive attitude of keeping calm and moving on should be adopted.

In section 2 we referred to the different distractions and pitfalls that hamper online communication and collaboration as “noise”. We also mentioned the difficulty dealing with them, especially when such distractions are not caused by human behaviour (that is, you only have to mute someone not to hear their dog barking in the background) but rather when technology decides to take an unannounced break.

“Virtual disaster management” is part and parcel of the preparation work, a key coping skill of the facilitator and - in some cases - an important message to convey to online participants.

As in all risk management activities, it’s important to anticipate and plan for the things that can go wrong. If we cannot prevent them, actuate “recovery plans and protocols”. Sometimes having a plan B and even C can help.

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5. A WORD ABOUT PLATFORMS

5.1 THINGS TO CONSIDER

Our focus has been on the design and delivery of effective online sessions. We want to support members of the URBACT community to widen their online skills in order to get better results.

But what about the platforms that enable us to do this? So far, we’ve made little mention of these, because that’s not the main purpose of this guide. There is already a wide range of technical reviews of the growing range of digital platforms that readers can explore. We see no sense in duplicating these here.

However, from an URBACT perspective, it may be useful to do two things. First, to set out the factors you might want to bear in mind, as you consider which platform best suits your needs. Second, drawing upon our own experience and the suggestions of the URBACT community, to share some thoughts on the most common platforms and their respective merits.

5.2 WHAT’S THE BEST PLATFORM FOR US?

Many of us are not fortunate enough to be able to consider this question. In many public authorities, this decision will already have been made – usually by someone else. But if the choice is open to you, here are some factors to consider before making a decision:

> What is the purpose of the online session? How are we most likely to use the platform? Think about the likely functionality – meetings for groups of different sizes? Interactive sessions? Webinars? Collaborative planning events?

> Will our partners and stakeholders be permitted to use it? If you’re working with network partners, it makes sense to check what they already use and whether any particular platforms are off limits.

> What are the cost implications? Most platforms have subscription costs, often scaled to the size of the organisation and the number of users.

> Can participants just sign in without a subscription? Ideally, you want a platform which allows occasional users to access with minimum fuss.

> How easy is the platform to access and use for occasional users? Participants will be stressed and deterred by platforms which have high entry thresholds, and which are not intuitive.

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5.3 WHAT’S OUT THERE - AND HOW BEST TO USE IT?

The good news is that we’re surrounded by a growing number of digital tools and platforms. There is a new generation of resources designed to promote organisational efficiency – such as Basecamp, Project Place, Slack and Trello. There are also specific tools with a defined purpose: Doodle for scheduling meetings, Mindnode for mindmapping and Synthetron for crowdsourcing. For whiteboarding and collaborative working in small groups, there are Miro, Mural and G-suite tools like Jamboard. There is also a growing range of digital products designed to support large events – Slido, Mentimetre and Topi amongst them.

Increasingly, we’re using these and other tools to support our everyday work. But these are not the main focus of our attention here. What’s really of interest are those platforms which are being commonly used to host the kind of online meetings and events that we’ve spoken about in earlier sections. These are the frameworks that will allow us to use the participative tools important for URBACT’s way of working. The table below sets out the platforms that we’ve seen in most use amongst the URBACT community. Although not an exhaustive or scientific analysis, the table includes some reflections on their functionality. Bear in mind that there’s no perfect platform – each has its pros and cons. It’s up to you to decide what will work best in your situation. And we’d love to hear about your own experiences so that we can update this material over time.

Product Functionality Cost options Pros Cons

Zoom (zoom.us)

Online meetings, conference and webinars. Allows co-hosting & accessible on different devices.

Free registration allows max session length of 40 minutes. Pro: around €15 per month – up to 9 hosts and event for 100 participants Business: c €20 monthly up to 300 participants.

Intuitive and easy 1st time. Strong video – doesn’t compromise connection speed. Whiteboard and polling tools. Breakout spacesRecord facility.

Security issues deter some public authorities Requires formal meeting set up. Whiteboard is quite basic.

Webex (www.webex.com)

Online meetings, conferences and webinars.

Various levels from free (up to 100 participants) to Business allowing up to 200).

Widely in use – strong market recognition. Already established with many public authorities. Reliable record facility.

Limited video – affects quality of connection.

Teams (www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/microsoft-teams/group-chat-software)

Online meetings, conferences and webinars.

Various levels from free to Office 365 E3 at c€20 monthly.

Skype (www.skype.com/en)

Online meetings, conferences and webinars.

time Free but requires Microsoft Skype account. Business option available.

Wide market recognition. App for all devices.

Unreliable and poor quality – especially with multiple users.

Adobe Connect(www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect/meetings.html)

Online meetings, learning and webinars.

Tiered pricing depending on number of hosts.

Strong visuals. Innovative use of panels to mix media on screen simultaneously.

Requires downloading app to use full range of features. Not very easy for beginners.

Google Meet (available for Gmail account owners)

Online meetings, webinars, chats.

Used to be available in Business G-Suite, recently made available for free (replaces Hangouts in Gmail).

Simple to use and integrated with other Google tools. You can send files.

Video freezes if connection is low.

Jitsi (jitsi.org) Online meetings, webinars, chats. Open source and free. Made in Europe! Intuitive

and easy to use.

Doesn’t work well in all browsers – e.g. Safari. No break out options yet.

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6. FINAL THOUGHTS AND NEXT STEPS

AN INVITATION TO GET ON BOARD

URBACT is defined by its EU-wide community of urban practitioners. This is our greatest asset. The programme is designed to facilitate city-to-city cooperation, and our methods and tools reflect this. Although our principles remain strong, URBACT’s practical tools constantly evolve, responding to changes in user needs and the emergence of new thinking and resources. After more than 15 years operation, the near future is likely to see the biggest shift in our operational approach.

This is where we must tap into the knowledge and experience of our community. URBACT’s strong user-focus and its close connection to our city partners mean that the programme is well-placed to do this. But it requires the mobilisation and active cooperation of the URBACT community.

So, we invite you to get on board as we all navigate this uncertain new future. As you adapt and test our repertoire of tools to this new scenario, we welcome your feedback and suggestions. As you design and apply new methodologies, we’d like to hear about them, and would welcome the chance to share them through the programme.

You can do this through our various channels including Basecamp and the URBACT Online Toolbox amongst them. You can also contact us directly with your comments at apn@urbact.eu for Action Planning Networks or at tnp2@urbact.eu for Transfer Networks.

In the meantime, enjoy your adventures, and we look forward to hearing from you.

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EUROPEAN UNIONEuropean Regional Development Fund

EUROPEAN UNIONEuropean Regional Development Fund