由于Covid-19，世界对我们来说变化，它可能会觉得我们在使用V的在线交互方面跃升了五年的未来ideo-conference platforms to get things done. Companiesneed to adapt to survive and thrive in the new way of interacting with others,soglobal connections are more important than ever.This blog post is hereto help you make the most of your partnering experience ateventslikeChinaBio®Partnering Forum Digitalin August,BioPharm America™ Digitalin September, andBIO-Europe®Digital在十月. We’ll give you some tips, but also一些避免的滑动, and help you be virtuous in your virtual experience.
“Sorry, I was on mute”:今年有多少次你听说吗?这是almost as common as “my wifi’s unstable” or “I’m having trouble with my camera.” If we each made a small donation to a charity of our choice for every time we utter these embarrassing words the world would be a better place. Make sure everything is working well and you really know how to use the various functions on the conference platform, including how to share documents and make comments, how to turn your camera and microphone on and off, and that your headphones are working properly. Have you got wireless headphones? Now’s a good time to invest in those as they give you more freedom of movement. Practice with some internal calls.
“Oh, helloMisterTiddles!”:Who hasn’t yet experienced a cat walking into the shot, as it cutely clamors for attention while clattering across your keyboard? While amusing the first time around, it does take up valuable time to shoo the adorable little animal away and get back on focus. It’s in your best interest to ensure you can make your partnering call uninterrupted. You can feed Mr. Tiddles between meetings and give yourself a micro-break as you do.
“We didn’t have time to…”:Partnering, especially for first time connections, is a moment when you really want to look your best. If you haven’t been able to view the video, or check the corporate brochure, or peruse the factsheet before the call, it can suggest you’re not really interested. So, do a little homework before the call, as who wants to look lazy and unprofessional? That’s not going to help you seal the deal and help drive your life science partnering forward.
“They call meJane,butthat’s not my name“：承认它，你有没有忘记伙伴会议的中间人的名字，你没有把他们的名片作为提示？亚博游戏城数字合作伙伴的一个很大的优势在于您可以在他们的形象下一亚博游戏城直看到这个人的名字。因此，应该容易将其随意使用它在谈话中，并创造更多的情绪纽带。也许某人的名字很难发音 - 但如果你计划多年与他们一起工作，那么现在是时候开始正确的时候了吗？加上友好的话如果有人不能讲述你的名字：它是'shove-ste-bly-ham'不是'shufflebottom'。从小事中，大关系会增长。
“Tick Tock Tick Tock”:Few things can frustrate more than the other party not turning up for a call. If you can’t make it, say so in advance, even if five minutes before. If Mr. Tiddles is hungry, it can probably wait thirty minutes. If there’s more than one of you on the call, have the first person make apologies for the lateness of others, and cover whatever can be done before they arrive. If the key decision maker can’t make the call, it's probably best to cancel rather than press on. It’s all about showing respect by not wasting time. But before you switch your camera on, especially if joining a call in a rush, pay special attention to the next tip.
“Location,location…”:While we’ll likely be calling from the comfort of our home, do carefully check what is visible in your background. Does your laundry, or the cat litter tray, really need to be in shot? Now, it’s easy to drop in a custom background, how about a simple one showing your company logo, or maybe your labs, or even a pre-lockdown team shot? Also get the foreground right: we want to see your face, not your coffee cup, or just your left ear. If calling from outside, be conscious others may be under lockdown (again), and may not appreciate a background of a Bavarian beer garden in full swing, with you sipping from a glistening Stein of Hacker Pschorr, one of Munich’s finest beers.
“…location”:Location really is so important, so we’ll talk about it twice. To give the other party a feel of where you work, can you send in advance some photos of the office/lab? Maybe there’s a walk through that you could film, highlighting key parts of the organization, even with some great drone shots? These are not complex or expensive to do. If the other party can more easily imagine themselves working with you, there, that makes it easier for them to want to be working with you.
“Suits are justso not hot right now”:Given we have all gone over to much more casual wear it really isn’t necessary to dress completely formally for partnering calls, especially as only your head and shoulders will be in shot. Who even knows how to wear socks anymore? For men, this is the best opportunity you’ll ever have to ditch that terrible tie! For everyone, you can still be smart, and maybe show a little cultural color from wherever you’re calling from, as this can make you feel more comfortable, but also helps people remember you.
“你能再说一遍吗?”:Audio is not always perfect on video conferences, and maybe the person you’re speaking to is not using their first language, or you yours. So, be slow and be clear, especially on technical vocabulary and acronyms—did you say NMR or MRI,体外orinvivo? Think about the important messages you want to get across, and ensure you cover those early in the call, so the other side has a chance to ask about anything they don’t understand. As you’re on camera, but not in person, it’s easy to have a few notes just out of shot, or on script cards, just like a TV presenter does.
“Ireallyneed a coffee”:The biggest difference between a physical event and a virtual one is we may not all be in the same time zone. On partneringONE® all partnering meetings will be scheduled over 24-hour timeframes to accommodate time zones across the world. What may be early for you may be late for the people you’re calling. If you need a coffee to get started, and be less of a grumpy bear, have it well before your first call, as the other party may not understand why you are sluggish and they are in top form, especially as we don’t necessarily know what time zone the other person is in. Also, do take breaks: you’d do that in the real world, and Mr. Tiddles probably needs letting out by now. We’re human, not machines, unless you have found a way to have a digital avatar or chat-bot do your partnering calls while you snooze in a beer garden. If so, please urgently let us all in on the secret of how to do that.
For more tips on successful digital communication, check out this Informa Connectblog:Why eating seven M&Ms daily is essential for digital communications success at BIO-Europe Spring®.
EBD Group is offering a Virtual Passport to attend all three of the remaining 2020 fully digital partnering conferences. Attendees from all sectors of life sciences can access the unparalleled partnering and content offered byChinaBio® Partnering Forum Digital,BioPharm America™ DigitalandBIO-Europe® Digitalwith a Virtual Passport at a substantially reduced fee.
