Growth in virtual meetings driven by ad hoc one-to-ones

A report by Vyopta into hybrid work culture over the past three years has revealed a significant rise in the number of ad hoc one-to-one virtual meetings. 

The Evolution of Hybrid Work: A Three-Year Analysis looked at more than 48 million meetings held on virtual meeting platforms in 2020, 2021 and 2022 to assess how workers are adapting to remote-first and hybrid collaboration.

The research found that the proportion of virtual meetings accounted for by one-to-one meetings rose from 17% in 2020 to 42% in 2022. This was fuelled by a huge rise in the number of ad hoc one-to-one meetings, which increased more than tenfold from 2020 to 2022. 

Since 2020, the number of virtual meetings per week for the average worker was found to have increased each year, while meeting durations have got shorter. The increased number of short meetings may suggest changing dynamics in a remote/hybrid environment. The average number of participants at each meeting has decreased, driven by the rise in one-to-one meetings  

Meeting culture and familiarity with the technology improved over the period, with 17% fewer participants arriving late and a 57% reduction in the number of rejoins. Vyopta also found that as organisations began returning to the office (mostly on hybrid schedules), there was not a significant impact on the number of meetings held virtually. 

The report revealed that workers who left their job (the ‘attrition group’) during the study period participated in 29% fewer meetings. This figure was primarily the result of staff who didn’t leave their jobs attending nearly three times as many ad hoc one-on-one meetings than the attrition group. It was also found that employees who left were 22% less likely to host their own meetings, joined 7.5% more meetings late and experienced 46% more reconnect issues.

Alfredo Ramirez, chief executive of Vyopta, said: “These trends offer novel insight into the factors impacting effective hybrid collaboration, and include deeper analysis and recommendations that can lead to improved employee experience, removing barriers to productivity and wellness.”

To read the report, click here.