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Breakout rooom for Webinar

Forum|Forum|4 years ago
September 14, 2021
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When I was the host for an MNC series of webinars on HVAC topics, I was told that it is not advisable to have a breakout room as the audience may be too large to handle?

But when I tried it out during one of the webinars, I noticed it is possible to do so but you need to prepare your breakout room in advance. You need to do some management of likeminded participant to ensure the audience do not get passive in their interactions.

Do share what are your strategies for keeping your breakout room engaged and participative especially for the shy Asian audiences.

Best answer by The_WebiNerd

You could start by not calling out and generalizing an entire continent's worth of cultures as shy, but...to your question...

Share more about your use case perhaps? Without knowing the function of your breakout rooms, duration and audience (aside from some of them being Asian), it's hard to give specific guidance. However...

Be sure to give clear directions and warn them of a report back. Have the groups designate a reporter that will speak to the findings of the group when the breakout rooms are over. Take time to discuss the purpose of having the breakout conversation before and after. Tease out the important learning in the process (which implies they are absolutely purposeful, of course). Provide clear expectations of the purpose, duration and what happens when they return (and if they FAIL!!! MWAUAHAHA! I'm obviously kidding - this never fails). Make your instructions crystal clear and use some sort of memorable guide posts for forgetful people like a number of things or an acronym - or share the instructions in chat which will follow them to the breakout room.

Here's an example based off of an inclusion/diversity training we are managing:
Sample Instructions: "We're going to move you into breakout rooms in just a moment and there you will speak with about 10-15 of your colleagues and fellow participants. You will have just 3 minutes while you are there to find 3 things that you all have in common. That's it. Chat to us real fast if you have an questions. Just three things that you all either like to do, don't like to do, are, eat. What you can't say is that you all work for ____ or some other thing obvious. Maybe get a bit personal if you don't mind. Maybe you are all married or all single. Maybe all play sports. You decide. So, 10-15 people, you have 3 minutes to decide on 3 things you all share in common with one another. When we come back, we will share what you discovered in chat (or verbal depending on audience size). That's it. 3 things that your group has in common that everyone agrees on. Ready? Here we go"

Hope that helps you out some. Feel free to reach out to follow up. I check back here occasionally,.

The_WebiNerdAnswer

Newcomer

You could start by not calling out and generalizing an entire continent's worth of cultures as shy, but...to your question...

Share more about your use case perhaps? Without knowing the function of your breakout rooms, duration and audience (aside from some of them being Asian), it's hard to give specific guidance. However...

Be sure to give clear directions and warn them of a report back. Have the groups designate a reporter that will speak to the findings of the group when the breakout rooms are over. Take time to discuss the purpose of having the breakout conversation before and after. Tease out the important learning in the process (which implies they are absolutely purposeful, of course). Provide clear expectations of the purpose, duration and what happens when they return (and if they FAIL!!! MWAUAHAHA! I'm obviously kidding - this never fails). Make your instructions crystal clear and use some sort of memorable guide posts for forgetful people like a number of things or an acronym - or share the instructions in chat which will follow them to the breakout room.

Here's an example based off of an inclusion/diversity training we are managing:
Sample Instructions: "We're going to move you into breakout rooms in just a moment and there you will speak with about 10-15 of your colleagues and fellow participants. You will have just 3 minutes while you are there to find 3 things that you all have in common. That's it. Chat to us real fast if you have an questions. Just three things that you all either like to do, don't like to do, are, eat. What you can't say is that you all work for ____ or some other thing obvious. Maybe get a bit personal if you don't mind. Maybe you are all married or all single. Maybe all play sports. You decide. So, 10-15 people, you have 3 minutes to decide on 3 things you all share in common with one another. When we come back, we will share what you discovered in chat (or verbal depending on audience size). That's it. 3 things that your group has in common that everyone agrees on. Ready? Here we go"

Hope that helps you out some. Feel free to reach out to follow up. I check back here occasionally,.

A

AnnaBH

Newcomer

I´m curious - can you use breakout room in a webinar as easy as you do in a zoom meeting? I wan´t to use them for coffebreak and maybe for companys to make advertising at a webinar.

Rupert

Community Champion | Customer

Hi @AnnaBH

Breakout Rooms do not exist within Webinar.

Webinar can have a Practice Session - and there will soon also be a "Backstage" feature - like a greenroom.

Hope this helps.

Rupert

I

ISTM

Newcomer

What is the Backstage feature? Is it available yet? How do we access it? Thanks.

Carol @ ISTM

D

desiremultitech

Newcomer

It’s great that you experimented with breakout rooms despite concerns about audience size! Proper planning definitely makes a difference.

One strategy to keep breakout rooms engaging, especially for shy participants, is to assign a facilitator for each group. This person can gently prompt discussions and ensure everyone has a chance to speak. Icebreaker activities at the start help ease participants into conversations. Another approach is to provide structured discussion points or small tasks that require collaboration, so participants feel a sense of purpose rather than pressure to talk.

At Desire Multitech Solutions, we often conduct HVAC training sessions where engagement is key. We’ve found that using a mix of polls, Q&A rounds, and case study discussions encourages even reserved attendees to participate. Creating a comfortable and inclusive atmosphere goes a long way in ensuring that breakout rooms are interactive and valuable!

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