Hybrid working is now the norm, but many meeting rooms have setups that are not up to scratch. We often come across meeting rooms with poor acoustics, overcomplicated setups, the wrong AV for the space, and users that ultimately don’t trust the AV setup that’s been installed. The quality of an AV install and the hybrid meeting solutions shape whether people can actually contribute, and whether remote colleagues feel part of the conversation at all.
It’s why more IT, facilities and operations teams are looking for more comprehensive corporate meeting solutions, built around hybrid working, with meeting equity increasingly central to that conversation.
What is meeting equity and why does it matter?
Meeting equity is the principle that everyone in a meeting should have an equally effective experience, whether they’re in the room or joining remotely, a concept AVIXA, the AV industry’s trade body, has championed as hybrid working becomes standard practice. Ultimately, the right hybrid meeting solutions should bring everyone into the same conversation, regardless of location.
How do you make hybrid meetings work effectively?
Successful hybrid meetings need more than a laptop wheeled into a room and a call started from it. Getting hybrid meeting solutions right means combining the right AV technology, thoughtful room design, reliable connectivity, intuitive controls, and consistent processes.
Technology should remove friction, not become the focus of the meeting. That only happens when a solution is designed around how meetings actually take place in your organisation, not a generic spec sheet.
What Does an Effective Hybrid Meeting Solution Need?
A good hybrid experience, in the room and remotely, depends on several components working together as one system.
Cameras
Cameras should be positioned and specified to capture people naturally, so remote attendees feel genuinely present. In medium to large spaces, multiple cameras are often desirable for greater and more dynamic video capture.
Microphones
Microphones should be designed to pick up everyone clearly, not just whoever’s sitting nearest the laptop.
Speakers
Speakers should be placed so remote participants and front of room presenters can be heard wherever people are sitting.
Displays
Give in-room users a clear view of remote colleagues and shared content with clear displays.
Easy access to your video conferencing platforms
Support the way your organisation already works, rather than forcing a new way of meeting.
Room controls
Room controls should be simple enough that anyone can start and manage a meeting unaided.
None of these hybrid meeting solutions work in isolation. Specified together, they’re what make a room deliver on hybrid working. It’s the thinking behind our meeting room AV solutions and video conferencing systems.
Designing for meeting equity: Giving everyone a seat at the table
In practice, meeting equity means asking whether a remote participant can see and hear everyone clearly, be heard without repeatedly asking people to speak up, view shared content properly, know who’s speaking, and join the conversation naturally rather than interrupting.
However, it’s equally important to consider the people physically in the room too. Good AV design should improve things for them, not just accommodate everyone else. Done well, it narrows the gap between being in the room and being remote.
Why meeting room design matters as much as the technology
Even the best AV equipment can perform poorly if it’s not right for the room. Room size and shape, seating layout, camera positioning, screen placement, acoustics, lighting and microphone coverage all affect how a system performs, regardless of the spec sheet.
That’s why identifying these factors before installation, through proper AV consultancy and meeting room design, produces far better results than a purely product-led approach.
Creating a consistent hybrid meeting experience across your workplace
Meeting rooms running different systems and controls create friction for employees, who relearn how to start a call every time they book a different room. Standardising equipment, interfaces, layouts and video conferencing platforms across your estate makes hybrid meetings easier to use, while cutting support requests and making systems easier for IT and facilities to manage centrally.
How to assess whether your meeting rooms support hybrid working
When assessing how well your meeting rooms support hybrid working, consider these questions:
- Can remote participants hear and see everyone clearly?
- Can the room hear them back?
- Can they clearly see shared content?
- Can they join without technical delays?
- Does the room work equally well across different meeting sizes & formats?
- Are employees regularly hitting AV problems, or avoiding certain rooms altogether?
Recurring complaints, workarounds and low adoption are all signs a room needs reviewing, even if nothing has visibly broken yet.
The business benefits of getting hybrid meeting solutions right
Getting hybrid meeting solutions right delivers benefits beyond the meeting room: better collaboration, more productive meetings, stronger employee experience, and greater participation from distributed teams, plus less time troubleshooting technology and better use of office space, as rooms get used properly instead of avoided.
Ultimately, it comes back to meeting equity. When people can participate effectively regardless of location, organisations get more value from their team, whether remotely or in-person.
How MVS AV can help make hybrid meetings work better
Making hybrid meetings work starts well before any equipment is chosen. MVS supports organisations from initial assessment through to implementation: meeting room reviews, AV consultancy, meeting room design, installation, and video conferencing systems.
We take a people-first approach: understanding your organisation, your rooms and how your meetings actually happen before recommending any technology, with the goal of creating environments where remote and in-room participants can communicate as equals.
If your meeting rooms could be doing more to support hybrid working, get a meeting room review with our team, or start a project to bring your spaces up to standard.
Hybrid Meeting Solutions FAQs
Q: What is meeting equity?
A: The principle that everyone in a meeting should have an equally effective experience, whether they’re in the room or dialling in remotely, able to see, hear, be heard and contribute without being disadvantaged by location.
Q: How do you make hybrid meetings more effective?
A: By combining the right AV technology, thoughtful room design, reliable connectivity, intuitive controls and consistent meeting habits. None of these fix hybrid meetings alone; they need to work together.
Q: Should we upgrade our existing meeting rooms or redesign them?
A: It depends what’s holding your current rooms back. Sometimes the technology may have just been poorly implemented and we can come in and get things running as they should. However, often we find that the implemented solution was the wrong fit to begin with, meaning a fuller redesign is the better option. A professional AV review will tell you which applies.
Q: How can you make remote participants feel more included?
A: Use camera framing and speaker tracking so remote attendees can always see who’s talking, and make sure microphones capture the whole room clearly.