Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
As scheduling "face time" among clients, employees and consultants becomes more difficult, companies are turning to electronic meetings. E-meetings cut high travel costs, save time and ensure more key people can attend.
"When you use the Internet for meetings instead of getting on an airplane, you're really saving a great deal in time and productivity," says Mimi McGettigan Kehan, CEO and chair of McGettigan Partners, a business meeting and meeting consolidation company in Philadelphia. This year, McGettigan Kehan has set up more than 50 virtual meetings.
Of course, virtual meetings work better for some purposes than others. For example, they allow those off-site to participate in company meetings and they work well for weekly client information and project updates, but McGettigan Kehan doesn't believe e-meetings should replace actual meetings in every instance. "If you're going to role-play, do motivational work or give out rewards," she says, "they're not a good application."
Ellen Paris is a Washington, DC, writer and former Forbes magazine staff writer.
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