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How to: run your own Huddle and Webinar

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Sara Cope edited this page Nov 6, 2020 · 19 revisions

Introduction

The Digital.gov team wants you to always be prepared to support your Community, even when we are not available. Please find below a simple guide to hosting your own meetings. In addition, make sure to read up on our Event Best Practices to set yourself up for success.

How to: run your own Huddle and Webinar

Step 1: Understand the difference between the two

First things first, what’s the difference between the two? Please find a quick summary below. Want more details? Read up more in our Wiki.

Community Huddles: Some communities hold regular community meetings or “huddles” to improve connections, increase knowledge-sharing, and gather inputs from members. These meetings are on a monthly or quarterly basis with a limited agenda focused on letting the community members discuss their work, challenges, a news topic, or ask questions among the group.

Community Webinars: Digital.gov communities often host Webinars to highlight innovations, case studies, solutions, and resources related to the technologies and innovations that people in government need most. These meetings are also on a monthly or quarterly basis but have a structured agenda, presentation, and goals.

Both Huddles and Webinars are held on online platforms, can be recorded, and valuable content can be posted on Digital.gov.

Please note that any Huddles or Meetings that communities want to turn into Digital.gov resources must follow our Event Process guidelines and GSA TTS Guidance.

Step 2: Decide on your platform

When running your own meeting, you want to reach the most people possible and use an agency approved platform.

For GSA CoP Managers

You have some options including Zoom for Government, Webex and Google Meet. Each will provide you with a platform and a phone number (for those who cannot access the platform). Use Zoom for Government or Webex to reach the most participants. Check out the TTS Handbook for more information on Zoom.

  • While Google Meet remains the enterprise standard for all GSA web meetings with under 250 participants, Zoom for Government and Webex host licenses are made available to those who routinely host meetings that are not well suited for Google Meetings.

    • We recommend using Google Meet:
      • For events that are internal, for GSA employees and GSA contractors only.
    • We recommend using Zoom for Gov Meetings:
      • For virtual and hybrid events for medium scale events (up to 500 participants).
    • We recommend using Zoom for Gov Webinars:
      • For virtual and hybrid webinar events for large scale events (up to 3000 participants).
    • We recommend using Webex:
      • For large scale meetings that will have attendance numbers of more than 500 participants and less than 1000 participants.

  • For more information regarding webinar platform options check out our Digital.gov Webinar Platforms page.

  • To get a Zoom for Government or Webex license, submit a Service Catalog Request, or write to [email protected].

  • Zoom for Government allows up to 500 participants per meeting, and 3000 participants for a broadcast. Webex allows up to 1000 participants per meeting or broadcast.

Educate yourself:

For Non-GSA CoP Managers

Contact your administrator to learn what platforms you have access to host with. Having trouble? Write to [email protected] and we can help you out.

Step 3: Select appropriate online platform settings

Want to make sure you run a smooth meeting? Reviewing the resources in Step 2 above will get you in a great spot. Additionally, review the Digital.gov team setting recommendations table here with Zoom for Government and Webex (to come after further GSA approval) recommendations. Check back for recommendations for Google Meet as it continues to upgrade its functionality.

Step 4: Schedule captioning!

Did you know that Approximately 15% of the U.S. population has some difficulty hearing according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services? Solution - schedule captioning for both your huddles and your webinars.

When hosting any Community meeting, it is vital that you order captioning. Follow these instructions .

Step 5: Execute

Ready? You can do this! At anytime if you feel uncomfortable, write to us. We want to support you.

Zoom for Government

  • Starting the meeting
    • Make sure to join Zoom for Government audio and assign appropriate host/presenter rights
    • Feel free to rename yourself and the presenters to appropriate names
    • Set up slides on whatever computer will be showing them
    • Open captioning link in separate tab, make sure captioner is present
    • When following the recommended settings, recording should start automatically, admit everybody in waiting room (and turn off waiting room setting)
    • Depending on your format, make sure that participants either stay muted during the entirety of the meeting, or allow them to unmute themselves. If they are not permitted to unmute, direct them to put all questions in the chat
    • When meeting begins (or a bit before), chat out the following:
      • We’ll be getting started shortly. Please tell us what agency/organization you are from.
      • Please find here Live captioning: [insert captioning link]
      • Please put any questions you may have in the chat.
      • Please find here and abide by our TTS Code of Conduct when participating in our webinars: https://handbook.tts.gsa.gov/code-of-conduct/.
  • During the meeting
    • Monitor the chat and make sure that the meeting is running as intended. If not, double check your settings in the meeting itself.
  • After the meeting
    • If following the recommended settings, Zoom for Government video file and chat transcript will automatically download to the cloud. You will receive an email when the recording has been processed. Note: the Zoom for Government transcript automatically includes any private chats that were sent during the Zoom for Government meeting. So be careful!
    • Email [email protected] the recording files as well as the captioning transcript with a brief recap on what the meeting was about and its value for Digtial.gov.

Webex and Google Meet

Please check back after further GSA approvals.

Conclusion

There you have it! We hope you enjoyed the simple guide on how to host your own meetings. Questions? Email [email protected].

🎉Questions? Email [email protected]

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