The larger the meeting, the wider the microphone
Join large meetings muted unless asked to speak. Test the device actually selected by the meeting application; muting a television, headset or phone is not the same as muting the meeting. A dark camera and a generic display name do not make a participant anonymous.
Sound from the room
Keep televisions, radios, smart speakers, game audio, ringing devices and deliberate noisemakers out of the meeting audio. The town hall does not need a laugh track, a bicycle horn after each forecast or a television commentator announcing a different winner. If a colleague cannot control the room, leave the microphone muted and use chat when invited.
Video, sharing and backgrounds
Share the intended window rather than the entire desktop when practical. Check previews before playing any video or sound, including material queued in another browser tab. Inappropriate clips, surprise music, simulated applause and an animated background depicting someone else at work are not approved forms of participation. A background that is merely untidy need not become an agenda item.
Questions at the close
When the chair asks whether there are questions, a genuine question is permitted even if it lengthens the meeting. Colleagues should check their mute status before discussing the person who asked. “Shut the fuck up, Todd” is not anonymous feedback because it was said after the speaker believed the microphone was off. The chair may pause the meeting, mute the open line and continue with Todd’s question.
Chat, reactions and attendance
Meeting chat is for the meeting. Reactions are not a substitute for a vote unless the chair has said they are. Sending “this could have been an email” to everyone during a mandatory briefing may be accurate, but it is still a message to everyone. Attendance can be visible to the organizer and may appear in meeting records.
Recording and follow-up
Use the meeting platform’s approved recording and transcription controls. Tell participants when those controls are in use. Meeting recordings, transcripts, chat and attendance records may be retained and reviewed for the same business purposes as other company communications. An unmuted remark can enter the record even when it was not intended as a contribution.
Response to disruption
An organizer may mute a line, stop a share or remove a disruptive participant so the meeting can continue. Accidents call for a prompt correction; repeated or deliberate interference can be referred to the colleague’s manager or the appropriate support function. A participant removed for broadcasting a stadium air horn is not entitled to a separate meeting to establish whether it was audible.
