Overview

Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing service that enables individuals to virtually connect with others via one-on-one meetings and group video conferences. The platform offers various tools, including live polling, screen sharing, and reactions. As part of the Ivey Product Society's Fellowship, I was tasked with improving the platform. Based on my field interviews, I discovered that users had developed frustrations in ensuring meeting productivity—a measure of how efficiently and effectively a time duration is used to accomplish set objectives. To solve this pain point, I designed a feature that helps users create and adhere to an agenda during their virtual meetings, enabling them to gain clarity, actively listen, and contribute more meaningfully, ultimately maximizing their conversations' productivity. Check out the full PRD or read the quick snippets below!

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Problem Statement

Over the course of the 12-week Fellowship, I set out to solve the following:

What should Zoom build to increase the productivity of team meetings?

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Research

Based on my user interviews, I learned that only a handful of users create/share an agenda with participants ahead of time as part of their pre-meeting ritual. They underestimate the importance of agenda setting because it is only adhered to loosely. Putting energy into pre-meeting work (who should attend and why, goals, distribution of time, etc.) sharpens thinking, clarifies purpose and strengthens outcomes, but is often overlooked. The need to have focused, productive conversations are increasingly important in today’s remote-first world, where 58% of users spend 4-12 hours per week in meetings.

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User Persona

Based on the insights gleaned from my user research, I decided to target working professionals like Rohit:

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Solution

The key features are as follows:

Pre-Meeting

1. Agenda Creation: When scheduling a zoom meeting (via the desktop app or Google Calendar integration), the host can create an agenda which involves inputting meeting topics, allocating time to each topic, and assigning a presenter.
2. Agenda Scoping: The meeting host can set edit and view permissions for the agenda.
3. Agenda Viewing and Editing: Meeting participants can view the agenda, and those designated with permission can edit it.

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In-Meeting 

1. Meeting Progress Bar: All attendees are able to visually identify the corresponding stage of the meeting. This bar is visible by default but can be collapsed.
2. Warning Notification: All users are notified ahead of each topic’s respective end time.
3. Speaker Identification: Users can hover over the agenda topic to see who will be speaking for that portion.
4. Add Agenda Topic: Meeting host can add agenda topics in-meeting.
5. Delete Agenda Topic: Meeting host can delete agenda topics in-meeting.
6. Modify Topic Duration: Meeting host and designated participants can alter the time duration of each agenda topic by dragging the corresponding bar.

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Future Considerations

1. Agenda Templates: Ability to browse pre-made templates and save personal templates for easy agenda creation.
2. Agenda Preview: Ability to preview agenda via calendar integrations without having to fully click into it.

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