In terms of originality and staying power, the opening of The Brady Bunch stands alone. Headshots of six kids, two spouses and Alice share the screen simultaneously in a tic-tac-toe grid of filmed images. All the characters’ facial expressions and movements are captured as they appear to look around at the other cast members. Fifty plus years later, thanks to the Zoom Revolution, virtual client meetings have the look of a classic TV show title sequence but have the ability to connect families to professionals so that time and distance are no longer impediments to achieving results.
Virtual meetings give families access to professionals who are geographically distant and time constrained. If a parent is ill in New York and the adult children live in different states, setting up an in-person meeting to discuss long term care issues with an attorney or medical results with a physician would be extraordinarily difficult. Contrast that with a Zoom or Teams meeting hosted by a professional sitting at their desk meeting virtually with family members in California, Florida, and Arizona. Virtual meetings offer seamless integration of document and computer sharing along with breakout rooms for larger group events. Phone conferences are less than ideal because without visual cues, a cacophony of voices can be distracting.
While other businesses and institutions have incorporated docu-sign technology to allow virtual contract signing, law still insists on pen and paper signatures. One work-around that New York law has authorized is the allowance for witnesses and notaries to watch a document execution through video meeting technology and complete their parts of the execution process. For disabled individuals and bed-bound seniors, one family member or health aide with an iPhone can bridge the logistics gap and set up a document execution.
Tele-health and the variety of virtual healthcare portals and platforms are vitally important to patients and families seeking the best specialists. Law may be controlled by your state residence and the attorneys licensed to practice in that state, but in medicine crossing state lines to receive care from the right practitioner is not unusual. Maintaining a productive physician-patient relationship requires coordination with virtual meetings if regular visits cannot be conducted easily.
The Zoom Revolution is also an organizational revolution. Professionals utilize virtual meeting technology and on-line portals to set-up appointments with reminders, add events to a calendar and join a variety of individuals together. If all parties are using smartphones or computers, then the meetings can be conducted on-time, with greater shared intelligence and information, and less wasted time.
Time is really at the center of the Zoom Revolution. Physically gathering everyone together involves driving, traffic, and complex scheduling. One delay on the highway can end a meeting before it begins. With virtual meetings, one smartphone and a couple of clicks can get the ball rolling. For those families with loved ones experiencing a crisis, lost time can be heartbreaking. Virtual meetings allow legal and medical professionals to create a foundation for simple, clear communication, no unnecessary travel and convenience. Set up a virtual meeting with Sloan and Feller today.
