Remote Workshops
MethodKit for Remote Workshops

Run a workshop that
works on a screen.

63 cards covering everything a remote or hybrid workshop needs, from outcomes and tools to energy, moderation and the wrap-up. A room where everyone is a tab behaves differently than one where everyone is in chairs. This deck is the difference, made plannable.

Explore the library Free to read
63 cards for remote workshops
One deck · one session · from invite to follow-up
63cards
6themes
315questions to plan around
1run of show
01.

What this kit is

A remote workshop is a facilitated session where the participants are not in the room with you, or with each other. It is not a meeting with slides, and it is not an in-person workshop moved online unchanged. Four starting points.

Online is its own format, not a fallback
Idea 01A remote workshop is not a worse version of an in-person one. The constraints are different: attention is thinner, side talk vanishes, the tools carry the room. Designed for what a screen actually does, it can be just as good, sometimes better.
The design carries more than the facilitator
Idea 02In a physical room a good facilitator can improvise around a thin plan. Online, the structure, the tools and the instructions do most of the work. Time spent designing the session is time you do not have to claw back live.
Energy is something you build, not assume
Idea 03Nobody is carried along by the room when there is no room. Pace, breaks, interaction and a bit of fun are not nice-to-haves online, they are what keeps people present instead of quietly checking email.
Most of the win is before and after
Idea 04What participants do beforehand and what happens to the output afterward often matter more than the live hour. A workshop that ends when the call ends usually ends with nothing.
02.

Plan a remote workshop

The short version of designing a session that works on a screen. Four moves, then go deeper card by card.

01 Start from the outcome

Write the one thing participants should leave with: a decision, a draft, a shared understanding. Everything else, length, tools, exercises, is chosen to serve that, not the other way around.

02 Build the run of show

Block the session into segments with times: open, a couple of activities, breaks, close. Online you want shorter blocks and more switches of mode than you would in a room.

03 Pick tools and pressure-test them

Choose the fewest tools that do the job, then try the whole flow yourself, including screen shares and breakouts. Have a Plan B for the moment the tech fails, because it will.

04 Design the before and after

Decide what participants do beforehand and what happens to the output afterward. The live hour is the middle of the work, not the whole of it.

03.

From invite to follow-up

The cards are the same, but this is the arc of an actual session: six phases from designing it to closing the loop afterward. Jump in wherever you are.

01Design it

Decide what the session is for and what shape it takes: outcomes, workshop type, the outline, the activities, how long, and who is in the room.

02Set up the tech

Build the online room before anyone arrives: the tools, your own setup, connection, screen sharing and the shared space people will work in.

03Invite and prepare

Get people ready before the call: registration, a welcome package, pre-work, clear instructions, your own rehearsal and a backup plan.

04Open the session

The first ten minutes that decide the rest: the introduction, getting the tools working, ground rules, quick presentations and an energizer.

05Run it

Keep the room alive and moving: engagement, moderation, energy and pace, clean transitions, reactions, handling questions and sharing back.

06Close and follow up

Land it and make it stick: reflection, a real wrap-up, evaluation, post-workshop steps, documentation and the deliverables that come out.

04.

The library

Search freely or filter by theme. Each card is one part of a remote workshop, with its own page: what is different online, how facilitators tend to handle it, questions to plan around, and what trips people up.

Filter by theme

Showing all 63 cards

Card 1: Appearance & Background 1Appearance & Background What other people see Tech & the online room Card 2: Asynchronous Communication 2Asynchronous Communication Chat & build community between sessions Close & follow up Card 3: Back Channel 3Back Channel Conversations between facilitators during sessions Facilitation & roles Card 4: Breaks 4Breaks Time for food, dog walking & coffee brewing Close & follow up Card 5: Budget 5Budget Fees, compensations & expenses Participants Card 6: Sound 6Sound Audio settings, use of sound effects & music Tech & the online room Card 7: Desk Setup 7Desk Setup Devices, screens, microphone, cam & light Tech & the online room Card 8: Devices 8Devices Expectations of what devices participants need Tech & the online room Card 9: Distractions 9Distractions Avoid busy environments, noise & notifications Engagement & energy Card 10: Documentation 10Documentation Capture what happens in the workshop Close & follow up Card 11: Energy & Pace 11Energy & Pace Adapt & influence participants' energy levels Engagement & energy Card 12: Engagement 12Engagement Encourage participation & interaction Engagement & energy Card 13: Evaluation 13Evaluation How participants give feedback Close & follow up Card 14: Facilitators 14Facilitators Person(s) that guide the workshop Facilitation & roles Card 15: Fun 15Fun Elements & jokes to lighten up the session Engagement & energy Card 16: Group Dynamics 16Group Dynamics How people interact & function together Engagement & energy Card 17: Location Model 17Location Model All in-person, remote or hybrid Design the session Card 18: Pre-work 18Pre-work Tasks done beforehand & used in session Participants Card 19: Ideation 19Ideation Think, discuss, brainstorm & select ideas Design the session Card 20: Instructions 20Instructions Clarity on what participants are expected to do Facilitation & roles Card 21: Internet Connection 21Internet Connection Source, speed & reliability among the participants Tech & the online room Card 22: Introduction 22Introduction Set the stage & get started Engagement & energy Card 23: Tickets & RSVP 23Tickets & RSVP Invites, registration & requirements to participate Participants Card 24: Intercultural Communication 24Intercultural Communication How we work across languages & cultures Participants Card 25: Marketing & PR 25Marketing & PR Get the word out Participants Card 26: Mental Preparation 26Mental Preparation Rehearse workshop process & the tools Facilitation & roles Card 27: Activities 27Activities Guided process to help the group achieve their goals Design the session Card 28: Moderation 28Moderation Invite & guide participants in discussions Facilitation & roles Card 29: Outcomes & Goals 29Outcomes & Goals What we want to get out of the workshop Design the session Card 30: Outline 30Outline The steps of the journey from start to end Design the session Card 31: Participant Selection 31Participant Selection Group size, roles & perspectives Participants Card 32: Personal Presentations 32Personal Presentations Participants introduce themselves Engagement & energy Card 33: Plan B 33Plan B Backup plan in case of challenges or lack of time Facilitation & roles Card 34: Shareouts 34Shareouts Present outcomes of exercises in the session Close & follow up Card 35: Post-workshop 35Post-workshop Share outcomes & implement the next steps Close & follow up Card 36: Welcome Package 36Welcome Package Help participants prepare & access tools Participants Card 37: Presentations 37Presentations Workshop instructions & prepared knowledge sharing Facilitation & roles Card 38: Privacy & Security 38Privacy & Security Keep company & personal data safe Tech & the online room Card 39: Questions 39Questions Collect, park & answer questions Engagement & energy Card 40: Reflection 40Reflection Extract outcomes, learnings & takeaways Close & follow up Card 41: Resources 41Resources Worksheets, templates, links & PDFs Close & follow up Card 42: Roles & Responsibilities 42Roles & Responsibilities Who is doing what & when Facilitation & roles Card 43: Ground Rules 43Ground Rules Unite around behavior & etiquette Facilitation & roles Card 44: Scheduling 44Scheduling Identify possible times when everyone can attend Participants Card 45: Screen Sharing 45Screen Sharing When to share screen & what to show Tech & the online room Card 46: Workshop Type 46Workshop Type Education, co-creation or coaching Design the session Card 47: Reactions 47Reactions Polls, hand signs & emojis Engagement & energy Card 48: Stakeholders 48Stakeholders How different people are involved Participants Card 49: Tech Introduction 49Tech Introduction Get people up to speed & introduce the tools Facilitation & roles Card 50: Duration 50Duration Length of session, exercises & how to track time Design the session Card 51: Time Zones 51Time Zones How our locations affect how we work together Facilitation & roles Card 52: Tools 52Tools Software used in & around the workshop Tech & the online room Card 53: Transitions 53Transitions The transition between different tools & exercises Engagement & energy Card 54: Visual Collaboration 54Visual Collaboration Work in shared real-time workspaces Tech & the online room Card 55: Energizers 55Energizers Warm-up & ice-breaker exercises Engagement & energy Card 56: Ways of Working 56Ways of Working Individually, breakout groups & everyone Design the session Card 57: Collaboration Design 57Collaboration Design Design, style & flow of the digital workspace Tech & the online room Card 58: Wrap Up 58Wrap Up Summarize & close the session Close & follow up Card 59: Workshop Dashboard 59Workshop Dashboard A place collecting all information about the event Tech & the online room Card 60: Demo Solutions 60Demo Solutions Inspiration & examples that could lead the way Design the session Card 61: Participant Needs 61Participant Needs What participants need to perform well Participants Card 62: Deliverables 62Deliverables Tangible things that would come out of the workshop Design the session Card 63: Video Etiquette 63Video Etiquette When we're expected to be on-cam or muted Engagement & energy
05.

Facilitator's glossary

The remote-workshop words that get used as if everyone knows them. Enough to follow along, no more.

Breakout room
A smaller sub-session the platform splits people into, so a big group can talk in small ones, then come back together.
Backchannel
A private channel for the facilitators to talk to each other during the session, separate from what participants see.
Asynchronous
Work or conversation that does not happen live, before, between or after the session, on people's own time.
Shareout
When a group or individual presents what they produced in an exercise back to everyone else.
Energizer
A short, light activity used to lift the room's energy or warm people up, especially after a break or a slow stretch.
Parking lot
A visible place to put questions or tangents you cannot deal with right now, so they are not lost and do not derail the session.
Run of show
The minute-by-minute plan of the session: what happens when, for how long, and who is leading it.
Hybrid session
A workshop where some participants are together in a room and others join remotely, the hardest format to keep fair.
06.

Before you go live

A pre-flight check for a remote session, from the design to the moment you hit start. Ticks are saved in your browser, so you can come back to them.

The design

The tech

The people

The room

After

07.

About

A library for facilitating workshops online, built on a card deck that lays the whole subject out on the table.

Why

A remote workshop is not one thing, it is dozens: the outcomes you are after, the tools that hold the room, the way you open and close, the energy you keep up, the work that happens before and after the call. MethodKit for Remote Workshops lays those parts out together so a facilitator can plan the whole thing, not just the slides. Here each card gets its own page that asks the same questions: what is this part of a remote workshop, what changes online, and what should you plan for.

It is for anyone who runs sessions online: facilitators, trainers, designers, team leads and the people helping behind the scenes. The texts are starting points and groundwork, not a script to read out.

How to use it

Pull the cards that matter for the session you are planning, set the rest aside, and use the questions to design it before you ever open the call. Lay them on a shared board, sort them into before, during and after, and build your run of show from there.

Want the cards in your hand? The deck is available from MethodKit.