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How to Conduct an Effective Tele-Conference
Imagine you are about to professionally speak to 30 people on a teleconference call where the interaction is audio only. Reading the reactions of your audience is very difficult because there are no visual clues. All you have to guide you are your ears, imagination, and intuitive senses. Facilitating a teleconference is an art that many business professionals need to learn in order to leave a valuable impression with the listeners.
Structuring a conference call methodically not only saves your valuable time (as well as the participants’), but also proves to be an effective and efficient way to get all parties on the “same page.” Begin by deciding the focus for your conference – do you want a “learning-focused” or a “lecture-based” teleconference call? The number one mistake people make is thinking that all teleconference calls are the same. Knowing the difference between these types of calls helps you plan and implement your call effectively.
Here are some tips in organizing a successful teleconferencing session:
Organization & Planning
- Develop an agenda that includes:
- Goals
- Participant expectations
- Timeline of deliverables
- Plan accordingly:
- Ask participants to review the agenda prior to the call
- Consider the impact of participant comment volume on time available when determining the number of agenda items
- Scheduling and Preparation:
- Make sure all the participants have all the required information (the access phone number, the conference code, etc.)
- Distribute supporting documents/files before the call start
- Starting the call:
- As the facilitator, dial-in 5-10 minutes early and be the first to arrive
- If appropriate, ask early arrivals to greet subsequent arrivals as a team-building activity
- Find out if there are any individual time constraints and adjust accordingly
- Stay on topic:
- Sticking to the published agenda reduces costs and makes the teleconference more profitable
- Provide your participants contact information in order to contribute possible topics for future conferences
- Share leadership duties:
- Help less engaged people become more involved in the call
- Ask individuals to “lead” sections of the agenda
- During the call, pause occasionally and ask for feedback
- Wrap things up:
- Provide a brief recap of all items discussed
- Re-iterate the contact information for those participants that need further clarification or would like to contribute future topics
Teleconferencing can take some practice to be effective but in the long term, it will save your organization a tremendous amount of time and money.
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