Conferencing Protocol
Conferencing Protocol
CONFERENCING PROTOCOL
Its good to have rules as then parameters are established and
everyone is hopefully singing off the same hymn sheet.
At the time of connecting to the conference call, participants
should identify themselves and also announce when leaving the
meeting. This is assuming all participants have been told the
correct time and are available.
When speaking always identify yourself by name and location.
Address other meeting participants by name, speak clearly and
avoid conversational asides.
Try to keep background noise to a minimum and dont speak over
each other as this distorts transmission.
Dont turn up late, as you will struggle to catch up on the
discussion and will hold up the meeting while the coordinator has
to introduce you.
Ask individual questions rather than the group, as targeting will
get a quicker response.
Dont lose focus. Concentrate fully and dont send or check emails,
shop/play games online, or do other tasks you forgot to
prioritize.
Stay calm and do not respond with sarcasm or anger to comments
made by others, mute/unmute your line discriminately to avoid
unwarranted remarks going public.
Dont take calls or answer questions from employees. Its easy
to make sure that your colleagues know you are not to be
disturbed.
2. ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES.
If you were to ask me the advantages of the conference call, Id say
primarily the reduction in cost of group meetings due to
significant savings in traveling expenses. Meetings are more
flexible as participants can join the conference whenever its
necessary; conferencing allows people to take part in regional,
national or worldwide meetings without actually leaving their
local office. It can aid greater communication and coordination
between branches and worksite, as it enables you to get in touch with
each other closely and scheduling can be done minutes or hours
ahead of time instead of days or weeks.
As for disadvantages the one that immediately springs to mind is the
occurrence of technical failure when trying to establish contact or
during the conference call itself. Sometimes there is a lack of
participant familiarity with the equipment, the medium itself and
meeting skills per se. There is naturally less socialization, they can
they finish explaining. Try not to give your opinion about what a
person is saying when it has not in fact been requested. The
other party will soon realize you are ignoring what they are saying or
that you are just using a ploy so that you get a chance to do the
talking. Misunderstandings are likely to occur and undermine the
purpose of the conference call.
5. CLARIFYING AND CHECKING UNDERSTANDING
One of the biggest barriers to successful participation is fear that
you wont understand what is being said to you. How can you
overcome this apprehension? Try the following, beginning each
sentence with Sorry and ending with please depending on the
level of politeness deemed necessary.
I missed that. Could you say it again?
I didnt quite catch that. Could you slow down a bit?
I dont understand. Could you explain what you mean?
Im not with you. Could you go over it again?
I dont follow you. Could you run through that again?
I dont quite see what you mean. Could you be more specific
?
what was your last point?
its a bad line. Could you repeat the first part again?
CHECKING ACTION POINTS AT CONCLUSION OF CONFERENCE
CALL
At the end of the conference call its vital to summarize, plan and
schedule the next call. Any challenges experienced should also be
reported to the coordinator.
Can I just check whos doing that?
Is it correct to say that Giuseppe is in charge of writing the
report?
Could we go over the action points again?
Ill mail everyone the minutes from the meeting later today.
6. GETTING YOUR POINT ACROSS EFFECTIVELY MAKING
AN IMPACT
Conference calls often last for a predetermined period and so time is
of the essence in delivering your message confidently and effectively.
Time waits for no man as they say and lost time is unproductive for
any business. So with time at a premium it is important to keep the
call on track.