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Stressbuster: Effective Telephone Meetings (July 2010) |
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Five ways to make the most of telephone meetings.
Telephone meetings -- with people in different places talking by telephone -- can often save time and money. One study found that in-person meetings are seven times more expensive than teleconferencing or speakerphone calls. Here are five easy ways to make the most of telephone meetings. - Have an agenda. During a telephone meeting you can't see if people begin to look at their watches or show other signs of restlessness, so it's important to stay focused on your task. When you set up the meeting, let everyone know the agenda and how long you expect the call to take. Describe what you expect the outcome of the meeting to be. Be clear about how much time you'll spend on each topic. At the start of the meeting, remind everyone of your task. If you have several things to accomplish, consider sending a fax or e-mail the day before to remind people of the agenda. Be sure to distribute any needed handouts, reports, etc., at least several hours before the meeting if you want participants to read them and be prepared to discuss them meaningfully.
- Set up and, if needed, test your equipment before the call. If you're using a telephone that has call waiting, disable this feature before the call (or forward calls to another line) to avoid interruptions during your meeting. If you're using a speakerphone, put it in a central place, and test the sound quality. Get participants as close to the speakerphone as possible so they can be heard easily. Close the door to your office or avoid using the speakerphone in a place where it could distract co-workers. If you're using a conference bridge line, make sure all the participants know the number to dial in to, and that they have any needed passwords.
- Make sure everybody knows who's speaking or listening. Start by introducing the people at the meeting and having them say "hello" so others can recognize their voices. If the call will involve more than two other people, encourage the participants to begin their comments by giving their names to help others keep track of who's speaking. ("This is Tom, and my question is ...") Always let participants in a telephone meeting know who else is listening on a speakerphone. If someone joins the call after the meeting has begun, acknowledge the person's presence to all attending.
- Keep background noise to a minimum. Get your papers organized beforehand so you don't have to shuffle them during a meeting. Don't chew gum, read mail, or open and close desk drawers. Remember that people can hear the clicking of a computer keyboard over the phone. If you're typing notes, let others know they may hear you, so they won't assume you're reading e-mail or doing other work. Consider using the "mute" button when you aren't speaking. Never put the phone on hold, which may cause people to have to speak over "hold music" or a recorded message.
- Facilitate a "virtual" meeting the same way you would an in-person meeting. To make sure you get all points of view, pay attention to who's contributing to the discussion, and ask questions to draw out those who are quieter. Keep detailed notes on what all of you discuss and decide. Stick to your agenda or, if you need to deviate from it, make sure this won't cause problems for others. (If a meeting has to run past the scheduled ending time, you might say, "It looks like we may need another five or ten minutes to finish up here. Is everybody OK with continuing until 2:15?") End the meeting with a review of what you've talked about and accomplished and review responsibilities for follow-up action. If appropriate, set a time and date for your next telephone meeting.
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