Articles About Tele

Conference Call Etiquette – The Dos and Donts of Multi-Way Phone Conversations

The curse of every hard working manager.  Love or hate them, with geographically dispersed teams and travel restrictions, conference calls are here to stay as a communication medium in the workplace.  If you want to stand out from your work colleauges, then follow these simple do's and don'ts of effective conference calls.

Here are my favourite conference call experiences;

· a barking dog drowns out the key discussion point, bad enough, but the owner then starts shouting at his pet. 
· a thirsty caller uses the hold button whilst slipping out to get a drink, unaware hold music starts playing to everyone on the call. 
· a talkative colleague uses the mute button to moan about the call, stopping you answering the question from the senior manager you are trying to impress.

Obviously I would discourage all these career limiting behaviours, so what are the do's and don'ts of effective conference calls? 

Do get comfortable with the fact you will be talking in front of a group and receiving no visual cues or feedback.

Do use the right phone in a quiet, undisturbed room. 

Don't use cell phones or phones that pick up background noise.  Calling from an open plan office is the equivalent of having a conversation in a nightclub.  If you really can't find a quiet room, use the mute button until you are required to speak. 

To avoid a Homer Simpson style "Doh" moment, do learn to use the mute button and other phone technology.  Your intelligent contributions mean nothing if no one can hear them. 

Do set up the meeting in advance and communicate the dial in number, passcodes and other information.  "Spring forward, fall back" is something to keep in mind for your timezone crossing colleagues.  Don't work out time differences on your fingers – check on the internet or even phone a colleague in that country and ask what time it is!

Do start the meeting absolutely on time; don't reward latecomers' bad behaviour by waiting for them.  Take a role call at the start of the meeting, highlighting the missing attendees.  Go on, get tough, people will love you for it!

Do treat the conference call as if it were a meeting.  You know the routine; prepare and circulate an agenda, take notes ya-de-ya-de-ya. 

Do get each caller to say hello and introduce themselves. Even though you may never meet in person, it's a good relationship builder and gets the shyest of people to at least say their name.

Don't assume everyone recognises your voice.  Unless you are dis-respecting the boss and want to stay incognito, say your name before you speak.  This is particularly important for the poor soul taking meeting notes.

Do make use of guest speakers.  Invite a special or important guest and get them to say a few words at the beginning of the meeting.  No one will know they slipped out after five minutes and you'll get the benefit of undivided attention and best behaviour.

Don't allow the topic to wander.  Be an iron fist in a velvet glove –  polite but firm if people talk too long or over each other. If your callers are at home sitting in their pyjamas nursing a hot chocolate, be considerate that all they want is to go to bed.

Do ask for input by using a person's name.  People will pay more attention to avoid the embarrassment of needing the question repeated.

Don't shuffle papers; scrape chairs, pencil tap, hum or other distracting, noisy activities.  It... ... .drives... ... ... ... people... ... ... ... mad!

Do close the meeting formally, thanking everybody for their time.  That little bit of recognition will make them feel good about talking to you again.

And that's about it.  Apart from one very personal tip.  Do not sit on a leather chair.  Ever.  The problem is each time you move around, an embarrassing noise that's at just the right frequency to carry well over the phone is emitted.  Either you brazen it out and suffer the comments about your defective digestive system, or sit rigid until the call is over.  If you only take one piece of advice make sure it's this -  do use fabric covered seats!

Lyndsay Swinton is an experienced team leader, people manager and business coach. Her website is www.mftrou.com - 'Management for the rest of us'. Subscribe to her free no-nonsense Management Tips newsletter at mftrou.com today.

Other Article Sites

findabook.com  moneycd.info  a-mortgage.info   about-lemon-laws.info  aboutstudentloans.info
all-about-publishing.info  auctions-articles.info  bestcollege-university.com  bestispconnection.com
biblefolder.com  blogger-website.com  books-used.info  brokers-guide.info  buywindows.info  cable-dsl.info
career-miner.com  carpel-tunnel.info  cashinaflash.info  cashloanreviews.info  casinobell.com  chat-house.info
clearmycredit.info  collegeloantips.info  crones.info  depression-articles.info   dirnic.net  dishguides.info
divers-below.com  expodog.info   financewizz.com  fire-insurance.info  getgood.info  handleit.net   it-idea.info
health-supplies.info  hosting-right.com  insidealert.com  insurance-facts.info  jobs-employment.info
justgood.info  lookgold.net   lowcost-travel.info  money-source.info  myhostzone.info  numisblog.com
peoplesearchfinder.info  pr-articles.info  realeas.com   refinancing-guides.info  spyware-remove.info
telelot.info  the-law.info   toppaid.info  travel-deals.info  travelcorrect.com  wedding-guide-site.com
your-blog.info  your-credit.info

MORE ARTICLES:

Data-Tel Info Solutions Offers Transition Discount For Growing Hosted Clients
Data-Tel Info Solutions Offers Transition Discount For Growing Hosted Clients

TouchStar Acquires Direct Competitor Data-Tel
TouchStar provides world class call center technology to over 2,500 global businesses.

Netfirms Announces Availability of Innovative .TEL Domain Names
Leading domain name registrar encourages all trademark holders to protect their brand name by registering their .TEL domains.

DomainPeople Lets Trademark Owners Register Their .Tel Domain Name Early
On December 3, 2008, DomainPeople will open sunrise registrations for the revolutionary.tel domain name, allowing trademark owners to reserve their names before they're available to the general public.

Compucall Web Marketing sponsors the Tel Aviv Entrepreneur Meetup Starring Jeff Pulver
Compucall Web Marketing is proud to be sponsoring Meet ups "Tel Aviv-Yafo Entrepreneur August Meet up". The meet up will be attended by some of Israel's brightest and best hit-tech entrepreneurs and investors. This August meet up is focusing on the phenomenon of Social Media Marketing (SMO). The August meet will feature a new, stronger social networking framework, and a motivational talk by Jeff Pulver.

National Seminars Group Padgett Thompson Seminars Summer 2007 Training Seminars Added To FindaSeminar.com
Newly listed seminars include training classes workshops and conferences presented by National Seminars Group and Padgett Thompson Seminars.

Worldwide Phone Services Launched for Fixed Phones, Mobile Phones, and VoIP
NAVEGO, Inc. announces the global launch of NAVEGO Worldwide Phone Services, providing flexibility and low rates for fixed and mobile phone lines, as well as dial-up and broadband voice-over IP.

.tel Sunrise Period Opens with EuroDNS Today
EuroDNS announces the opening of the .tel Sunrise period reserved to trademark owners, and handled on a first-come, first-served basis, until the 2nd February 2009. Pre-registrations in advance for both the Premium Landrush and Go Live periods are also available at www.eurodns.com.

Speed Money Seminar: New Internet Marketing Seminar To Be Held In Vancouver, BC Canada
Internet Marketing Seminar in Vancouver BC on May 8, 9, 10, includes headline speakers Armand Morin, Alex Mandossian and Matt Bacak, along with Ray Edwards, Stu McLaren, Michel and Sylvie Fortin, Kirt Christensen and Eric Graham. Attendees are guaranteed to learn strategies to immediately implement and profit with in their online business.

Skillpath Seminars Spring/Summer Training Seminar Schedule Added To FindaSeminar.com
Training search engine allows users to shop compare and register for seminars from Fred Pryor National Seminars Group American Management Association Cornell ILR Cross Country Education Padgett Thompson and other training providers.

Dr. Rick Wren and Zonsite Seminars Have Agreed to Dissolve Seminar 21 and Club 21
Dr. Rick Wren collaborated with Zonsite Seminars to create Seminar 21 and Club 21 last year to deliver his 21 Successful Practice Principles. Dr. Wren's vision was to provide an inexpensive alternative to help chiropractic practices. Dr. Wren recently rejoined Parker Seminars to deliver his message.

Data-Tel Info Solutions Broadens International Ties by Expanding Operations to Dominican Republic
Data-Tel Info Solutions hires Mirla Lara as the new Regional Sales and Operations Director for the Dominican Republic.

Data-Tel Info Solutions Announces New Hosted Agent Program
Data-Tel Info Solutions announced today that their new Hosted Agent Program is now available to domestic call centers.

Name.com Offers .TEL Domain Registrations To Individuals and Businesses Looking To Be Found
Name.com one of the fastest growing domain registrars is now accepting applications for the newest domain extension released, .TEL.