TRC Online Meeting Blog: June 2014 Archives

Many business people have questions about the proper etiquette to use when hosting or participating in a conference call. While many have weighed in on this issue, there is no one set of definitive rules governing proper conduct of a conference event. We would like to offer the following suggestions as guidelines for consideration by anyone required to host/moderate or requested to participate on a conference call.

Guidelines for hosts / moderators:

Web conferencing is important for sharing information, effective collaboration and active communication. It is efficient and saves both time and money while bringing groups together from all over the world. An excellent collaboration tool for law firms, corporations and other organizations, web conferencing allows organizations to tap into expertise that is geographically dispersed. In the future think of web conferencing for increased interactivity, engagement and accessibility from any device (Smartphones and tablets), improving presentation tools, simplifying shared documents, and enhancing Q and A.

While the users of web conferencing systems (WCS) are most concerned about how the system works to meet their communication needs, the IT group has an important interest in how well the system operates and the amount of effort required to maintain it. To find out more about IT requirements for a good system, several members of a small company IT department were asked about the important considerations for selecting a good WCS.

Meeting the important user requirements was the primary goal for the change in systems. The previous system did not provide a quality user experience, with audio issues and occasional delays initiating meetings. Network speed at each location impacted the quality of video and VoIP, so any new system would need to operate efficiently. High quality and reliability are at the very top of the requirements list. The top of mind considerations for a new WCS were the ease of configuration and set-up of the new system. There is a desire to have a system with easy administrative procedures to minimize the work for entering new users and modifying the user base. Having the capability to link directly to the company directory for system access maintenance is very useful.

Web conferencing is a powerful way for geographically distributed groups of people to collaborate effectively. Not only does it allow participants to see each other onscreen if desired, it also allows sharing of documents, drawings, spreadsheets and even full motion videos. A picture is worth a thousand words and the ability to share the actual materials that are being discussed in the meeting is extremely effective. It is useful to show participants in onscreen windows because their expressions and gestures give context to their statements which could otherwise be misconstrued. Web conferencing is also commonly used to share desktops in order to demonstrate software for remote viewers, be they customers or colleagues.