Travelling a long distance to meet people is a big effort for most. Many have remedied this with online messaging, social networking and even the humble phone call. Yet in the business world it is still necessary to travel nationwide and often worldwide so as to hold business or corporate meetings that involve more than two people. For many this is questionable due to the time constraints and the environmental impact and some businesses are certainly looking for a way out. A solution to their problem has now been made available, It is called the tlconfrence.
A teleconference is quite simply a conference held over the phone or internet in the style of a conference call, or conf call. Whilst most phone conversations would be held between just two people, a teleconference can allow many more than that. In fact a significant number of teleconference providers allow up to 50 participants at a time. This means that with a conf call an entire meeting can be held in each person's own living room.
The person who starts a teleconference or conf call is generally going to be the chairperson of the teleconference. They are given powers to help control and maintain the meeting in an organised fashion. This role can be passed on to another or even shared between several people. Each chairperson has access to a head count and a roll call either for everyone or privately for themselves. This allows them to see who is in the teleconference. With this information they can mute people in the conference including themselves. This reduces background noise allowing the primary speaker to talk clearly but most importantly can stop interruption and maintain some order within the teleconference.
One other perk is that if people are participating online, they have the option to screen share. This means that they can bring something up on their own computer screen and others will be able to watch precisely what this is. Similarly people have more choices than just talking to each other, there is also the option of using a chat room style of talking, giving a quiet and more controllable approach to the whole meeting. Then for the important bits of the teleconference the chairperson will have the opportunity to record parts of the conf call for safe keeping, or even to help with the writing of minutes later.
However when it comes to sensitive information being shared, is the method of using a teleconference secure enough? Most would like to think so. The chairperson has access to a list of who is listening at all times. This combined with the ability to lock off the conference ceasing any other traffic helps. Likewise to get into a conf call the participants have to have the number of the chairperson and their PIN to get in. With a secure connection a teleconference should be as safe as is needed.
The interesting thing about the teleconference is that its usability is starting to spread. People are now recognising its use and have adapted it to new situations. A good example of this is event calling. This is a phenomenon where rather than chairing a conference with 50 people, the chairperson can hold a conference with up to a thousand people. Albeit only a fraction of these will be able to speak at any given moment but it is a useful function and has been termed an event call. Their primary use is for product launches and press conferences held over the phone and they are growing increasing popular.
But is it cost effective? Against most travel costs it is. There are several companies dedicated to this service so the price has now become competitive with some companies offering prices below 10 for over an hour's teleconference. This gives a huge volume of savings and is obviously much better for the environment. There are however some increases in price when international calls are used but the price should still remain relatively cheap.
The conf call is increasing in popularity with more and more businesses and therefore more and more clients becoming aware of it. It is a fully modern method that is continuously improving itself. Although it may not quite yet be ready for large scale events such as science seminars, it's more than possible that within a few years it could be the standard method for large scale communication
A teleconference is quite simply a conference held over the phone or internet in the style of a conference call, or conf call. Whilst most phone conversations would be held between just two people, a teleconference can allow many more than that. In fact a significant number of teleconference providers allow up to 50 participants at a time. This means that with a conf call an entire meeting can be held in each person's own living room.
The person who starts a teleconference or conf call is generally going to be the chairperson of the teleconference. They are given powers to help control and maintain the meeting in an organised fashion. This role can be passed on to another or even shared between several people. Each chairperson has access to a head count and a roll call either for everyone or privately for themselves. This allows them to see who is in the teleconference. With this information they can mute people in the conference including themselves. This reduces background noise allowing the primary speaker to talk clearly but most importantly can stop interruption and maintain some order within the teleconference.
One other perk is that if people are participating online, they have the option to screen share. This means that they can bring something up on their own computer screen and others will be able to watch precisely what this is. Similarly people have more choices than just talking to each other, there is also the option of using a chat room style of talking, giving a quiet and more controllable approach to the whole meeting. Then for the important bits of the teleconference the chairperson will have the opportunity to record parts of the conf call for safe keeping, or even to help with the writing of minutes later.
However when it comes to sensitive information being shared, is the method of using a teleconference secure enough? Most would like to think so. The chairperson has access to a list of who is listening at all times. This combined with the ability to lock off the conference ceasing any other traffic helps. Likewise to get into a conf call the participants have to have the number of the chairperson and their PIN to get in. With a secure connection a teleconference should be as safe as is needed.
The interesting thing about the teleconference is that its usability is starting to spread. People are now recognising its use and have adapted it to new situations. A good example of this is event calling. This is a phenomenon where rather than chairing a conference with 50 people, the chairperson can hold a conference with up to a thousand people. Albeit only a fraction of these will be able to speak at any given moment but it is a useful function and has been termed an event call. Their primary use is for product launches and press conferences held over the phone and they are growing increasing popular.
But is it cost effective? Against most travel costs it is. There are several companies dedicated to this service so the price has now become competitive with some companies offering prices below 10 for over an hour's teleconference. This gives a huge volume of savings and is obviously much better for the environment. There are however some increases in price when international calls are used but the price should still remain relatively cheap.
The conf call is increasing in popularity with more and more businesses and therefore more and more clients becoming aware of it. It is a fully modern method that is continuously improving itself. Although it may not quite yet be ready for large scale events such as science seminars, it's more than possible that within a few years it could be the standard method for large scale communication
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