Call Control in a Hard to Control Virtual World - Part 1
I remember it like it was yesterday. It was a warm 85 degrees in the Carolina’s but a crisp 65 degrees in the office. I was excited about this day since I was leading a high-impact call which I had been anticipating for several weeks. The meeting was for a new product launch which we hoped would take the market by storm.
At 3:00pm the call began and, as customary, I confirmed all attendees had logged in and exchanged pleasantries.
15 minutes into the call, all was going better than I could have expected. That was, until we got to the implementation date. The product team wanted to rush but the sales team had other priorities.
Honestly, to this day, I cannot recall what happened between 3:15pm and 3:16pm. But the call intensified and choice words were shared between the call participants. I desired to interject but was hesitant due to the participants being above my paygrade. Furthermore, what would I say? I said nothing… until a final F-Bomb had detonated and - after a long awkward pause - I ended the call. I ended the call as pleasantly as I could I might add… which just added to the awkwardness.
5:30am the next morning I woke up with heart palpitations. Why? The intensity of the prior day’s call had permeated into my subconscious, causing me to think about it while I was sleeping.
After reflecting, I took ownership of what had happened and acknowledged that controlling the call was my responsibility.
In order not to run into this situation again, I would need some tried and tested tools to help me along the way:
I hope you enjoy this 3-part article about “(Virtual) Call Control”. Let’s begin with “(Virtual) Call Preparation”:
3 Tips for Virtual Conference Call Preparation:
1. Stop Scheduling Conference Calls…or at least stop scheduling as many as you did before reading this article.
I say this because not every conference call needs to actually be a conference call. I am sure I am not the only one who has logged in to a call that should have been an email or a 1:1 offline conversation.
But how do you know which calls should be scheduled? (Also, let’s face it, sometimes it’s easier to go to your calendar, drop in a few names, a meeting subject, and a bridge number…)
But resist that urge and ask this one key question: Can I attain the answer(s) I need without a conference call?
If the answer is YES, try getting the answer another way.
Let me get on my soapbox for a moment: It truly bothers me when someone schedules a call with 30 participants, for 30 minutes, then the call lasts 10 minutes and the host says “I guess I can give you 20 minutes of your life back.” You know what? I want all 30 minutes of my life back! But I digress… (soapbox dismount).
Now I am going to quiz you: someone runs to your desk, hair on fire, shouting, “I need you to schedule a conference call!” What is your response? If you answered: “Take a deep breath, blow out their hair, and ask myself if I can get the answer without a conference call”, you are absolutely correct! Trust Me, people and their calendars will thank you.
2. Know Your Guest List
OK, if the answer to the question “Can you attain the answer without a conference call?” was “No, now what?” Then, of course, schedule the call - BUT before you hit send, take 30 seconds to look over your attendee list and consider the following: What contribution do I expect each attendee to make by being on this call? If the answer to the question is ‘nothing’, drop them.
But there is a second question you should ask yourself after scaling down this list: Out of the attendees left on the invite, what is their intent or their conference call habits? Why is this important?
Here’s an example: I have a colleague who, whenever he goes to a business dinner, tries to find out as much as he possibly can about everyone that will be sitting at the table with him before the dinner happens. Full name, title, accomplishments…everything. This is a part of his preparation process for being ready to start or chime in on any conversation at the table. It is the same way with conference calls. If you know a key stakeholder is Dan DeRail or Susan Sidetrack, it may be beneficial to have a conversation with them before the call to let them know they are being invited to a meeting to cover a certain topic - and (perhaps) you would really appreciate it if they could add value by chiming in on a specific agenda during the call. This way Dan or Susan knows ahead of time what the call is about and what value they are expected to add by joining. This helps focus their participation.
To recap, be intentional about the participants you invite and, as much as possible, set expectations with them before the call. This will pay great dividends in the long run.
3. Hit ‘em with the P.A.N.
By now you should have a clear goal of what you want this call to accomplish and who needs to be on the call. But wait! Before you hit send on the meeting invite, make sure you have included the P.A.N. (Purpose, Agenda, and Next Steps/Meeting). You should include a P.A.N. in the body of EVERY meeting invite. No P.A.N. in a meeting invite is like sending out party invitations without details and getting upset when no one shows. (The people wanted to come to the party but didn’t know who it was for, what to bring or what to wear, etc.)
Here is an example of a P.A.N.:
Purpose: Our product team desires to discuss and gain approval for what is needed to implement Widget 22 by Q4.
Agenda:
Meeting Overview and Purpose
Widget 22 Background and Goals
Widget 22 High-level Implementation Discussion
Next Steps:
Approval Decision for Project Implementation
Determine Next Meeting
Identify Additional Key Stakeholders
Once you include the P.A.N. - hit send, sit back and watch the meeting acceptance notifications come rolling in.
Read on in – “Call Commander and Chief”.
