5 Tips to Keep Phone Calls Efficient

Phone call meetings are essential in a corporate setting. Especially in the era of COVID-19, businesses rely on phone calls instead of meetings, now more than ever. However, phone call meetings are rarely short and sweet. Whether it be someone getting distracted and causing a call to go over-schedule or someone spending too much time prepping—phone meetings often become highly inefficient and a huge time waster.

With phone calls being so crucial, we should all know how to run them efficiently.

At Forward Science, some of our team works remotely and some work outside of Houston. Our team’s varying locations forced us to become pros at phone call meetings. So, we reached out to some of our employees that work remotely to discuss how to keep phone calls efficient and effective.

To ensure your next phone meeting is efficient, make sure you can answer all these questions:

1. Is this meeting necessary?

• Could your questions be answered in an email? If the answer is yes, change your meeting to an email or wait until you have several action items to discuss.

2. Have I created a clear agenda?

• Along with the help of others on the call, write and share the topics that need to be discussed and throughout the call. Make your way down the checklist while the meeting progresses. This will ensure you hit every topic during the meeting and will keep you from straying to other topics.

3. Are we prepared?

• Once you have agreed on an agenda, ensure all necessary information and resources are shared with the call attendees. This way, the respective parties are prepared for the meeting and aware of what is expected of them.

4. Have I given myself enough time?

• Allot more time than you think you need for a meeting. Then, if your call goes over time, you aren’t stressed and if your meeting ends early, you have a break to prepare for the next tasks.

5. How will I keep everyone on track?

• When one of your coworkers begins to ramble, it is ok to re-focus them and remind them of the topics that need to be discussed. Kindly usher them back into the conversation and lead everyone into the next talking point.

With these five simple steps, you will be sure to keep your phone calls efficient and your busy days organized!

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