There is nothing complicated about learning how to plan telephone conference calls. However, you do need to plan for these meetings for several reasons. The main reason is that a conference call is basically a short meeting, so you need to have an agenda in order to get all your work done in a short period of time. A typical conference call runs about an hour in length and depending on the topics raised and the discussion of the participants, you may have to put some issues to another time for more discussion. Since conference calls are shorter in duration, they tend to be more task oriented than a day long meeting where you gather all the participants in a physical location.

You do not have to be a computer expert in order to plan a telephone conference. You can simply use the conference calling plan that your telephone service provides or you can plan the conference through your computer. When planning this meeting, you should have an agenda, which you email to all participants a day or two in advance of the conference. This allows the participants to come to the meeting prepared, which is often not the case with face-to-face meetings.

When you plan a telephone conference, you are giving people that are quite a distance away to participate in the meeting. It is also easier for them to take part in the meeting using their own telephone or computer and with some people, they find it easier to talk this way. This is because they do not have to plan to speak in front of a large group of people.

Planning a conference by telephone is similar to planning for a meeting, except you plan for a shorter period of time. Each conference has to have a main focus. Start your planning with the overall objectives of the meeting. These can be very general such as:

What action do we need the participants to take after this conference?

What information do we need from the participants during the meeting?

Will this be just a general sharing of information or do we want input from each person?

If you want to speak to the participants as a group, plan what you want to say and how you will say it. The key factor in planning a conference call is to be as brief as possible while still getting your message across. If you want to ask questions, make sure you have them written down so that you wont miss any important ones. Write an outline of the script you want to follow for the conference and allow time for participant interaction. Planning for the first conference is usually the most difficult. Once you get through that, the rest should be smooth sailing.