Used For Meetings example essay topic

The increasing pressure to conduct businesses in a more timely and cost efficient manner has led to the development of technology within meetings. Teleconferencing is referred to as "interactive group communication". This technology enables a large number of people at different locations- whether they be local, interstate or overseas, to join a meeting in the comfort of their own home or office. In other word, teleconferencing can bring people together under the one roof even though they " re separated by hundreds of kilometres. Teleconferencing was first introduced in the 1960's with America Telephone and Telegraph's Picture phone. At that time there was no demand for this technology.

However, today teleconferencing is taking the business world by storm and is being used by some of the biggest corporations throughout the world. There are three types of teleconferencing, these include, Video conferencing, Computer conferencing, and the most commonly used device- Audio conferencing, most people just call it Teleconferencing. Today I will be focusing on Audio Conferencing and covering such aspects as its benefits and disadvantages, common and alternative uses and methods of using this technology. The only requirement for teleconferencing is that the users have a phone.

Many telephone systems have inbuilt teleconferencing systems. These are referred to as conference call facilities. They allow the caller to be put on speakerphone and an inbuilt microphone allows those around the speakerphone to be heard by the caller. These systems consist essentially of a tabletop console containing the function buttons and a keypad for dialling. External microphone can be attached to this, and an infrared remote control unit is available as an option. It is also possible to subscribe to conference calling through a service provider such as Telstra, this allows you to place one caller on hold, dial and connect with a third caller, and then allows all three callers to hear one another.

This is a lot like a 3-way chat. It is a common misconception by many businesses that teleconferencing is only used for meetings, however this is not the case. Teleconferencing can be used in vast variety of ways. Some of these include, for training purposes, Legal Consultation, Focus Groups, Account Planning and Auctions. Not only are there many uses for teleconferencing, but there are many benefits too. The benefit that out weighs the others by far is its potential to reduce the cost of group meetings.

Due to no travelling required, it is inevitable that savings are made on travel costs and time. Other benefits include increased productivity- because socializing is minimal compared to face-to-face meeting, meetings are shorter and more orientated on to their purpose so no time is wasted. Convenience- meetings can be held in an environment where everyone is comfortable. Availability- telephones are readily available throughout the world. And Cost- teleconferencing is a low cost facility.

The initial cost of installation is varied depending on the quality hook-up that is required however, servers charge by the minute so there are no hidden costs. The rate per minute averages around 15 cents per minute per person but extra for international calls. While teleconferencing is characterised by many advantages, it does have disadvantages, some of these are technical failure of equipment, it is impersonal, in other words teleconferencing is less easy to create an atmosphere of group support or encouragement, one on one social interaction is not possible, it may be difficult to determine who the speaker is at that time and additional problems can occur if people are not kept up to date with the technology and the business procedures for the equipment. Face to face meetings can be boring and both inefficient and ineffective. Teleconferencing represents a unique alternative to the traditional face-to-face meeting. Most of the time teleconferencing is an appropriate substitute.

Every meeting is unique, with different goals, objectives and purpose. As already discusses teleconferencing has countless uses and it is easy to find a variation on the basic teleconferencing unit that suits you. This high-tech system means the end to traditional style meetings and people are never going to look back. I highly recommend the use of teleconferencing for any business whatever the size. Teleconferencing will change your business for the better..