I really thought that I wasn’t old, but in my Junior year of college, I remember the first time I ever saw a student bring a laptop to class to take notes.  The teacher was hesitant to allow it but, “As long as you don’t play video games during the lecture, I guess it’s okay.”

Well check out this video of the modern college classroom, and one of the futures of learning:

How cool is that?  College students using Twitter to effectively outlearn the normal educational structure.  We can make similar strides in our audio, video and web conferences as well using short-message contribution systems.

Twitter is a great system for getting the thoughts, comments, and questions of a vast amount of people that wouldn’t normally be possible if gathered in the typical conference call Q&A style.  With a lot of participants for example, there just wouldn’t be enough time.  And what about shy people?  We might never hear from them verbally, but they’re typed contributions could be invaluable.

And it doesn’t have to be Twitter per se, there are private twitter-like programs out there.  Or, if you add a web conference to your conference call, you can use the chat feature.  There’s also instant messaging, and programs like Google wave, which allows emails, text, and IM to join a chat conversation.

The point is that by embracing and utilizing non-traditional communications mediums in our conference calls, we can look forward to much more effective collaborations.  And why not integrate Twitter and the like?  After all, it wasn’t too long ago that the simple conference call was itself a non-traditional communications medium.

Conference calls are a great tool, but like the double-edged sword, if used improperly they can do unwanted damage.  Let’s revisit some of the tips, tricks, and suggestions for having great and effective conference calls. 

If you don’t need it, don’t do it.  Seriously, a pointless meeting can be more than a waste of time, it can be a morale-sucker.  If it doesn’t need collaboration, feedback, or a human touch, just send an email.

Agendas rule!  They really do, if you want an effective meeting that is.  An agenda clearly states the purpose of the conference call, what is to be covered, how that will be accomplished, and what is to happen after the meeting.  A good agenda gives direction and keeps things on track, people focused, and productivity high.

If you didn’t just send an email, then your conference call needs two-way communication.  Get that input from your participants with group questions, speaking roles, elaboration assignments, pre-conference emailed questions, and solid, pointed Q&A.  If your conference is too large to easily get everyone’s verbal input, use post-conference call questionnaires and follow-up emails.

End on a call to action.  Direct your participants to do what needs to be done.  Make assignments such as individual work directives, study plans, research, or even a potential customer group-orders: “go to our website,” “buy our products,” and even “tell your friends.”  

Be the leader your conference call needs by keeping things on track.  Make sure to start on time and keep everyone on schedule.  Tackle conversational tangents, take important discussions “offline,” and schedule later conference calls for good, but off-topic subjects. 

And end on time too.  Respect people’s schedules and they’ll respect yours.  If you didn’t get it all done in the allotted time, end your conference call with the plan to meet again soon.

Having great conference calls isn’t an arcane secret or even rocket science.  These are some of the big tips; how do you have great conference calls?