Irish Conference Calls – The Best and Worst Regions of 2017
At 247meeting, we analysed the data of over 133,000 Irish conference calls hosted on our platform in 2017. After sifting through page upon page of data, we’ve boiled the information down into a slightly more digestible format. See how your county/town/region ranks among Ireland’s conference call hotspots!
Punctuality
When was the last time you were on a conference call that started bang-on time? The Irish are far from being world renowned timekeepers. “I’ll be 5 minutes late” in this country can mean anything up to an hour. It appears some of us are better at this than others. Here’s the average delay in Irish conference calls commencing, broken down by town/region:
The most common cause of delay is people’s dependency on dial-in technology. Trying to recall dial-in numbers and PINs adds an unnecessary layer of complication to conference calls. With 247meeting mobile app, all you have to do is select your guests from your phone’s contact list and dial-out like a regular call! With our app, you could knock those proud Galwegians off the top spot, they won enough in 2017. Check out our blog on the best worst excuses for delayed conference calls!
Call Length
So Irish conference calls aren’t exactly punctual. But compared to our colleagues abroad, we’re some of the most concise around. That’s hard to believe if you’ve ever heard two Irish people say goodbye to each other. It would appear though that this succinctness depends on what part of the country you’re in. Here are the rankings for average call length:
Despite taking the longest to get going, folk from Tipp don’t waste much time getting down to business. Whereas those Portlaoisians can’t seem to stop yammering!
It’s often small, trivial things that slow us down. Check out our blog on the 6 types of people who ruin conference calls and how to deal with them. It’s crucial your meetings don’t run over the prescribed time. Your team may have a great depth of knowledge, but their patience is paper-thin! Laura Stack, the Productivity Pro tells us that:
“Many experts agree that 45 minutes represents the best meeting length, making it one of the few fixed variables you can take into account. If the meeting must last longer, split it into 45 minute periods separated by substantial breaks.”
Number of Participants
Sometimes we include people on conference calls out of sheer politeness. But the number of people included on your call should indicate the desired style of meeting you wish to run. When decision making, try to keep numbers down. This makes it easier to form a consensus. When generating ideas, it’s better to have a few more people on board. Here’s the average amount of guests per call in your region:
The Yellowbellies come in as the most “democratic” with an average of 10 guests per call. Dubliners tend to favour smaller audiences with an average of 5 guests. Try avoid any observers on your call; everyone in attendance should be there because the meeting is relevant to them. Keep the Asch Conformity experiments in mind. It states that:
“Conformity tends to increase when more people are present, but there is little change when the group size goes beyond four or five people. Conformity increases when other members of the group are of a higher social status. When people view the others in the group as more powerful, influential, or knowledgeable than themselves, they are more likely to go along with the group.”
Always let your employees know that just because they were invited to a meeting, they should not feel obliged to attend. If a meeting is mandatory, let them know it’s mandatory. Your team will feel confident in the knowledge that they belong to the meeting. Check out our blog on the psychology of meetings to implement more intuitive meetings.
If you enjoyed this article and would like a more thorough analysis of the data provided, check out our White Paper by clicking here! In this White Paper we take a look at the literal cost of lost productivity through conference calls. The figures may astound you!