Use an Answering Service to Cover Staff Meetings

It’s a dilemma. You want your staff to attend your meetings, leaving no one to answer the phone when it rings. After all, the meeting is for all staff, and to exclude one person by removing them from the discussion doesn’t make it professional. An absence implies a person isn’t a valued part of your staff. Excluding one person says one of two things: either he or she is unimportant, or staff meetings are optional for everyone. That’s why you need to be prepared to cover staff meetings with the resources you have.

What Should You Do To Cover Staff Meetings?

Rotate Phone Duties

A fair solution would be for each employee to take a turn and answer the phone during staff meetings. Rotate through all your staff so that everyone is equally affected. But when you say everyone, are you including yourself too? If you will exempt yourself, will you also excuse other elite staffers? Of course, some will complain when it is their turn, and others will welcome an excuse to miss the meeting. Plus, only some have adequate training to do this job well.

Ignore the Ringing Phone

An opposite approach is even more straightforward. Just turn the ringer off your phone or take the receiver off the hook. Then have your staff meeting. You may reason that if the call is essential, the callers will try again. At one time, this worked. Nowadays, they are more apt to call their competitor.

Try Voicemail

You could use an answering machine or voicemail to cover staff meetings. Utilizing a voicemail system during staff meetings ensures client inquiries are acknowledged without disrupting these crucial internal discussions. This approach reflects an ongoing commitment to service excellence, as clients are greeted by a courteous and clear message, informing them of temporary unavailability while providing an assurance that their call is important and will be addressed promptly once the meeting concludes. 

Meet at the Receptionist’s Desk

Just meet at their desk to include the receptionist in your staff meeting. Yep, people have tried this. Just pause the meeting to talk to the caller when the phone rings. Aside from being inefficient, it wastes everyone else’s time as they wait for the receptionist to finish the call. Plus, most people don’t want an audience when they talk on the phone.

Hire a Temp

You could bring a temporary worker to answer the ringing telephone for longer staff meetings. But they will first need training on your phone system and some background about your company to interact intelligently with callers. And what if you need to pay them for a minimum number of hours?

Use Your Answering Service

Your answering service already knows your company and is prepared to handle your calls professionally. They know your protocols and understand your preferences. In most cases, give them a heads-up to expect some calls, and they’ll be good to go and cover staff meetings.

Though many options exist for dealing with a ringing phone during staff meetings, tapping your answering service is the most straightforward way to get the best results.

At Call Center Sales Pro, we provide 24/7/365 answering services that allow you to focus on your business’s strategic growth rather than operating the phone. Learn more about our services and contact us today!