TC Teleconference Services questionnaire

Chairs,

 

We’ve heard the dialogue on the Chairs list about the problems
Committee teleconference costs pose for members – both for international
participants who dial in and for member organizations who volunteer to host
calls.

 

OASIS is investigating options for funding Committee conference calls
out of member dues. We have
conducted a preliminary analysis based on postings to our central events
calendar, information from our member databases, and the service quotes of
several service providers. This research
indicates that the annual cost of providing fully internationalized services
for every call of every Committee, could exceed 10% of our total operating
budget (over 250,000 USD annually).

 

In light of the extraordinary costs involved, it is vital that we take
the time to fully understand the expectations and circumstances of all our
Committees, so that we might identify alternatives to manage costs while still
addressing the majority of your needs.

 

To that end, we’re asking a representative of each OASIS
Committee to spend five minutes answering the following 16 questions on
teleconference usage. We appreciate
that in many cases, the best you can offer is an educated guess. That’s fine.
Any information you provide—even if it can’t be verified by detailed
tracking or reports—will be helpful to us.

 

Only one reply per TC or Sub-Committee is needed, so please coordinate
your responses with co-chairs and secretaries. 

 

Thank you in advance for your time,

 

Scott McGrath

Director Member Services

 

 

OASIS
Committee Teleconference Requirements Questionnaire  

Committee Name:

(If you chair more than one Committee or Sub-Committee,  please
fill out this questionnaire separately for each.)

About your
teleconference use:

On average, how many teleconferences does your Committee hold each
month?

 

How many minutes does your average teleconference last?

 

Approximately how many minutes was the longest call your Committee held
in the past year?

 

About your
teleconference callers:

 

How many callers typically participate in your teleconferences from:

_____ North America 

_____ Europe

______Asia

______Australia

_____Other 

Do you believe the expense of international (country-to-country)
calling is a limiting factor for OASIS Members to participate in the Committee
you chair?

If so, can you cite specific examples? 

 

 

About your existing teleconference support

 

Does a member of your Committee provide teleconference hosting?  If so,
which member(s)?

 

If you are generally pleased with the service your Committee uses most
frequently, can you tell us the name of the provider (and why you like them)?

 

If you are not pleased with the service your Committee uses, can you
tell us the name of the provider (and why you are dissatisfied)?

 

Does the teleconference service provide toll-free IN-COUNTRY OR
INTERNATIONAL TOLL-FREE? access in some areas? 

Does your teleconference service provide local numbers in more than one
country? 

 

Can you offer any advice about other services you tried and discontinued?

 

About future
teleconference use and support

 

Given your current situation and the impact to OASIS in doing so, 
do you think OASIS should provide teleconference services, funded by member
dues?  

 

If OASIS could provide only limited resources to solve the largest
problems inhibiting member participation, what do you think reasonable bounds
would be?

 

Indicate your acceptance of the following suggestions, on a scale of 1
to 5 

(5 Meaning you would accept the idea, 1 being you would not accept the
idea)

 

___OASIS would provide international service with in-country 
dial-in for all Committees, all calls.

___OASIS would provide a local dial-in line for the country in which
the majority of Committee members reside, others members pay their 
international rates to dial-in.

___OASIS would continue to encourage member organizations to host
Committee calls and covers the costs only when a Committee is unable to
identify a host.

___OASIS would encourage Committees to use free conferencing services
(such as freeconferencecall.com) 

___OASIS would not provide any teleconference service that will have a
budget impact

 

 

Any other comments or suggestions: