Online Meetings for Presenters

Scheduling an online Skype for Business meeting is very similar to scheduling a regular meeting. You must use the Outlook desktop software and be signed in to Skype for Business when you schedule the meeting.

To create an online meeting or conference call request:

1. Open Microsoft Outlook and select Calendar.
2. In the Calendar view, on the Home tab, click New Skype Meeting. In Outlook 2010, select New Online Meeting. Or, create a new meeting and select Skype Meeting in the Meeting tab.
   
3. An automatically generated footer will appear with a hyperlink to the online meeting and a phone number and conference ID to join by phone. NOTE: Do not modify any of the existing text in the meeting request. Doing so may prevent people from joining the meeting.
4. In the meeting request, in the To box, type the email addresses of the people you want to invite to the meeting, separated by semicolons. By default, Skype for Business will include assume all attendees are presenters. To change this, see Change meeting access and presenter options⁷.
   BEST PRACTICE: Add individual email addresses when possible. If you are using a distribution list or an Outlook group, expand the group. If you invite individuals, you can later specify individuals as presenters in the advanced meeting options.
5. (Optional) In the meeting request, on the Meeting tab, in the Show group, click Scheduling Assistant. Use the Scheduling Assistant to ensure that everyone is available during the time you choose.
6. In the meeting request, in the Subject box, type a subject for the meeting.
7. By default, the location will appear as Skype for Business Meeting. If you are also holding an in-person meeting at the same time, add the room and reserve it as you normally would.
8. (Optional) In the body of the meeting request, above dotted line, type additional meeting details.
9. Include instructions for others to join: Those using the Skype for Business Web App for the first time will need to download a small plug-in file to be able to share video and audio. Your attendees can join the meeting ahead of time and install the plug-in file.

Recurring meetings - what to keep in mind

If you are using the default meeting options, you will reuse the same meeting space. Which means you could see some materials from meetings held in the past 15 days. TIP: It's best practice to put an end date on a recurring meeting that is less than a year away.

Schedule a meeting on behalf of someone else

At this time, delegates cannot schedule Skype for Business meetings on behalf of someone else without using a workaround.

1. Have the person create a Skype for Business meeting in Outlook and invite you.
2. Copy the meeting join information in the footer.
3. Create future Skype for Business meetings by creating a new meeting request and pasting the meeting join information from the previous meeting into the invitation.
4. Complete and send the meeting request as you normally do. 

Change meeting access and presenter options

By default, Skype for Business will reuse the same meeting space for all of your meetings and make all invitees presenters. Presenters can display content and take over the presentation. They can also join the meeting directly and will not have to wait in a virtual lobby. For a small and casual meeting with people inside your company, use the meeting default options and skip changing the settings.

For larger audiences (more than 10-15 people), meetings when you’re presenting confidential information, or external customers, you will want to change the settings in Meeting Options to create a new meeting space and control permissions. This creates a more private meeting space and lets you control participation.

How to change meeting access and presenter options:

1. In the Skype for Business online meeting request, in the Online Meeting group, click Meeting Options.
   
   
2. To change the meeting options, select A new meeting space (I control permissions).
   
   
   
   TIP: If you want to always use this option, click Remember Settings at the bottom of the window, so that all your future meetings automatically have a new ID and the permissions you select.
    
3. You will now be able to specify advanced options for the meeting. Accept or change the default options as required. Then, select OK or Remember Settings if you’d like to save as your default settings.

Virtual Lobby:

By default, anyone joining as an attendee will automatically wait in a virtual lobby until admitted to the meeting by a presenter. Presenters and attendees who call in by phone will bypass the virtual lobby and join the meeting. You can specify people who don’t have to wait in the virtual lobby by using the drop-down menu.

Announce when people enter or leave:

This option makes it so that everyone can hear the names of people joining or exiting. We highly recommend to leave this option unchecked. In medium to large meetings, it can be incredibly distracting to get the automatic entry and exit announcement.

Who’s a presenter?

Here you can choose who gets to be a presenter in your meeting. Remember that all presenters have full control over the meeting, and can share content, record the meeting (except when using Skype for Business Basic, which doesn’t support recording), change the meeting options, mute people, and other meeting tasks.

1. Using the drop-down menu under Who’s a presenter, select People I choose.
2. Click the Choose presenters button.
3. You will see a list of everyone on the invite under attendees. Select those individuals that you would like to be presenters and move them to the Presenters column by clicking on Add >>. TIP: If you've added a distribution list to the meeting request, you may need to expand the list before being able to select individuals as presenters.

Options for limiting participation:

If you are setting up a large event or want to eliminate interruption, you can mute all attendees, disable meeting IM or prevent them from using their webcam, by checking the boxes below:

• Disable IM – You may want to disable Instant Messaging and instead use a Question & Answer session in the meeting, which allows for a more guided dialogue.
• Mute all attendees
• Block attendees’ video

These settings apply only to attendees. Presenters can always share audio and video in the meeting.

Set up or upload presentation content

You can log in well in advance of the meeting and upload or create any content you’d like to share in the meeting. For example, if you know that you’d like to conduct a poll in the meeting. You can join the meeting the morning before the meeting and set up the poll. If you plan to share a program during the meeting, you will want to launch the program before the meeting begins.

To find presentation materials during the meeting:

1. Within the meeting, hover over the monitor icon and select Manage Presentation Content.
   
2. You will see a list of all presentable content and can start or stop presenting or remove content.

Create a contact group

It can be helpful to create a contact group within Skype for Business with all of the attendees before the meeting. This will allow you to instant message everyone at once if something should come up before the meeting. If someone should accidentally leave the meeting, you can quickly drag and drop them from your contacts list to the meeting window to add them back in. Note: At this time you can only add contacts from KU or organizations who have chosen Open Federation within Skype for Business. For more information, see Contacts & Groups¹⁰.

Running your meeting in a conference room

It’s a good idea to give yourself time to get the room ready before your meeting starts, to make sure Skype for Business is set up to work with the room audio and video devices.

If multiple people are in the same conference room, only one computer should log on to the meeting to prevent audio feedback unless multiple presenters will be sharing content. If additional computers must log on, they should choose Don't join audio when initiating the meeting.

In addition, if you have a speaker presenting at a podium, and moderators assisting with the meeting, you will want to make sure that the person who is signed at the podium is unmuted and the audio devices set up.

How to project a Skype for Business meeting:

1. If you’re using the room projector, connect the cable to your computer and select the appropriate display. Press the Windows key + P to start the display. You can choose one of the following options:
   
   • Duplicate - shows your desktop on both your computer monitor and the room projector. TIP: Microsoft recommends selecting Duplicate so you can see the meeting both on your monitor and the room display.
   • Extend - extends your desktop from your computer monitor and the room projector.
   • Projector only - shows your desktop only on the room projector.
      
2. Set your screen display to 1024 x 768 pixels for the best viewing experience (800 x 600 portrait for tablet PCs).
   • Right-click on your desktop and left click on Screen Resolution.
   • Click the drop-down menu by Resolution.
   • Click and drag the slider to 1024 x 768. Note: The resolution might not appear until you drag over it.
      

How to select and test your audio device:

Before using Skype for Business with your meeting, select your audio device and check the quality. You can use your computer’s mic and speakers or plug in a headset. Skype for Business-certified devices work best, but it is possible that other devices will work.

1. Connect to the conference speaker and/or microphone devices.
2. Launch Skype for Business. You may need to go to the Start Menu > All Programs > Microsoft Office 2013 > Skype for Business 2013.
3. Click Select Primary Device using the drop-down menu in the lower-left corner of the Skype for Business interface, then click Audio Device Settings.
   
4. Pick your device from the Audio Device menu, and adjust the speaker and microphone volume, as needed.
5. Select Check Call Quality to record a message and hear it played back.
   
    
6. Once you are satisfied with the audio quality, click OK.

How to prepare to record the meeting:

Remember to plug your laptop into a power source.

With Skype for Business, starting a meeting is the same as joining the meeting. Note: At this time, you cannot start a meeting by using the call-in number and conference ID.

How to start or join a meeting:

Online instructions for all users are located at <<<Need to update>>>⁸. Include these directions in your meeting invite. 

Because you are from KU and have Skype for Business software on your PC, the meeting will launch in your desktop software after you do one of the following:

• Click on Join Skype for Business Meeting in the Outlook meeting request.
• From the Microsoft reminder pop up, click Join Now.
• From the Skype for Business Calendar view, double-click the Skype for Business meeting. (It will appear in blue.)

Use the recommended audio settings.

How to admit attendees from the virtual lobby:

By default, attendees joining the meeting through the Skype for Business Web App, who sign in as a guest will wait in a virtual lobby until a presenter admits them. Note: Presenters and attendees who call in will bypass the virtual lobby and directly join the meeting.

1. When attendees are waiting in the virtual lobby, a yellow bar will appear in the meeting window.
2. Click on either Admit to admit all attendees waiting in the lobby or See Lobby to admit individual attendees.

At the beginning of the meeting, remind participants of best practices:

1. Use a wired Internet connection whenever possible. If you are experiencing audio or visual issues, you may need to switch to a wired internet connection, close the meeting, and then rejoin the meeting.
2. Use a recommended Skype for Business audio device.
3. Mute your audio unless you are speaking. Remind the audience on how to mute and unmute themselves.
4. If you are joining a meeting alongside other attendees in the same room, use only one computer to log on to the meeting to prevent audio feedback.

Recording

When you record a Skype for Business Meeting, you capture audio, video, instant messaging (IM), screen sharing, PowerPoint slides, whiteboard, and polling. Any of the presenters can record a meeting and save it on their computers.

How to record your meeting:

1. Click the ellipses icon in the lower right corner of the meeting, then Start Recording. Note: If the recording option is dimmed, your audio might not be connected. Click the mic/phone icon to connect audio, then try again.
   
   
2. Use the controls at the bottom of the meeting to pause, resume, or stop the recording.
3. To see who else is recording, hover over the red recording button.
4. When you’re done, click the ellipses icon and choose Stop Recording or select the stop button.
   
5. Skype for Business automatically saves the recording in MP4 format that plays in Windows Media Player.
6. You can exit the meeting while the recording is being processed.

Best practices for recording a meeting:

1. Notify meeting attendees when you are recording and if you plan to distribute to others.
2. Make sure you are plugged in to a power source.
3. Once you are finished recording, use a service such as KU’s Media Hub, mediahub.ku.edu¹¹, to upload and share your media. See After the Meeting¹² for more information.

Participant controls

On the people menu, you see a list of the participants and can access a contact card with a right-click on the names. If you’re a presenter, you’ll have access to other controls, such as muting the audience or inviting more people.

How to view and change participant rights:

1. Pause on the people icon to manage participants individually or as a group:
   • To add additional participants, click Invite More People, and find or select the people you want to invite. Note: This only works for KU contacts or members of organizations that have chosen Open Federation. See How to invite others to the meeting on the fly.¹³
   • To mute, unmute, make presenter/attendee, or remove from the meeting, on the Participants tab, right-click a person’s name and use the options.
      
2. To control the rights for multiple attendees at once, click the Attendees icon and then the Actions tab.
   
   
   
   • Mute Audience to eliminate background noise.
   • No Meeting IM to disable instant messaging (IM) during the meeting.
   • No Attendees Video to block attendees from starting video.
   • Hide Names to hide the names on the pictures.
   • Everyone an Attendee to reduce the number of presenters if you have too many.
   • Invite by email to send email invitations to additional people.
3. Select an option:​

How to invite others to the meeting on the fly:

The best way to invite others to a meeting on the fly is to send them the meeting join information. You can do this by:

• Forwarding the original meeting request to the individual. Or,

• Within the Skype for Business meeting, select the ellipses icon > Meeting Entry Info > Copy All Info.
  
  
  
  You can now paste that information into an email or instant message and send it to a new participant.