Conference Calls

Telephone Conference Call Meeting Guidelines
Approved By The Board of Trustees – Orlando ’13

Telephone Conference Call Committee (TCCC) Structure

  • The committee will consist of a maximum of 5 members who will act in the capacity of overseeing the meeting administrators (Admins).
  • The committee will see that Admins are discharging their responsibilities, as per the guidelines outlined by the TCCC. It will also be referred to as the oversight committee within the framework of all matters relating to telephone conference call meetings that will appear on the ISO and Trustee websites (designated sites).
  • The TCCC may modify the guidelines as situations arise.

    Oversight Committee Responsibilities

  • Training of all meeting admins
  • Approve all meeting admins
  • Remove Admins for non-compliance, with due process
  • Be the only source for listing meetings on the designated websites
  • Monitor meetings to ensure compliance with telephone conference call meeting guidelines
  • Advise all Admins of problems that need to be corrected, if these issue are not resolved immediately, the committee may remove an Admin at its discretion.
  • Approve all new meetings and their procedures that may be outside the confines of the current or future guidelines.
  • Consider any proposed changes that Admins would like to make to an existing meeting procedure, providing the committee deems them appropriate.
  • Be the only source to delist meetings from all designated websites if all guidelines are not being followed. This can only be done after notification to the meeting Admins regarding the problems, that doesn’t result in changes to bring the meeting back into compliance with the guidelines. Such meetings can be relisted when compliance is achieved.
  • Admins who suggest members to attend other non-GA listed telephone conference call meetings, will have their Admin status revoked.

    Type of Meetings

  • Open – Mandatory
  • Topic – Mandatory, as per the meeting chair’s choice
  • Comment or no comments – No cross comments if designated as a comment meeting
  • Step or no step
  • No speaker meetings
  • No anniversary celebrations
  • Meeting type will be listed on the website and must have schedule defined

    Admin Requirements

  • Admins must be approved by the TCCC
  • 2 Admins per meeting out of a group of 5 Admins, as a minimum
  • 2 years abstinence
  • Regular attendance at physical meetings
  • Should have held a Trusted Servant’s position at the room/group level
  • Internet access and experience using website programs

    Admin Responsibilities

  • Admins must open the lines 15 minutes before the posted starting time of the meeting and should be prepared to answer any questions
  • Facilitate the meeting
  • Admins will be the only people to chair the meetings
  • Select a topic for each meeting
  • Ensure that no personal information, i.e. phone numbers and emails are shared between members for the entire time the telephone lines are open.
  • Ensure an even and fair distribution of speakers
  • Ensure an even and fair distribution of people making comments, in a comment meeting
  • Will have an open microphone at all times to assist the speakers
  • Must enable the speakers to be able to speak via the website interface
  • Admins must keep the lines open for 15 minutes after the meeting for any questions.
  • Admins must be willing to accept specialized anonymous emails from meeting attendees who have questions or need additional information after the meeting.

    Admin Training

  • All admins must show their ability to administrate the website interface to the TCCC in order to be allowed to be an admin for a meeting and chair such meeting(s).
  • All prospective Admins will chair a telephone conference call meeting under the supervision of oversight members, to determine their ability to conduct a meeting.
  • The oversight committee will determine if and when the member is ready to be designated as an Admin.

    List of Meeting Admins

  • 5 admins to each meeting.
  • A group of at least 5 members can start a new telephone conference call meeting by submitting their names to the committee.
  • Individual members may add their names to a pool of unattached members who would like to participate in being an admin for a meeting. Those people will be taken on an as needed basis, with their approval as to whether or not the room meets with their ability to participate.
  • If a room loses an Admin, for whatever might be the reason, and the remaining Admins do not wish to accept an Admin from the pool of unattached Admins, they will be given 30 days to find a replacement that gets approval by the oversight committee, or the meeting will be suspended until such time as the number of Admins totals 5.
  • Each meeting will have its Admins listed on the Trustee website

    Meeting Format

  • Meeting must last at least 1 hour
  • Changes to the meeting time must be approved by the oversight committee for proper notification to the designated websites
  • Admins will read opening announcements
  • Admins will select members who have Combo Books to read the appropriate parts, but be prepared to read them themselves
  • Admins will select a member who has the Day at a Time book to read the appropriate page, but be prepared to read it themselves
  • Admin should ask the following questions of the group on a periodic basis throughout the meeting.
    • Is anyone here for their very first GA meeting? Such people should be dealt with halfway through the meeting with the 20 questions and allowed to speak for a maximum of 10 minutes
    • Is anyone under 90 days?
    • Is anyone here who did not speak at the last meeting?
    • Does anyone have a pressing problem or a desire to speak?
  • Admins cannot give any commentary on therapies in a no comment meeting
  • Admins should make best efforts to take a back seat on commentaries in a comment meeting to provide others an opportunity to give comments and encourage more unity. In the event there are no other comments, the Admins may make comments.

    Conference Call Website Interface

  • Each meeting will have its own access codes. This will require someone in the group to register to a special website portal. This information will be shared by all the admins and is not for dissemination to any other source other than the TCCC

    Website Postings

  • The ISO website will be modified to create a section for telephone conference call meetings
  • Existing telephone conference call meetings will only be added to the designated websites if the oversight committee is satisfied that all guidelines are adhered to.
  • All disclaimers and meeting guidelines/procedures will be listed on all designated websites
  • Complete meeting information and website admins will be listed on all designated websites
  • Content for display on the designated websites will be determined by the oversight committee
  • A email alias address will be listed for anyone to contact an admin or group of admins. This will be anonymous and no personal contact information for the Admins will be listed.

    Notification Placement

  • No active announcement notifications will be sent from either the TCCC or from any websites of the existence of any telephone conference call meetings.
  • Circulation of such information must be done individually through other means.
  • Any notifications of any telephone conference call meetings listed on the ISO website must contain a statement that the meeting is an official meeting of Gamblers Anonymous.

    Opening Announcements

  • Basic issues similar to those of regular meetings, to be approved by the TCCC
  • Disclaimers as approved by the TCCC

    Reading of Combo Book and other GA Approved Literature

  • Pages 4-7, 17 and the definition of gambling with be available on the ISO site for reading by the members of the conference call
  • The Serenity Prayer on the Combo Book cover and the GA Prayer on the inside cover of the Combo Book will be available on the ISO site.
  • Before therapies begin, the Day At A Time passage will be read.

    Ending The Meetings

  • The meeting must stay open until the stated closing time. If everyone in the meeting has spoken and there is still time left, the meeting must stay open even if everyone has left the meeting. Members may wish to speak again and may do so, but must yield is someone new enters the meeting before the meeting ending time.
  • Meeting ending times should be followed. If the Admins feel it is necessary to expand the meeting time, they must notify the oversight committee.
  • At the meeting ending time, the Admins will ask for admissions from those members who did not speak.
  • The Admins will select someone to recite the prayer on the inside cover of the Combo Book, then the Serenity Prayer. If no one has a Combo Book, it will be up to the Admins to recite the material.
  • Closing Announcements will be read to those members still remaining at the end of the meeting.

    Member Support Between Meetings

  • No member emails or phone numbers will be exchanged during the meeting, before, during or after. There will be no exceptions. Admins will be responsible for monitoring meeting chatter to prevent this.
  • Each room will have an email alias setup for people who may require additional support.
  • This email alias will be set up to forward incoming requests for support to a member of the committee.
  • The committee member will forward the request to the area in which the member lives, through a contact from the local area Intergroup or the area Trustee designated to perform this duty.

    Meetings Will Not Be Recognized As Groups

  • This is not a physical meeting and not considered part of making regular attendance toward any meeting minimum numbers.
  • This is an authorized meeting of Gamblers Anonymous, but will not be designated as a group, similar to the provisions of institutional meetings.
  • Since these meeting are not located in any specific location, none of them will have voting rights, nor are they represented by any area or Trustee.

    Disclaimers

  • No assurance can be made that other non-GA people may be listening, other than those who are dialing in.
  • Callers may identify themselves as compulsive gamblers or have a desire to stop gambling and may actually be someone entirely different. This could include officers of the court, members of the media and any other person not described here.
  • Calls may be recorded, against the guidelines of this meeting, without our knowledge through devices used to access the conference call meetings.
  • It is possible that someone could take the recordings and puts them on a website or any other media without our knowledge.

    OPENING ANNOUNCEMENTS

  • This is an open meeting, which means that anyone, whether in GA or not, can dial into this meeting. Be aware of this whenever you speak.
  • Only people who have a desire to stop gambling will be allowed to give therapy, unless this is your first meeting and you are interested in whether or not you need Gamblers Anonymous.
  • No recording devices of any kind are to be used at any time. However we have no way of stopping such activities.
  • Whatever is said in this meeting, remains in this meeting.
  • Members under 90 days MUST be called upon to speak, if they identify themselves as such.
  • New members will be given the opportunity to speak midway through the meeting.
  • We are here to share our experience, strength and hope with each other that we may solve our common problem and help others to recover from a gambling problem. Please try to limit your therapy to issues relating to gambling.
  • Please refrain from using profanity.
  • Do not mention amounts of money during therapy. We are here to relate to one another, not compare.
  • Do not admit to any past or present crimes for which you may still be prosecuted. Again, we do not know who is listening.
  • Admissions and date of last bet must be incorporated into a member’s therapy or at the end of the meeting if the member did not have a chance to speak.
  • Do not make any derogatory statements or comments about any other member or another room while giving therapy.
  • Please try to limit your therapy to 5 minutes, in order to give others a chance to speak. At 5 minutes, the Meeting Admins will mention that the 5-minute mark has been hit as a reminder, but the member may take additional time if needed. Therapies cannot be used to give other members a comment about their therapy.

    FOR COMMENT MEETINGS ONLY
    THE FOLLOWING WILL BE ADDED

  • This is a 3-comment meeting. In the case of a new member, that number increases to 5. No cross comments are allowed.
  • Members under 90 days are not allowed to give comments.
  • Comments must be direct, to the point and related to therapy, kept to 1 minute and should reflect your personal experiences. At 1 minute, the Room Admin will mention the 1-minute mark.
  • The administrators will make best efforts to ensure that comments are evenly distributed among the members in the room who wish to comment.

    CLOSING ANNOUNCEMENTS

  • This telephone conference call meeting is not intended to replace a physical meeting.
  • It is important that you attend at least 1 physical meeting a week, to derive all the benefits for your recovery. All physical meetings are listed on the ISO website at gamblersanonymous.org
  • If you need someone to contact you from this meeting, please use the following email address (assigned email address for the meeting). Please be sure to include all you contact information. An Admin will get in touch with you.
  • Please remember that members in this room may not be who they say they are.
  • All telephone conference call meetings listed on the ISO website will open 15 minutes before the start time listed on the website.