Helping employees return to the workplace with technology
- Written by David Piggott, Managing Director ANZ, Jabra
Since the beginning of the pandemic, video collaboration has become the norm. While it certainly has had some teething issues, people now expect professional video conferencing solutions to make global collaboration as easy and seamless as possible. There’s no question that video is here to stay as teams collaborate more.
With a large number of staff back in the office, having the right technology in place to deliver exceptional user experience for video conferencing has never been more critical to business success.
Insight driven behaviour
Of course, the well-being of employees is a top concern now and having the right solutions in place is the most efficient way to help facilities managers implement necessary measures to keep the physical workplace safe for employees.
With new and innovative AV conferencing solutions like Jabra’s PanaCast 50 which delivers an independent data stream which provides anonymous people count meta-data as real-time numerical information, organisations can rely on these insights to ensure local safe distancing guidelines are being followed. This is clearly a major win for facilities managers as they can be assured that they do not have to constantly “police” meeting room capacity across the entire building.
Additionally, through the network interface, longer-term analytics data is available for IT administrators and office managers, enabling them to make data-driven decisions about how employees are utilising meeting spaces. In our new world, facilities managers must have an overview of how many rooms are being used, even when there is no active meeting, to help them inform planning for office space and staff safety going forward.
Improving the office experience
Employees across the board have largely managed with various work from home scenarios. As we look ahead, the hybrid working model will continue to be a mainstay with businesses across Australia and the world. This means that in order for people to return to the office, a strong case must be made. Technology is one such example where staff may get a better experience when in the office.
New-normal-ready intelligent technology should be at the forefront of business leaders’ minds. One of the issues people have found with video conferencing at home is that the sound and video quality is often very poor. Even before the work from home shift, poor audio and video in conference rooms have affected the quality and productivity of meetings.
Teams need a solution that combines the best of all worlds, with industry-leading professional audio and innovative 180° video, to solve all of their meeting communication issues. By implementing something that is superior to working from home, the office and covid-safe meeting rooms will become the location of choice for video conferencing.
Technology should make lives easier. New-normal-ready intelligent video bar solutions should not only be plug and play once installed, it must be even easier to maintain. This will ensure a smooth user experience across the entire organisation.
Innovation in 2021
Innovation is a means to a preferred future. The new normal requires new technology as employees seek to collaborate more seamlessly regardless of location than previously required. As the overall economy start to recover, those who wish to be ahead of the curve must find intelligent ways to make offices and collaboration spaces safer for everyone who uses them.
