Teleconferencing - in a Novel way
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In telecommunication, teleconference is the live exchange
of information among persons and machines remote from
one another but linked by a telecommunications system.
As technology advanced and costs came down by mid 1990s,
more and more companies emerged to provide facilities to
teleconference. Although this effectively reduced
distances between locations in such a way that people
could conduct meetings without ever having to leave their
own offices, many started to miss the 'wonders' of human
contact - the feeling of being in the same
conference room and watching others' reactions, as well as
having a gossip over a coffee after the meetings.
"Web collaboration" was born. This is usually performed
with a combination of audio and web conferencing
facilities. By collaborating over the web (or web
collaborating), the conference participants could not only
hear all members but share data applications too at the
same time. The other item that can be
incorporated by many services is video conferencing along
with the other two media (audio and data). This new
business tool has been driven by a market where businesses
are increasing their global presence plus entering into
more business partnering and sub-contracting relationships.
The other factor making web collaboration a reality is
that bandwidth requirements are not as excessive as they
were several years ago. Many audio/web conference users
simply need a minimum 56K connection and a phone line to
effectively use the collaborative conferencing services.
If a video conference is desired there is no longer a need
to set up special dedicated lines or purchase expensive
monitor equipment. The users need a simple, inexpensive PC
camera.
There are many similarities to a worker's day that cross
vertical markets. Day to day business functions of most
office workers combine inter-personal communication
(research, creating and absorbing information obtained)
and personal interaction with other professionals
(communications, collaboration, decision making). With
the use of multi-media conferencing services allows those
two types of functions to merge together. Using the various
tools a worker can perform research and absorb information
presented via video or web placement of documents while at
the same time communicate and collaborate on action items
and ultimately resolutions to projects. This collaboration
assists in quick decision making, many times affecting the
outcome of a project.
It is paramount for the managers to choose technology that
reflects an organisation's current business needs and also
that offers further flexibility in trms of choosing media
that offers future choices. The user unfriendliness of
media of inflexibility can dampen all productivity gains.
For example the web conferencing media should be able to
offer flexibility so that the user is able to choose
whether to use audio, video or web seperately, altogether
or any other combination. This will aid in productivity.
Another benefit to using an off-site conferencing center is
the ability to archive meetings. Many times key committee
or project members cannot be present. Instead of those
participants simply getting a type written synopsis of the
meeting in the minutes, they can listen in real-time to
the entire meeting and view the presented material on the
web at the same time. In 2003 44% of survey respondents
stated that they planned on increasing their participation
in web conferencing by 100% in the first 6 months. Other
companies that had already made this a standard business
practice were experiencing one month ROI from reduced
travel, increased productivity and quicker decision making
ability.
However many business managers and owners still failing
to see how the company they are serving can benefit from
this type of service. Here are some examples of how
companies have been successful by the application of these
technological innovations: A Boston executive used to
travel to New York once a week for a meeting with his team.
After implementing. Now he holds meetings via
audio/web/video
link and company saves over $2,000 per month.
Another example is of a nationwide PR firm that uses the
technology not only to collaborate with their own in-house
teams, but also to conduct client progress meetings during
a marketing campaign. This allows them to have
"face to face" contact with the client but
eliminate the travel cost FOR THE CLIENT. The meetings are
still productive because they can share files in
real-time and decisons are made in no time without having
to
wait for emails, To Do lists and other formalities.
A business consulting
firm similarly uses this type of service to conduct mini
seminars with prospective and current clients. These
seminars are
recorded for future viewing to allow those that miss out
an opportunity to connect and learn at their own schedule.
In short, business managers and owners need to be thinking
outside of the box to attract, maintain and better serve
their customers. Today, web conferencing is emerging as a
feature-rich, cost-effective tool for many business
applications. Each business should assess its' business
practices to determine if multi-media conferencing can
be used to increase productivity and make a positive impact
on customer service and ultimately the bottom line in
2005. It may be just what is needed to soar into the next
year.
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