Are plug-jiggling, computer-rebooting, and support-ticket scrambling commonplace when it comes to video conferencing in your office? And does the mere thought of video communication with overseas clients and remote teammates make your employees shiver? Thankfully, there is a solution.
“Video conferencing” and “exasperated employees” don’t need to be synonymous. Here are four ways to achieve successful and stress-free video meetings in your workplace.
1. Embrace One-Click Meetings
According to a recent study conducted by TINYpulse, 52% of remote employees say they have contact with their direct supervisor “once per day” or “multiple times per day”. Although bringing this communication to video could improve the clarity and quality of these conversations, employees won’t want to take these conversations over video if it’s going to require significant effort. They want to use technology that helps support fast-paced (and easy) communication.
Empower employees to embrace last-minute brainstorms, hold impromptu trainings, and conduct spontaneous meetings by integrating your video conferencing software with your other communication applications like chat and email. When Slack channels are out-of-control and email threads become a nightmare, employees can easily invite everyone to a video meeting with a single click, without opening a new application.
2. Go Wireless and Cloud-Based
According to a study in the UK by Barco, 9 in 10 office workers’ meeting stress is caused by technology challenges like incompatibility and poor connectivity. No one likes having to fight through a jungle of tangled wires just to sit down for a meeting—and thinking your video conference equipment is broken when it’s actually just unplugged or disconnected can be a little embarrassing.
Allowing employees to connect to video conferences wirelessly and through a cloud-based service is the easiest way to ensure difficult wiring doesn’t get in the way of productivity. Utilizing the cloud allows employees to access online video conferences on-the-go from any device, in addition to connecting from designated conference rooms.
3. Encourage Realistic Meeting Goals
The key to a productive meeting lies in knowing exactly what goals you’ve gathered to accomplish—and preparing all parties to stick to them. Encourage employees to set realistic expectations by quickly outlining goals and organizing them before the meeting. If possible, urge employees to send the outline along with the video meeting invite, so that the flow of the meeting is obvious for the whole room. Try customizing one of these Microsoft templates to suit your team, or download a free agenda template from Vertex42 or Smartsheet to get your team started.
4. Streamline Screen Sharing
Add another level of productivity to your video meetings by using a video conferencing application that also handles real-time screen sharing. This enables employees to share tangibles during video conferences—like documents and presentations—and collaborate on them in real-time, without having to open multiple applications. It also eliminates the need for anyone to download content before the meeting begins, supporting a fast-paced, productive work atmosphere.
Read about the unexpected benefits video conferences can bring your business.
About the Author
Emily Hackeling was a Content Marketing Manager at BlueJeans. Prior to BlueJeans, Emily worked in content marketing at ZOZI.
