The Meeting Revolution

Meetings are a quintessential aspect of business. Work must be divided between employees, and meetings are necessary to ensure that everyone is working toward the same goal. Meetings also provide a valuable opportunity for those in a business to propose suggestions about better means to reach a goal, and they allow staff an opportunity to forge connections with each other.

Technology, however, is starting to change the nature of meetings, and the classic meetings of the past are being replaced with options more appropriate for the 21st century. Here are a few technologies that promise to radically change how meetings are held.

E-Conferencing

The “video phone” is a memorable remnant from science fiction literature; many, however, have lamented the fact that video phones have only seen limited use. E-conferencing is taking the video phone idea and using it as a technique to hold meetings.

With e-conferencing, businesses can hold virtual meetings with staff members across the globe. For businesses with multiple branches or traveling employees, e-conferences allow meetings to be held regularly. Some e-conferencing platforms allow users to share documents with each other and can record the meetings for future reference.

Screen Sharing

Screen sharing software is often used to hold e-conferences. These programs allows users to watch the same screen and interact with remote computers. Businesses can benefit from far easier training than documents could provide as visual examples are far more effective than other training methods. In addition, screen sharing programs allow businesses to receive technical support from remote technicians; this can eliminate the expense of a technician’s transportation fees.

Smart Phones and E-Conferencing

Many credit smart phones as being a key technology that will lead to widespread adoption of virtual meetings. Smart phones can transfer documents, and built-in cameras can provide visual feeds.

Cellular phone data connections now have the bandwidth necessary to send high-quality video from locations with cellular phone connections, and the portability of these devices allow employees to participate without needing a desktop or laptop. As these devices continue to improve, many believe that virtual meetings will become more popular in the future.

Internet bandwidth has improved significantly in recent decades, and new video compression technologies combined with the power of smart devices is making the virtual meeting a reality. Companies across the globe are beginning to harness the power of virtual meetings, and this trend can be expected to accelerate as more businesses learn about the flexibility that these meetings enable.

Article contributed by Jenna Smith