We talk about “workspaces,” but the space itself can only do so much. Productivity and collaboration depend not only on where you put the walls, but which tools you put within the walls. For example, most companies have a dedicated room for formal presentations and meetings. But your presentations will only be as productive as the audiovisual tools and other equipment you have in the room. Do your meeting rooms enable fast and easy
video conferencing? Speaking face-to-face should be as easy as making a phone call — and with today's technology, it can be. Companies that rely on free or first-generation video services aren't exploring the full potential of bringing offsite parties into the meeting room.
With the latest video technology, not only can you launch meetings with the push of a button, but you can share your computer screen and relay data to other participants. Every communication channel important to a productive meeting is hosted by a single device, allowing employees to put less energy into “running” the meeting and more into actually getting work done.
What about your collaboration spaces? When we imagine a room for workshops and active meetings, most of us picture a big dry-erase board along one wall. But is this really a 21st-century solution? An
interactive whiteboard combines the flexibility of a standard whiteboard with the connectivity and capabilities of digital devices. With precise touchscreen control, you can write and draw and alter content — and share it with people who aren't in the room but who connect to the presentation via computer, tablet or smartphone. Saving and sharing a file of your on-screen creations is quick and easy. Also, you can plug your computer, tablet or smartphone into the whiteboard and use it as an instant display screen — quicker and more visually precise than projection. The tools are out there. And as you think about where your workers will be getting their work done, you need to think about what they can use to do it better.