You are here: silicon.com > Hardware > Desktops

Desktops

Eco-worries a green light for videoconferencing?

Experts' top tips for success...

Tags: business travel, green it, amicus, videoconferencing

By Steve Ranger

Published: 31 May 2007 16:33 BST

Videoconferencing is being touted as a technology to help organisations stay 'green' and lean - but there is more to getting it right than just installing the hardware.

While videoconferencing technology is well established, it has recently received a boost because businesses are keen to limit their impact on the environment. Recent research from Frost & Sullivan found the market for high-end videoconferencing - so called telepresence - will reach $409.6m by 2013 as CIOs look to cut costs and carbon emissions alike.

And it's not just top execs who are aware of the issue. UK employees think more than one-third of face-to-face business meetings are both unnecessary and counter-productive, according to research commissioned by WebEx, which found workers attend 91 face-to-face meetings per year.

Manufacturing union Amicus is one organisation that has been using videoconferencing to reduce its travel costs.

The union, which has two million members, spent £1.5m on travel in 2005, and hopes the use of videoconferencing will reduce that figure, boost its green credentials and help improve the work/life balance of its staff.

WFH - all the coverage

The great working from home experiment
Vista fails to convince CIOs Leader: What can we learn from working at home?
Top 10 tips for working from home
Upwardly Mobile: There's no workplace like home
Lawyers warn of working from home pitfalls

The union has been using the technology for the last six months across 38 UK sites.

Amicus director of IT Dominic Hook explained: "Having people travel from every region to London is a lot of time wasted for a two- or three-hour meeting."

The union has already held an event where the general secretary addressed 200 people in 20 offices via videoconference. Hook said: "The alternative to that in the past was to bring all those people into London for a conference."

So when will Amicus see a return on its investment in videoconferencing? Hook said: "With the cost of travel we have at the moment we think if we push it we could get it in three years but we are aiming for five."

Having people travel from every region to London is a lot of time wasted for a two- or three-hour meeting.

The union is making a gradual start with the new conferencing tech. For example with a group that might meet six times per year, the plan is to make one of those meetings a videoconference. Speaking at a roundtable arranged by videoconferencing company Tandberg, Hook said: "You don't want to ban all travel because you need people to get together."

The roundtable of experts came up with some tips for companies that want to make sure they are getting the most out of their videoconferencing investment. They are:

  • Show users a demo. Once they've seen it they will understand the concept better.

  • Keep it simple. Give users tips on how to get the best out of the technology. Don't make it too complicated to use but as user-friendly as possible

  • Have a good chairman. Make sure you have someone who is able to understand the technology and manage the personal interaction

  1. Zones
  2. Management
  3. Networks
  4. Software
  5. IT Services
  6. Hardware
  1. Verticals
  2. Public Sector
  3. Financial Services
  4. Retail & Leisure

  • Jobs
Bright Energy Research Analysts - London Based - World Leading Firm

Researching and collating information, either by telephone or face-to-face meetings with key contacts in your region. Your responsibilities will ...

Price to Win Architect

This will involve either face to face or remote support of multiple engagements across the EALA region. Price to Win Architect UK with travel of up ...

Application Developer - VB, ASP, SQL, .NET needed in Pewsey

This will include requirements gathering from the client and occasional face to face meetings. You will need at least 2 years experience in VB, ASP, ...

CIO50 2008
The silicon.com CIO50 2008 profiles the most influential and innovative tech chiefs in the UK across all industries and organisation size, from the biggest FTSE100 companies to high growth dot-com start ups and the public sector. The list was voted on by the UK CIO community and a panel of experts. Find out more in our latest special report.





Quick Sitemap Links: