During the pandemic, businesses were compelled to adapt to the digital medium to ensure continuity. Unified communications, coupled with video conferencing, helped organisations recover from the challenges posed by Covid-19. Cut to the present. “There’s little doubt that hybrid is the new way of work,” says Anand Lakshmanan, head of video collaboration – India & Southwest Asia at Logitech, a Swiss-American producer of computer peripherals and software.
In Accenture’s 2021 Future of Work Study, 83% of those surveyed said they preferred working in a hybrid format. “Flexible work will continue to be the new normal in India as well,” said Lakshmanan. “From helping businesses with continuity during the pandemic to enhancing collaboration in the post-pandemic world, enterprise-grade video and audio devices have enabled a productive remote work experience.”
According to him, the modern workplace is all about collaboration and this makes video conferencing essential for businesses with a distributed workforce. From video-enabled conference rooms to webcams, providing staff with high-quality, effective video conferencing equipment is vital to cultivating a collaborative culture.
“As Generation Z floods the workforce, there is increasing demand for digital solutions, including video,” Lakshmanan said. Upgrading the office’s workspaces and technology to meet the expectations of Gen Z would help companies to compete in a world of rapid technological innovation.
Employee-friendly solutions
Ease of use is now a top consideration when companies purchase video solutions. Employees should be able to start meetings anywhere with minimal steps and integrate with familiar video software applications. “At Logitech, we consistently focus on products that are easy to set up and need no special training,” said Lakshmanan.
Ensuring a consistent video conferencing experience is another key consideration. A productive hybrid workforce must be linked to systems, devices, apps, and, most importantly, each other. “It is imperative that video conferencing devices are certified to work seamlessly with common software applications like Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Google Meet,” he opined.
Making an informed investment
Standardising video conferencing solutions is important as it offers the IT team and the overall business significant benefits. According to Lakshmanan, an ideal solution should be affordable, scalable, easy to set up and use, and flexible enough to accommodate changing business requirements. It is also important to choose solutions that can provide insights on space usage to help with planning.
Going forward, video solutions will take over as the major mode of communication, said the Logitech senior executive. “In the post-pandemic world of work, companies are reconsidering how they want to use their real estate to suit a more flexible workforce. New technology will be developed to enable video to provide the human connection that is lacking at present. Furthermore, residences will become video-ready and we can expect studios to be established at workplaces to further crucial video communications, such as a sales pitch to clients, all-hands meetings, and other engagements that demand a more polished and professional setting,” he summarised.