AV enabled conference rooms top the list for hybrid work solutions.
From our 4-Word Thinking Series: small doses (four, to be exact) of AV tips, trends, terms, and tech.
Based on our most recent workplace designs, we’ve seen the number of Conference Rooms increase. Part of the increase is to accommodate more choices in the number of seats, or rather the number of people the room was designed to accommodate. The question we’re asked most often now is what should our Conference Room technology include to support hybrid work models? Here are our basic recommendations, in 4 pieces of tech.
#1 Video Conferencing. Every Conference Room AV system we are building now has video conferencing, as opposed to any with audio conference only. As a global workforce, we’ve all become accustomed to interacting over video. Companies with return to office plans realize their employees will expect to have the same video capabilities they had at home readily available in the office, especially to create the bridge for hybrid workforces. Software-based video conferencing platforms, and hardware-based codecs that support third party video applications, are at the center of these Conference Room systems.
#2 Wireless Content Sharing. Wireless content sharing that supports BYOD (bring your own device) allowing content to be pushed from a personal device such as a laptop or smartphone to an in room display, is a must have. Add on integration with video conferencing to support hybrid, ability to push multiple content sources, and white boarding (ability to markup and highlight content), for a hybrid collaboration solution.
#3 Microphones. Poor audio pickup negatively impacts meeting productivity, especially for participants not in the room. Conference Room spaces require higher quality microphones than those designed only for individual use. Beamforming or beam-tracking microphones are designed to automatically track the person in the room speaking with precise audio pickup. This is crucial for the proper engagement of remote staff. Integration with UCC platforms like MS Teams and Zoom is also a must.
#4 Video Conference Camera. To feel fully engaged during hybrid meetings, remote participants need to clearly see who is speaking in the room. Your Conference Room system should include an HD video camera (or multiple cameras) designed specifically for an in room system and capable of tracking the speaker, including panning and zoom.
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