Video Conference General Information

Are your videoconferencing systems under performing? How you can turn them around?

What is a successful video conference network?
The easiest way to answer this question is to examine the reason organisations invest in video conferencing to begin with. Most purchases are made with cost savings as the main driving force. Travel and subsistence costs, particularly in multi national companies can be huge, however it is not the cost of travel that is the largest financial burden but the loss of staff time.

In today's business environment keeping ahead of competition is harder than ever. In the 1980's company advantage was achieved by working hard. Today this is simply not enough. Businesses that survive do so because they still work hard but smarter.

Businesses all over the world are getting more out of video conferencing such as:

• Greatly improved communication;
• Reduced meeting duration;
• Immediacy of contact between people;
• Rapid face-to-face resolution of urgent situations;
• Ability to seize opportunities within narrow time frames;
• Faster and better decision-making;
• Increased productivity;
• Broadcast of key messages throughout the company;

In conclusion, for your video conference network to be successful, ask yourself whether you and your staff are getting the benefits you deserve.

Why does video conferencing work for some organisations and not for others?
Do your staff think of using video conferencing before they consider travelling? If your network is under-utilised then the answer to this question is probably no. A truly successful network requires a change in the culture of your organisation. When you can answer yes to the above question then you have succeeded. But how do we get there?

Ownership
One of the biggest issues companies have today is lack of ownership. Who is in charge of video conferencing? Whose job is it to make it work? In reality the answer is often nobody. Video conferencing can sit under a number of departments and is often added on without any consideration of expertise, time or resources.

'Take charge of your video conference network and be accountable for its performance.'

Monitoring
Do you know how often your systems are used? The rest of this paper is designed to help you make improvements to your video conference network and achieve cultural change; this exercise will be in vain if you cannot see the improvements. Some of the improvements you will need to make will cost money. Getting money for projects to improve your network are much easier if you can show how much you are already saving your company.

Monitoring needs to be simple and not take huge amounts of time. All organisations are different and you will need to come up with the best method to suit your users. If you can persuade users to fill in a questionnaire then this can be invaluable as it will give you details on who uses the systems and what for, however this does rely on participation. ISDN bills, call and bandwidth monitoring tools and room calendars can start to give you a better picture.

'Measure usage and communicate with users. You can't fix what you can't see'

Confidence
Users often blame the equipment failing as the main reason for not using it. If a member of staff goes to use a system for a conference for the first time and that conference is more than 5 minutes late starting then that user will probably never try again. The same user will sit in an airport for a 3-hour delay and still go back. Why?

Basically, users will use technology if it gives something back.

• Business trips are considered a 'perk' of the job and many of us are pleased at the opportunity to get away for a few days. Even staff who travel regularly would still rather do so than use video conferencing.
• Most people resist change and new technologies. Answer phones are a good example, most of us considered answer phones to be impolite when they first came out now most of us consider the lack of voice mail to be frustrating. This is a good example of a change in culture.
• Being on camera is something that seasoned video conference users hardly notice but new users find it a real challenge and this alone is enough to put them off trying.

This is why user training is so essential as it can help overcome these barriers and how to give people the freedom that video conferencing can provide.

'Your users need to get something back from video conferencing.'

Reliability
What happens in your organisation when a PC or printer does not work? In most cases the user has access to a helpdesk that provide advice and probably 90% of the time resolve the issue there and then. A technician looks at any issues that are more complex, usually reasonably quickly as most of us rely on our PC to get our job done.

What happens with our video conference network? A reliable, fully utilised network works in exactly the same way as our PC example. A helpdesk or support person is contacted and 90% of the time a problem can be resolved there and then. Should a more complex fault occur then a technician is brought in.

If your systems are not working, do you know why? A recent site survey was carried out for a large multi-national company with 30 systems in the UK. Usage levels were almost zero and most systems had not been used for up to a year due to faults. The results were as follows:

• 2 systems were working on arrival
  
• 2 systems had hardware related faults that required an engineer visit
  
• 26 systems were working within a few minutes once a few minor issues were resolved. These issues included batteries missing in remote controls, TV's on the wrong channel, ISDN lines unplugged.
  
• A couple of the systems were suffering from network related issues but these were also resolved with the assistance of the on site voice team.

This example is common across large organisations but how did things get this bad? Firstly there was no fault reporting or fault management process that would have seen any fault through to completion. Secondly there was no expertise either at a local level or within the company. Thirdly the systems had come from several resellers with little or no maintenance cover, and when cover was in place no one knew who to call.

Some video conference systems have remote management capabilities that once installed can provide your support desk with an excellent way of assisting users from a remote location. Most can also provide a complete call launching service which if implemented will not only take away the worry from users of setting up calls but enable you to know when conferences are taking place that might need support. This service can also be outsourced to an external organisation, either on site or from a remote call centre.

'If you want a reliable network you have to support it.'

Availability
Can staff book a video conference with ease? In most cases the answer is no.

Booking any meeting with a number of people can be difficult. Juggling diaries for available dates is hard enough but is often compounded when diary information is not available without calling first. Conference rooms are no different.

Most organisations are not at the stage where video conferencing is available in every room and moving equipment about can increase your fault levels and use up valuable staff resources. Video conferences also need at least two rooms, if not more. Hand written diaries kept at individual building receptions are still common place and are totally unworkable.

Try not to re-invent the wheel. Users will catch on much faster if your room booking tools are on a system they already use. There are a number of software vendors that provide room booking software that have additional features for video conference rooms, some of which can even remotely launch calls. These are ideal but consider changing all your room booking to this system and not just video conference facilities.

Having the only available unit in the boardroom is in effect denying access to anyone who is not senior management; consider relocating equipment to rooms that can be used by everyone.

Facilities are considerably more accessible and reliable if sited in dedicated video conference rooms. If this is unworkable, particularly in small offices with only 1 meeting room, then consider giving video conference users priority.

Make the booking of multipoint calls and support for conferences as easy as possible. Ideally use software that notifies technical staff automatically or provide this via an existing helpdesk.

'Video conferencing facilities should be available to all.'

Quality
Video conference picture quality is not as good as a TV picture. This is mainly down to the bandwidth available. The higher bandwidth the better the quality but the higher the call costs. However there is more we can do to improve the quality by improving the room environments.

1. Use light blue curtains or smooth blinds to cover windows.
2. Use light coloured paint on walls but avoid reflective colours such as white. Light blue is ideal as it is a natural opposite to skin tones and provides good contrast making faces clearer.
3. Tables should be a light but not reflective. A light natural wood is a good choice.
4. Lighting should produce an even spread of bright light.
5. Avoid patterns on the walls; every time someone moves in front of the pattern then the system uses bandwidth to send the changes in the pattern.
6. Avoid unnecessary furniture or clutter in your room. Plants look great in meeting rooms but only eat bandwidth in video calls. Place plants out of camera shot should you want to give your room some colour.
7. Avoid placing reflective whiteboards directly behind people or where lighting may reflect and cause a glare. If they are not required, remove them altogether.
8. Place your system so your door is not directly behind participants.
9. Do not place document cameras directly underneath ceiling lights as they cause shadows.
10. Rooms with high ceilings or a lot of glass do not make good video conference rooms consider re-locating equipment.
11. Carpet floors, this will help absorb sound and prevent echo problems.
12. Place your video conference system facing the long edge of your table. Cameras should be placed as close to the screens as possible to give better eye contact.
13. Do not place your table too close to your screens. This again gives better eye contact.
14. Display etiquette reminders in rooms and encourage staff to use them.

Not only are you improving your remote picture but also your local picture. Users are more likely to feel comfortable with being in a video conference if they look good on screen. Poor lighting is a particular problem.

'Good room environments can help reduce call costs'

Education
What do you need to do to gain the expertise in house in order to provide the support your users need.

1. Trained users do not need as much support as those with no training.
2. Training 'superusers' on each site to assist users provides the instant support your users need. Not only does this resolve 90% of problems but also gives your users confidence to set up their own calls.
3. Trained 'superusers' can communicate much more effectively with your maintenance provider than an untrained user. More complex fault resolution typically takes a 'superuser' 5 minutes where an untrained user would take 30.
4. Train an existing help desk team to provide telephone support to users when a super user is not available.

Video conferencing is not rocket science and does not need a huge amount of training to provide the support you need. You are not training your staff to be engineers but just to deal with common user error problems or issues that have been caused by users fiddling with the system. A one-day course is sufficient.

The best people to choose as your 'superusers' are those that sit near your video conference rooms, admin or secretarial staff are ideal as they don't tend to travel and are often the first port of call. Ideally choose several people per unit and from different departments so the workload is split.

'On going training is essential for users and support staff.'

Persuasion
Do your users know your organisation has video conferencing facilities? Do they know where they are or how to book them? Are they actively encouraged to use video conferencing?

Most organisations spend no time at all marketing their video conference facilities. Staff will not use what they don't know exists and they also won't use facilities that they don't see the benefits of. Marketing your network is essential in bringing about cultural change.

1. Make sure your Intranet site has information on your facilities including room booking, room locations, superuser details, helpdesk details and general hints and tips.
2. Offer training for users. Training should not just be a button pushing exercise but should be aimed at marketing the benefits (business and personal), getting staff used to 'being on camera' and teaching good etiquette. Training should also be available at regular intervals and not just a one off. Training should also be delivered remotely.
3. Superusers can be an excellent marketing tool. If you can get these people fired up then word spreads around their individual office communities. Superusers also see uses for video conferencing relating specifically to their own departments that you might not be aware of.
4. Advertise! Use what tools are available within your organisation such as global emails, desk drops, news letters, magazines, notice boards or departmental meetings.
5. Educate new staff. Add video conferencing to your induction program if you have one.
6. Publish the results from your monitoring outlining cost savings for the company and user testimonies on personal benefits.
7. Interdepartmental working groups that already exist should be targeted to use video conferencing for meetings. Word of mouth is your strongest tool.
8. Lead by example. Do you use video conferencing first, travel second? Do your directors use video conferencing first and travel second? Staff will do what you do, not what you say.
9. Run incentive schemes. Airmiles currently gained for business travel could be re-distributed to staff using video conferencing. 'Videomiles' could be traded in for store vouchers. This can also help you get more feedback from users.
10. Cut your travel budget and make it harder to book travel without questions being asked 'why'? Remember travel is still important and a necessary part of your business as it provides social interaction and helps build relationships, but it is not required every week. Get the balance right!
11. Create a directory of external video conference facilities within your customers and suppliers.
12. Utilise room hire facilities to enhance your own network.

'Lead by example'

Cultural change is not going to happen overnight but every improvement you make will start to increase usage. Whatever changes you make remember to monitor improvements and make sure those who pay the bills know what you are achieving. By implementing the above recommendations you can improve usage dramatically.

Improvements over a year can be as much as 5000% but stop working at it and you will be back where you started.

Liz Helyer
Video Conference Services Limited
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