New Cisco Study On Video Conferencing and Collaboration – Key Findings and Takeaways (Part 1)

Posted by KBZ Blogging Team

Cisco, the leading video conferencing and telepresence systems manufacturer, has released the results of a new study that takes a closer look at global video collaboration. Specifically, Cisco hired Ipsos Mori to poll 6,000 business professionals in 12 of the world’s most important markets in order to put their finger on the pulse of how video communications are perceived.

The results of the study – entitled “The Benefits and Barriers to Video Collaboration Adoption” – were illuminating. A key finding was that perception of the utility of video conferencing in a business environment is directly tied to the level of experience that workers have with that type of collaborative communications. Simply put, in countries such as China, where 56 percent of those involved in the study are familiar with video conferencing, its perceived benefits are high. In fact, 90 percent of frequent telepresence and collaborative video communications users around the world stated that this technology saves them at least two hours of work time per week, and one-third of those respondents indicated that their personal time savings were as high as one day of work per week.

While it might seem obvious that those who have had the chance to experience the benefits of a video conferencing system firsthand would be more aware of its potential for improving corporate communications, the difference in perception between users and non-users is still noteworthy. Only one-third of respondents who had never spent time using collaborative communications in a business environment felt that they could save any time at all thanks to video conferencing – a stark contrast with the opinions of 90 percent of users. Even the type of perceived benefits of video communications technology differed between users and non-users, with the former group citing qualitative factors such as a better work/life balance and a tighter sense of community within a corporation close to twice as often as the latter.

The takeaway lesson here for managers interested in deploying a collaborative video system is that there is no better way to illustrate its benefits than by giving employees the chance to spend time using one. Firsthand experience trumps even economic benefits, such as reduced travel costs, in convincing reluctant organizations to invest in this technology, and can help to overcome the second barrier to entry in the corporate telepresence field: installation costs.

Next week, we will take a closer look at the Cisco study results and investigate further as to how video collaboration has impacted the global business community, including both its economic and budgetary impact and its soft effects on employees.

Benjamin Hunting
KBZ Blogging Team