Embracing innovative approaches to meet the needs of today’s hybrid workforce with meeting rooms of tomorrow.
In many ways, meeting rooms are the heartbeat of every company. Daily stand-ups, huddles, and briefings all find their place in meeting rooms, where decisions are made, and strategies brought to life. It is in meeting rooms that colleagues from diverse backgrounds bond, and new talent is spotted.
As the location of work has evolved over the past few years, conference spaces, too, have changed. Today, a conference room must ensure an optimised meeting experience for both in-office and at-home participants.
However, today’s meeting rooms, whether physical or virtual, do not always meet the needs of the workforce. A recent Asia Pacific-focused study by Cisco found that 72% of employees perceive meeting rooms as ineffective in boosting workplace productivity, with technology, infrastructure, and integration marked as areas that need improvement.
Fortunately, employers are embracing innovative approaches that bridge this gap and elevate meeting experiences for modern-day employee.
Embracing the ‘third space’
As employees return to the workplace, many companies have reconsidered office spaces and embraced the idea of providing a working environment that includes a ‘third space,’ that is neither the office nor home.
Popularized by Google, this concept emerged when they built a café to provide their employees with an alternative gathering place away from traditional meeting rooms. The ‘third space’ can be either indoors or outdoors, as long as it serves as a conducive environment for people to gather, ideate, brainstorm, and be productive.
This diverse ecosystem of workspaces has sparked a new ‘bring-your-own-meeting’ trend, whether traditional conference rooms or more modern third spaces. Employees now have the flexibility to convene anywhere, as long as it fosters productivity and creativity.
The ‘bring-your-own-meeting’ trend has extended into ‘bring-your-own-device’ and this concept encourages employees to use their preferred devices for meeting participation. Technology has adapted accordingly, as companies shift from physical networks to cloud-based data sharing.
Additionally, the availability of interactive apps and software on smartphones and tablets enhances employee engagement during meetings, thereby increasing productivity. Recent technological advancements have further streamlined this process, with all-in-one portable devices like the EpiqVision Mini EF-12 Laser Projection TV now capable of facilitating group calls, online meetings, and conferences without requiring additional software.
The conference rooms of tomorrow are becoming more collaborative and adaptable at the touch of a button.
Fostering participant interaction
In the same survey by Cisco, among employers who find meeting rooms ineffective in boosting in-office productivity, 45% of employers cited inconsistency in the experience for remote and in-office participants as the main reason why meeting rooms are ineffective in boosting in-office productivity. Though video conferencing is highly popular, it does not always ensure active participation from every attendee, and this participation is often a crucial element for not just teamwork, but establishing workplace culture.
In a bid to foster productive conversations, companies are actively using technology to align with their hybrid-work preferences of modern-day employees. Microsoft Teams recently debuted one such solution – Signature Rooms, which are pre-made immersive and inclusive meeting spaces enhanced for hybrid experiences that can easily be deployed at scale around the world.
According to Microsoft, the cost of building a Signature room is not more expensive than that of a traditional meeting room, having worked with partners such as Jabra. Video conferencing tools such as Microsoft Teams have also partnered with Epson to integrate the use of super ultra short throw projectors.
Given that office real estate has scaled down significantly, Epson’s new EB-810E projector is designed for small or medium meeting rooms, with its 120” screen size. In integrating Microsoft Team’s Front Row aspect 21:9, it allows users to maximise screen real estate to see people, content, and chat simultaneously.
Meeting rooms of the future
In a nutshell, the conference rooms of tomorrow are not just collaborative; they are dynamic, shape-shifting spaces that cater to the diverse needs of a hybrid and distributed workforce. More than a traditional meeting room, this paradigm shift focuses on spaces that integrate technology to foster continuous collaboration and ideation.
The future belongs to those who embrace innovative designs to create inclusive workspaces that inspire productivity, and most importantly, keep up with changing demands.
