VIRTUAL CONFERENCES, VIRTUAL MEETINGS
VIRTUAL CONFERENCES, VIRTUAL MEETINGS
As the global marketplace continues to become more competitive, firms are investing in leading-edge technologies that decrease overall travel and expenses while improving productivity. These firms understand it is important to deliver documents, pictures, concepts and ideas to key individuals and audiences quickly so that they can speed up the decision making process and improve the effectiveness of their business communications.
Management realizes that idle or "dead" time increases when people from around the country, across the state or even across town have to travel to attend the meeting. To eliminate the lost time and expense of these meetings, companies are increasingly turning to their computers and the Internet to conduct video conferences. At times the capabilities produce unforeseen benefits to the companies.
For example, Mike Tostodo, telecommunications network manager for San Diego-based General Instruments, noted that earlier this year engineers in Pennsylvania were able to solve a production problem in the firm's New Mexico facility in minutes rather than days because of their video conferencing capabilities.
General Instruments has established high-speed video conferencing facilities at all of the firm's eight major locations across the U.S. Primarily used for management meetings and collaborative product design activities, Pa-based engineers had just released a new product to the firm's NM manufacturing operation. However, manufacturing was encountering production line yield problems and called on the developers to resolve the situation.
Rather than fly two engineers 1,500 miles, consuming at least three days of staff time and lose precious production time; production personnel took the video conferencing equipment down on the production floor to show the engineers in real-time the processes and the problems. In less than five minutes development engineers spotted the assembly problems and explained how the assembly process could be modified to improve quality and yields.
"It was simply two different interpretations of the assembly guidelines," Tostodo explained. "Once engineering could see the assembly steps in action they immediately knew how to correct the situation. Flying people back and forth would have cost thousands of dollars and had a dramatic impact on everyone's productivity."
In addition to the firm's permanent video conferencing facilities the company is also testing desktop video conferencing. Since General Instruments is a leading producer of communications equipment, Tostodo says they will probably deploy desktop solutions more widely later this year. First installations will be in the firm's 100-plus sales and service offices located throughout North America.
The dramatic acceptance of the Internet as a business communications tool has led suppliers and users to expand its use beyond simply sending and receiving documents and data. Video conferencing is rapidly becoming a means of accomplishing the task quickly and effectively, especially for such activities as management meetings, training, interviews, distance learning, telemedicine, investor relations, engineering, R&D, telecommuting and market research.
To make the versatile cyber-network even more useful to large and small corporations a number of major technology issues have been solved in record time. Regional bell operating companies' (RBOC) and leading Internet service providers (ISPs) have moved swiftly to deploy high-speed, broadband DSL technology. At the same time, a new category of clever technology video conferencing products have been introduced that make "face to face" conferencing for individuals and large groups a technical and economic reality.
DSL provides the bandwidth necessary for organizations to send full-motion video and audio signals point-to-point. No longer tied to analog telephony, nearly all of the systems in Europe are 100 percent DSL. In the U.S. nearly every metropolitan center is DSL-ready or will have be shortly. Pacific Bell, one of the most aggressive Bell companies, now makes economic, reliable DSL service available to over 98 percent of California.
Hardware products from Intel, Sun and others as well as software like RealAudio and Cornell University's CU-SeeMe now make it possible for firms to video conference-enable a PC for under $500. Connected to the Internet, users pay only for local calls no many where their business partners or workgroup members are located.
For larger events and secure, enhanced performance; many organizations use MBone (Multicast Backbone On the Internet). A protocol that runs over the Internet provider's ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) or any-to-any SMDS (switched multimegabit data service) infrastructure, MBone allows organizations to deliver data and presentations to multiple sites thus making it economical for them to conduct one-to-many video conferencing. Up to five video conferences can be simultaneously scheduled and its an excellent solution for regular management and design/development meetings, major product roll outs and major speaker presentations/conferences to multiple locations.
Pioneers in virtual corporate operations, California firms have been early implementors of video conferencing. With relatively modest investments, these firms can bring together project teams of vendors, staff personnel and even customers to solve problems as well as design, develop, refine and produce products in record time.
For example, Qualcomm, a leading developer of Internet enabling software, established DSL-based video conferencing between their three major software development facilities in Israel; Boulder, CO. and their San Diego headquarters. Scott Miller, previously Qualcomm's network manager, noted that the company uses video conferencing for management meetings, design reviews and collaborative software development.
"We really are a virtual organization," he commented. "Our development efforts are carried out very quickly and the results must be accurate the first time. Unlike a number of software firms we haven't adopted the philosophy of 'always new and never finished,' because from what we've seen that means they are sending late beta versions of the software and expecting customers to find the bugs and other product shortcomings.
"We're still of the philosophy that customers expect a complete and bug-free product," he emphasized. "When we release a product update it is as complete and as robust as we can possibly make it. Then we immediately start working on the next generation of the product so that improvements customers receive are major enhancements, not fixes and patches."
To produce this type of quality, Qualcomm's design and development team meets regularly to review product modules and project status. Video conferencing enables everyone on the team to simultaneously view white board presentations, module demonstrations and get a clear understanding on how each developer's work impacts what they are doing as well as the overall product.
"Good software is a combination of art and science," Miller said. "The 'enhancements' to the project one programmer makes can often have a dramatic impact on how one module works with another. By interactively reviewing each step of the project we produce the features and capabilities we set as our goals at the outset. As a result we are able to launch a feature-rich product on time and on budget."
Video conferencing not only enables these teams to assemble on the Internet to exchange information and ideas, improving the productivity of each individual and the entire team. With the dial-up voice and video connections, firms can reduce the need to travel and the subsequent costs of hotels, meals, etc. In addition productivity is improved because no time is wasted waiting at airports, flying or driving to and from the meeting or conference.
While some might say the meetings could be conducted more simply and more economically with conference phone calls, most communications specialists say the meetings or conferences would be much less effective. They point out that people only hear 40 percent of what is said and less than 50 percent of that information is retained. However, 60 percent of what is communicated is done with body language and facial expressions. In addition, you can't carry on a white board discussion or show photos or models over the standard phone.
As a result, video conferencing improves understanding and enables better decisions to be made in shorter time.
To communicate with key defense customers around the country, Cubic Corporation uses high-speed DSL and high-performance video conferencing equipment. In use almost daily, the firm's video conferencing operations are used by management, engineering and support personnel to ensure contract activities are completed in a timely and economic manner.
Ms. Jackie McPherson, Cubic network specialist, said that the multi-faceted company is also testing desktop video conferencing at their San Diego headquarters and PC-based "face-to-face" communications will eventually be deployed throughout the world-wide organization.
"Desktop video conferencing is only slightly beyond the novelty stage," she said. "Some of the people are using it quite effectively. Others feel uncomfortable talking into a camera. Ultimately we see desktop video conferencing spreading throughout the corporation but we want it to be a tool that helps communications and that will take time. Business needs will drive video conferencing's deployment, not cost."
Low-cost video conferences and electronic meetings while still far from television quality are no longer just technical curiosities. Even thought the video conferencing is in its infancy the systems are already stable, interoperability is widespread and major performance improvements will be available shortly.
At the present time, desktop PC video conferencing sends two-way images and sound across DSL lines with a refresh rate of roughly 24 frames per second, compared to broadcast TV's 30 frames per second. Sent through their Internet provider to other similarly configured computer systems, the images -- while clear and crisp -- are often referred to as godzilla graphics. The motion from frame to frame is still jerky rather than smooth. But the new generation of computer processors and enhanced software products should produce dramatic improvements over the next six months.
To provide complete high-speed communications services, Internet service providers (ISPs) have invested heavily in developing broad bandwidth, robust network infrastructures. Incorporating very reliable, high-performance technologies like SMDS (Switched Multimegabit Data Services), Frame Relay and ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) backbone technologies leading ISPs now can increasingly handle all of a firm's data-centric traffic and traditional voice service can be supported at little or no increase in cost.
Firms like Excite@Home Networks feel that an increasing numbers firms will run their voice and data services through ISPs because ISPs are more experienced with data-centric traffic. Analysts at San Jose, CA-based Infonetics Research Inc., estimate that nine-tenths of what is communicated in ten years will be data and one-tenth will be voice. Infonetics estimates that 50 percent of the international voice traffic is fax services which can be easily served by Internet service providers even without expanded network capabilities.
The basic architecture of the Internet enables people to interleave voice, video and other types of traffic and treat it as data. Because of this unique ability, leading ISPs are continually upgrading and expanding their network infrastructure. For example, by the end of the year most ISPs will have upgraded its network backbone to OC3 or 155Mbps and higher service. Broader bandwidth services enable ISPs to more efficiently and more effectively become sophisticated content delivery firms. Firms that offer a wide range of information hosting and delivery, data and virtual private corporate networks as well as telecommunications services.
Industry analysts note that the early adoption of video conferencing will be in business and will expand into many aspects of daily life. Large and small firms are already setting up cyber conference areas where people can work in small groups to solve problems, discuss issues or gather opinions from colleagues around the country. A number of Fortune 1000 firms have also established cyber-auditoriums that can handle as many as 5,000 attendees. At these "locations" the company can host virtual forums and events featuring senior management and important guest speakers.
Because of the rapid proliferation of data and data sources on the Internet, it is easy to get lost in the tangle of information so that decision-making is impeded rather than aided. Companies that have already taken the plunge into the video conferencing arena wonder how they were ever competitive when they had to bring people to a specific room or conference center to conduct business.
Video conferencing is growing so rapidly that San Mateo-based Zona Research estimates that by the 2002 at least 140 million PC users will be using one or more video conferencing solutions on their professional and personal desktop systems. For the price of a local call, people from across the country and around the globe can instantly meet to discuss customer, market, product or technology issues and produce profitable results from their data dial-tone PCs.
VIRTUAL CONFERENCES VIRTUAL MEETINGS - To learn more about this author, visit Andy Marken's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
It has been estimated that people spend more than 60 percent of their time preparing for, attending and following up on meetings. Industry analysts estimate that less than 20 percent of the time spent in meetings is really productive. It's no wonder you look at your calendar at the end of the day and feel very little has been accomplished.
As the global marketplace continues to become more competitive, firms are investing in leading-edge technologies that decrease overall travel and expenses while improving productivity. These firms understand it is important to deliver documents, pictures, concepts and ideas to key individuals and audiences quickly so that they can speed up the decision making process and improve the effectiveness of their business communications.
Management realizes that idle or "dead" time increases when people from around the country, across the state or even across town have to travel to attend the meeting. To eliminate the lost time and expense of these meetings, companies are increasingly turning to their computers and the Internet to conduct video conferences. At times the capabilities produce unforeseen benefits to the companies.
For example, Mike Tostodo, telecommunications network manager for San Diego-based General Instruments, noted that earlier this year engineers in Pennsylvania were able to solve a production problem in the firm's New Mexico facility in minutes rather than days because of their video conferencing capabilities.
General Instruments has established high-speed video conferencing facilities at all of the firm's eight major locations across the U.S. Primarily used for management meetings and collaborative product design activities, Pa-based engineers had just released a new product to the firm's NM manufacturing operation. However, manufacturing was encountering production line yield problems and called on the developers to resolve the situation.
Rather than fly two engineers 1,500 miles, consuming at least three days of staff time and lose precious production time; production personnel took the video conferencing equipment down on the production floor to show the engineers in real-time the processes and the problems. In less than five minutes development engineers spotted the assembly problems and explained how the assembly process could be modified to improve quality and yields.
"It was simply two different interpretations of the assembly guidelines," Tostodo explained. "Once engineering could see the assembly steps in action they immediately knew how to correct the situation. Flying people back and forth would have cost thousands of dollars and had a dramatic impact on everyone's productivity."
In addition to the firm's permanent video conferencing facilities the company is also testing desktop video conferencing. Since General Instruments is a leading producer of communications equipment, Tostodo says they will probably deploy desktop solutions more widely later this year. First installations will be in the firm's 100-plus sales and service offices located throughout North America.
The dramatic acceptance of the Internet as a business communications tool has led suppliers and users to expand its use beyond simply sending and receiving documents and data. Video conferencing is rapidly becoming a means of accomplishing the task quickly and effectively, especially for such activities as management meetings, training, interviews, distance learning, telemedicine, investor relations, engineering, R&D, telecommuting and market research.
To make the versatile cyber-network even more useful to large and small corporations a number of major technology issues have been solved in record time. Regional bell operating companies' (RBOC) and leading Internet service providers (ISPs) have moved swiftly to deploy high-speed, broadband DSL technology. At the same time, a new category of clever technology video conferencing products have been introduced that make "face to face" conferencing for individuals and large groups a technical and economic reality.
DSL provides the bandwidth necessary for organizations to send full-motion video and audio signals point-to-point. No longer tied to analog telephony, nearly all of the systems in Europe are 100 percent DSL. In the U.S. nearly every metropolitan center is DSL-ready or will have be shortly. Pacific Bell, one of the most aggressive Bell companies, now makes economic, reliable DSL service available to over 98 percent of California.
Hardware products from Intel, Sun and others as well as software like RealAudio and Cornell University's CU-SeeMe now make it possible for firms to video conference-enable a PC for under $500. Connected to the Internet, users pay only for local calls no many where their business partners or workgroup members are located.
For larger events and secure, enhanced performance; many organizations use MBone (Multicast Backbone On the Internet). A protocol that runs over the Internet provider's ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) or any-to-any SMDS (switched multimegabit data service) infrastructure, MBone allows organizations to deliver data and presentations to multiple sites thus making it economical for them to conduct one-to-many video conferencing. Up to five video conferences can be simultaneously scheduled and its an excellent solution for regular management and design/development meetings, major product roll outs and major speaker presentations/conferences to multiple locations.
Pioneers in virtual corporate operations, California firms have been early implementors of video conferencing. With relatively modest investments, these firms can bring together project teams of vendors, staff personnel and even customers to solve problems as well as design, develop, refine and produce products in record time.
For example, Qualcomm, a leading developer of Internet enabling software, established DSL-based video conferencing between their three major software development facilities in Israel; Boulder, CO. and their San Diego headquarters. Scott Miller, previously Qualcomm's network manager, noted that the company uses video conferencing for management meetings, design reviews and collaborative software development.
"We really are a virtual organization," he commented. "Our development efforts are carried out very quickly and the results must be accurate the first time. Unlike a number of software firms we haven't adopted the philosophy of 'always new and never finished,' because from what we've seen that means they are sending late beta versions of the software and expecting customers to find the bugs and other product shortcomings.
"We're still of the philosophy that customers expect a complete and bug-free product," he emphasized. "When we release a product update it is as complete and as robust as we can possibly make it. Then we immediately start working on the next generation of the product so that improvements customers receive are major enhancements, not fixes and patches."
To produce this type of quality, Qualcomm's design and development team meets regularly to review product modules and project status. Video conferencing enables everyone on the team to simultaneously view white board presentations, module demonstrations and get a clear understanding on how each developer's work impacts what they are doing as well as the overall product.
"Good software is a combination of art and science," Miller said. "The 'enhancements' to the project one programmer makes can often have a dramatic impact on how one module works with another. By interactively reviewing each step of the project we produce the features and capabilities we set as our goals at the outset. As a result we are able to launch a feature-rich product on time and on budget."
Video conferencing not only enables these teams to assemble on the Internet to exchange information and ideas, improving the productivity of each individual and the entire team. With the dial-up voice and video connections, firms can reduce the need to travel and the subsequent costs of hotels, meals, etc. In addition productivity is improved because no time is wasted waiting at airports, flying or driving to and from the meeting or conference.
While some might say the meetings could be conducted more simply and more economically with conference phone calls, most communications specialists say the meetings or conferences would be much less effective. They point out that people only hear 40 percent of what is said and less than 50 percent of that information is retained. However, 60 percent of what is communicated is done with body language and facial expressions. In addition, you can't carry on a white board discussion or show photos or models over the standard phone.
As a result, video conferencing improves understanding and enables better decisions to be made in shorter time.
To communicate with key defense customers around the country, Cubic Corporation uses high-speed DSL and high-performance video conferencing equipment. In use almost daily, the firm's video conferencing operations are used by management, engineering and support personnel to ensure contract activities are completed in a timely and economic manner.
Ms. Jackie McPherson, Cubic network specialist, said that the multi-faceted company is also testing desktop video conferencing at their San Diego headquarters and PC-based "face-to-face" communications will eventually be deployed throughout the world-wide organization.
"Desktop video conferencing is only slightly beyond the novelty stage," she said. "Some of the people are using it quite effectively. Others feel uncomfortable talking into a camera. Ultimately we see desktop video conferencing spreading throughout the corporation but we want it to be a tool that helps communications and that will take time. Business needs will drive video conferencing's deployment, not cost."
Low-cost video conferences and electronic meetings while still far from television quality are no longer just technical curiosities. Even thought the video conferencing is in its infancy the systems are already stable, interoperability is widespread and major performance improvements will be available shortly.
At the present time, desktop PC video conferencing sends two-way images and sound across DSL lines with a refresh rate of roughly 24 frames per second, compared to broadcast TV's 30 frames per second. Sent through their Internet provider to other similarly configured computer systems, the images -- while clear and crisp -- are often referred to as godzilla graphics. The motion from frame to frame is still jerky rather than smooth. But the new generation of computer processors and enhanced software products should produce dramatic improvements over the next six months.
To provide complete high-speed communications services, Internet service providers (ISPs) have invested heavily in developing broad bandwidth, robust network infrastructures. Incorporating very reliable, high-performance technologies like SMDS (Switched Multimegabit Data Services), Frame Relay and ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) backbone technologies leading ISPs now can increasingly handle all of a firm's data-centric traffic and traditional voice service can be supported at little or no increase in cost.
Firms like Excite@Home Networks feel that an increasing numbers firms will run their voice and data services through ISPs because ISPs are more experienced with data-centric traffic. Analysts at San Jose, CA-based Infonetics Research Inc., estimate that nine-tenths of what is communicated in ten years will be data and one-tenth will be voice. Infonetics estimates that 50 percent of the international voice traffic is fax services which can be easily served by Internet service providers even without expanded network capabilities.
The basic architecture of the Internet enables people to interleave voice, video and other types of traffic and treat it as data. Because of this unique ability, leading ISPs are continually upgrading and expanding their network infrastructure. For example, by the end of the year most ISPs will have upgraded its network backbone to OC3 or 155Mbps and higher service. Broader bandwidth services enable ISPs to more efficiently and more effectively become sophisticated content delivery firms. Firms that offer a wide range of information hosting and delivery, data and virtual private corporate networks as well as telecommunications services.
Industry analysts note that the early adoption of video conferencing will be in business and will expand into many aspects of daily life. Large and small firms are already setting up cyber conference areas where people can work in small groups to solve problems, discuss issues or gather opinions from colleagues around the country. A number of Fortune 1000 firms have also established cyber-auditoriums that can handle as many as 5,000 attendees. At these "locations" the company can host virtual forums and events featuring senior management and important guest speakers.
Because of the rapid proliferation of data and data sources on the Internet, it is easy to get lost in the tangle of information so that decision-making is impeded rather than aided. Companies that have already taken the plunge into the video conferencing arena wonder how they were ever competitive when they had to bring people to a specific room or conference center to conduct business.
Video conferencing is growing so rapidly that San Mateo-based Zona Research estimates that by the 2002 at least 140 million PC users will be using one or more video conferencing solutions on their professional and personal desktop systems. For the price of a local call, people from across the country and around the globe can instantly meet to discuss customer, market, product or technology issues and produce profitable results from their data dial-tone PCs.
VIRTUAL CONFERENCES VIRTUAL MEETINGS - To learn more about this author, visit Andy Marken's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
|||
Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Andy's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
 |
||
|
||
|
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Ideal Client Franchise & Distribution Website Planning Making Networking Work 11 Ways to Build Business |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 Blogs For Startups
Top Blogs To Watch In 2008 | |
 |
Top 50 Productivity Blogs
Top Blogs To Watch In 2009 | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||