We don’t often consider the individual elements of AV equipment to be comfortable – digital screens, computer monitors, plenty of cords and wires, etc. But giving a presentation can be stressful enough, so you shouldn’t have to worry about being able to easily access the remote, your laptop, or other equipment necessary to give a presentation. When employees are working from a desk – whether at home or in the office – their workspace should be comfortable enough that they can sit all day, and set up well enough that they can turn their cameras on in a meeting without worrying about their camera or audio function. This blog outlines the areas you need to double-check to ensure your AV equipment is set up to offer employees the most comfortable work experience, regardless of where they’re working from.
It Starts at Home
With the rise of remote and hybrid work, many employees now find themselves working from home at least a few days a week. Even after two years of flexible work options, some of these employees are still working with a hodgepodge setup created out of necessity at the start of the pandemic, rather than a space created with an efficient WFH setup in mind. This means that in order to ensure that all remote and hybrid employees have some comfort across the board, your company may need to do some heavy lifting to get everyone’s setup off the ground (sometimes literally).
This assistance will look different depending on your company’s size and your employees’ needs. For some companies, offering a stipend for employees to get WFH gear that meets their needs may be the best approach. For others, offering employees duplicates of tech they have access to in the office to take home may be the optimal solution.
Regardless, the best way to ensure you’re setting your employees up for success is to have open conversations with them about their needs and where they might need some assistance. Remember that your employees are probably in different places across the board, but open and honest communication with them is the best way to support your entire workforce.
Meeting of the Minds
Meeting rooms on-site will need to accommodate remote meeting participants; which means existing screens will need to be upgraded in order to allow both online meeting attendants and presentations to be visible to everyone on-site. Another upgrade that should accompany any screen upgrade is updating audio to reflect the new needs of your now-hybrid meeting rooms. Remember, these needs will vary based on what you primarily use any specific meeting room for. For example, a meeting room primarily utilized by a sales team may need a theater-quality sound system for effective presentations or the meeting room used by a half-hybrid marketing team may need multiple microphones spread across the room that is also integrated with your video conference system. Furthermore, when evaluating audio needs, you must also consider the acoustic implications of the materials that make up your meeting room’s floors, walls, furniture, etc..
Outside of these “infrastructure” considerations of your meeting space, the controls of your meeting must also be considered. While an automated space is ideal – one that turns on screens, lights, and equipment, and even cools the room at the touch of a button – there are some lower-cost considerations you need to make as well. For example, consider how far the outlets for your screens are from your conference room table; and add more if necessary to make sure that this distance allows wired presentations to take place easily. If creating a custom automated space isn’t in your business plan, consider leverage the capability of a virtual assistant that can partly automate your space through tech like an occupancy sensor that will turn on your system when you walk in the room.
What They Have in Common – Plan Ahead
Whether at home or in a corporate office, the “what” and “where” of AV equipment must be decided before a room is set up for its intended purpose. Thinking ahead about not only the room and team needs but also the ways your space will be used, will allow you to create a meeting space that is not only functional but also comfortable and conducive to collaboration. Once your employees feel most comfortable in their space, that’s when they can maximize their use of available resources to improve productivity.
Not sure where to start when re-thinking the audio-visual in your office space? AV-Tech experts are here to help. Check out our workplace solutions that can be tailored to meet your needs like shared spaces or meetings and conferences. Whatever you need, We Got You.
