What do you really need to make hybrid work productive?

Recent research has revealed that just a third of people in the UK work at the office four or more days a week – making the UK the working from home (WFH) capital of the world. Despite the benefits of WFH, there are some downsides – loneliness, distraction, frustration at poor kit and connection and also the feeling that you can’t contribute to hybrid/virtual meetings in the same way as in person.

With this in mind, we put some questions to Eamon O’Doherty, portfolio director, Europe, at Logitech.

Do you think that most meeting rooms should have multi-camera systems in the future to cater properly for hybrid work?

Each meeting room should have the correct technology for the space based on a number of factors: the experience of the user, the type of work that is taking place in the space, and the configuration of the room.

Large meeting rooms can be a difficult workspace to effectively integrate into a hybrid office, so this is where multi-camera systems are most effective. An effective set up could be a tabletop camera paired with a front-of-room video bar, that can help to track and frame users while also intelligently switching to the video bar. This means that remote participants can see each speaker from the best angle and be engaged in discussions, promoting meeting equity.

In smaller spaces, like huddle rooms, all-in-one video conferencing solutions work well. With fewer participants in the room, a single camera that can zoom in on and frame the speaker can be effective in supporting remote attendees to see and hear clearly. Even more so, AI-powered devices can pick the right angle of the right person speaking, providing a view as if a remote participant were sat in the room.

If you do think multi-camera systems will be required more widely than in boardrooms and larger conference rooms, how long do you think it will be before we reach that point?

The way we work will continue to evolve, and this will impact all meeting spaces, from the micro huddle room through to the boardroom.

Technology that is intuitive and that enables all users to collaborate with colleagues, internally and externally, needs to be the new norm. The days of high quality AV in boardrooms only is changing. Companies recognise that all users want meeting equity, regardless of the type of room a meeting is being held in. AI-driven multiple camera systems are available now, and the experience that hardware and software working together can provide will continue to enhance user experiences.

What do you see as the most important differences between the technology requirements of big, medium-sized and small rooms when catering for hybrid work?

When working remotely, it can be difficult for everyone to feel they have an equal seat at the table. Making remote participants feel that they can get involved just as easily means taking into consideration the different requirements of each space.

For small to medium-sized rooms, where brainstorming and smaller, more informal meetings usually take place, being able to register facial expressions and gestures is key. Organisations should opt for a front of room camera that has the ability to frame each participant to make them as clear to remote participants as if they were in the room.

Larger conference rooms can also benefit from solutions that facilitate content sharing. Whiteboards are useful collaboration tools, but are no longer practical in a hybrid meeting set up as remote employees can’t contribute and usually struggle to see the content. Whiteboard cameras can overcome these issues by streaming content straight into a virtual meeting, providing remote participants a view of the board that is just as clear as if they were in the room.

How much of a role do you think room systems linked to a particular platform and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) rooms should have in spreading the benefits of hybrid work more widely and does this vary by room size?

Room systems such as Microsoft Teams Rooms provide a consistent experience for employees, acting as a continuation of a familiar interface that end users know through their desktop device. This is a great way of supporting hybrid working, as end users don’t need to trouble themselves with learning how to use a new system and are welcomed with a familiar experience as soon as they go to join a call.

For organisations that work with freelancers or hold presentations which bring guests from outside the business, smaller to larger spaces can benefit from BYOD capabilities. With plug-and-play cable solutions, users can easily connect their laptops by USB and meet, present and stream with any platform, preventing them from being locked out of starting a meeting and allowing them to communicate and collaborate just as easily.

Whether it’s Microsoft, Zoom, Google or another vendor’s room technology, familiarity is absolutely key to adoption. If end users are only going to be in the office once or twice a week, their opportunity to become familiar with the meeting room equipment is going to be restricted.

Is there a role for organisations in equipping people at home for hybrid work and are there budgets for this?

While equipping office spaces is often the focus, businesses do have a responsibility to equip remote employees with the right solutions too. Employees working from home are sometimes working from laptops with in-built mics and webcams. If remote workers are in noisy environments they can struggle to be seen and heard, and unable to contribute meaningfully. In a hybrid workplace the home office needs to be a HQ extension.

When businesses are investing in technology, they need to cater to hybrid working across the board. Solutions like all-in-one docking stations are making joining calls from home as simple as just a touch of a button. Advanced webcams also help to improve the experience with features such as auto-framing and show mode. Show mode allows users to point the webcam at their desk and share content with meeting participants, whether it’s a sketch on a piece of paper or a new device. This gives remote participants the ability to share their thoughts and ideas just as easily as if they were in the room.

What else should we know about the future of work and how Logitech can help organisations prepare for it?

Hybrid working has been around for years. What is new is the scale of hybrid working and the many different views on what ‘hybrid’ actually means to individuals and companies.

The employee experience is critical for an effective future hybrid working set up. Workers want tech that fits seamlessly into their working day, allows them to work flexibly and supports them to be as productive as possible. Ultimately, they need solutions that allow them to work in a way that suits them (wherever that is). That means tech needs to be intuitive, enhance communication and collaboration, and offer an equal experience across the board.

Companies need to provide a consistent and productive way of working for employees, Solutions like docking stations can help to remove challenges and provide a system that allows employees to easily book or amend bookings of desk and meeting room spaces, making a trip to the office a seamless and productive experience. This helps to ensure it’s always possible to collaborate in the office – even when a meeting wasn’t planned.

Eamon O’Doherty is portfolio director, Europe at Logitech.