We are living in a period of superlatives as we face unprecedented challenges to our work and personal lives, unparalleled tests of business continuity processes and extraordinary pressure on collaboration infrastructures. But all these trials are necessary to overcome the difficulties we face and prioritize the health and safety of all.
Maintaining the essential requirements of social distancing and in some cases stay-at-home confinement for many weeks has changed how we work and interact with customers, partners and colleagues.
Enforced remote working has certainly added lifestyle pressures for people to overcome, but this is where technology can play its part in helping maximize productivity while encouraging flexible work schedules.
A few weeks ago, my colleague David Rabin, Vice President, Global Commercial Marketing, outlined a series of technology tips to help set up and manage a home working environment. I encourage you to have a look: Technology Tips for Working Remotely.
In this short post, I want to highlight our ThinkSmart View device that can make a difference at the heart of a home working setup.
As reported last month by Microsoft, a new daily meetings record was set for Teams with 2.7 billion meeting minutes in one day. This figure has since increased to 4.1 billion daily meeting minutes. As we would expect, there has been an exponential growth in online meetings and therefore demand for collaboration technology.
The report also highlighted the increased importance of video capability for team members to remain in contact. We are not only seeing this emergence of video calling for business meetings, but also virtual happy hour social occasions to help teams feel connected.
While our own research indicated that 87 percent feel somewhat ready to work from home and 71 percent believe they have access to the technology they need, it is crucial for companies and organizations to ensure that people have confidence in the tools they have access to.
After all, remote working isn’t just about connectivity and collaboration, but about ensuring a clear delineation between work time and life time.
I live in Texas, and our US offices are headquartered in North Carolina, therefore I would consider myself a remote worker. Usually I spend a significant amount of time travelling, but with the current situation I am empowered to communicate with my team, customers and partners around the world via video calls.
I am thankful to have a ThinkSmart View at my disposal. As a dedicated Microsoft Teams video conferencing device, I am able to separate my meetings from my PC workspace, helping me be more efficient and as a result devote more time to my family through difficult times.
ThinkSmart View is now shipping, and I urge you to have a look. It has certainly changed my personal perception of remote working.