2017 is coming to an end, which marks the time of year when we take a look into the crystal ball and share predictions on how emerging technologies will change the way we work. With industry experts forecasting that the collaboration market will be worth $49.51 billion in 2020, there is no stopping the exciting advancements that are propelling its momentum. Here are four trends I believe will have the biggest impact on enterprise collaboration and conferencing in 2018 and beyond.
The conference room will become an even more critical part of conducting successful meetings with the help of highly sophisticated 4K cameras that feature the best resolution the industry has seen. This technology has grown significantly in the home environment as seen in TVs and PCs, but as more millennials enter the workforce, the demand for high-quality video resolution (a.k.a. lifelike video) in the office will grow exponentially. Not only does this increase in quality improve the overall meeting experience, it is also essential in driving other advancements in technology, including…
With innovation driving installation of smarter, higher-quality cameras in the Workplace, these “eyes in the office” will gather important data to help give context to how a meeting is proceeding – much like sentiment analysis used for customer service calls. Typically, there is only one camera in a conference room and it doesn’t give a good indication of how the room truly looks or feels. For larger meetings, multiple cameras will utilize machine vision to help check the mood of the room: Are people engaged? Is there free-flowing conversation? Is someone sleeping? What is on the whiteboard? And then of course, the system will provide useful data to change meetings for the better, largely through…
Cloud-based video conferencing solutions give us access to huge amounts of data about meeting habits. This data, aided by artificial intelligence and machine learning, could allow us to optimize the use of the platform and increase the effectiveness of meetings – many of the other trends in technology (for example virtual assistants and facial recognition) are, in effect, powered by AI. At a basic level, AI could enable us to determine optimal meeting length, ideal number of participants, or best time of the day to hold a meeting to improve productivity. Voice recognition could analyze the content of meetings, compare against other meetings in the same organization, and make suggestions as to connections between people with complementary skills or knowledge. But all of these trends will only be realized through continued improvements in…
While not as sexy a trend as 4K resolution or machine vision, innovation around interoperability will be (as it has always been) paramount as users continue to demand a consumer-like experience with enterprise collaboration: whatever device, wherever they are, at any time. Applications and devices will need to play nicely with one another. Because of this trend, we will see additional consolidation and partnerships in the industry, as both big and small players try to build out an all-in-one solution that meets the demands of today’s modern worker.
While the coming year will no doubt see other new and innovative uses of existing technology, if the four trends above are realized, we’ll see a significant leap forward in the use of technology to enhance collaboration and increase productivity across all sectors.
By Bobby Beckmann
