Back in early 2020, no one ever envisioned that COVID-19 would still be raging on in 2022, but, sadly, that’s where the world is as I write these words. Across the globe, assorted variants continue to impact daily activities.
Among the many things that have been impacted by COVID-19 is the global workforce. Other than blue-collar trades, many people who work in office environments have been forced to work from home or split their work time between their home and the office.
Over the past couple years, with more people communicating with their peers from some form of remote environment, and with either all or some of their colleagues working from home, the workforce is discovering that working from home presents challenges.
Of course, there are the normal distractions of working from home, including the kids and the lure of knocking out a few household chores. More relevant for the CI audience, however, is how the quality of remote workers’ audio and video can affect their ability to participate in meetings and work efficiently.
Collaboration System Manufacturers Meet the Challenge
Responding rapidly to the changes that have taken place in the workplace, manufacturers have diversified their product lines to accommodate a wide range of usage scenarios.
Today, there are a number of solutions (e.g., traditional conference-room-type components; headphones; compact, all-in-one systems) that can be used in small spaces, including home offices, to improve the collaborative experience, regardless of where it is taking place.
The category of collaboration also encompasses some of the biggest names in professional audio, including Shure, Sennheiser and Yamaha. And, naturally, the category features companies that focus exclusively on collaboration and communications. Those companies include Poly and Clockaudio. And that’s not to overlook the video side of collaboration market, which includes manufacturers such as AVerMedia, Barco, Kramer, Crestron and Logitech.
To keep up with the changes in the workforce and the collaboration market, including its manufacturers and technologies, consult with the non-profit industry trade group the Interactive Multimedia & Collaborative Communications Alliance (IMCCA). The IMCCA’s purpose is to grow the unified communications category through thought leadership that includes education and information.
Let’s look at some of the latest collaboration products from some of the top manufacturers in the field. The content we share represents just a sampling of the conferencing solutions currently available.
Click “Video Slideshow” to learn more about some of the latest collaboration solutions for workplaces.
