3 Popular Meeting Room Technology and Ideas needed for your Office in 2021

A study by ,Gensler Research Institute have found that only 12% of employees wants to work from home full time while others are looking at having a mixture of both working from home and from office. Thus, many companies are looking to revamp their meeting rooms to a safer collaborative space, equipped with the latest technology. Follow Trish, Marketing Executive, as we find out about the most popular meeting room technology and ideas that companies can look at when it comes to revamping their meeting rooms for their employees’ safe return.

If you are reading this article, you’ve probably survived 2020, the year where there were massive changes in our work processes that we thought could never be put in place, ever in a million years. For instance, remote working or working from home was not an option for many corporate’s plan for their employees but due to the pandemic, many are forced to implement this as a part of their work processes. Also, a study by Gensler Research Institute have found that only 12% of employees want to work from home full time while the others are looking at having a mixture of both working from home and from office. Thus, when employees return to their workplaces, they are expecting the office to be equipped with safe devices and measures.

For a start, companies are slowly looking to invest in a safe meeting room space in their office once the pandemic starts to fade. In order to make things easier for these companies to know which devices to include in their meeting rooms, here are the top 3 popular meeting room technology devices and ideas needed for your office in 2021.

1. Zoom Rooms and Microsoft Teams Rooms

With the proliferation of video conferencing usage during the pandemic, the need for video conferencing devices in meeting rooms that are compatible with video conferencing software is of paramount importance for the ease of communication and presentation with clients or colleagues. For instance, companies such as Zoom and Microsoft, 2 of the leading leaders in video conferencing software, have created Zoom Rooms and Microsoft Teams Rooms to facilitate a smoother video conferencing experience in the meeting room for users. The typical set up for these rooms usually includes hardware that are installed with either Zoom or Microsoft Teams software such as display panels, video bars, interactive display board and even controllers.

As Zoom and Microsoft Teams does not have its own endpoints, video conferencing systems or room-based software, companies can look at the different Zoom Rooms and Microsoft Teams Rooms solutions that are in the market, ranging from small to large conference rooms, depending on the size and main function of the rooms.

There are a vast number of certified Zoom and Microsoft hardware components that are developed by companies such as Poly, Logitech and Crestron. For example, for companies that would like to set up their large meeting rooms to Zoom Rooms, they can opt for the Large Rooms solutions from Crestron that includes M-Series Tabletop Conferencing and C-Series Integrator kit. As for companies who would want to convert their room to Microsoft Zoom Rooms, they can opt for Poly Rooms solutions for Microsoft Teams such as Poly G10-T, Poly G40-T and Poly G85-T. For example, Poly G40-T that includes Poly GC8, Lenovo Thinksmart Edition Tiny, Wall Mount and Poly Studio is great for companies who would like to convert their small meeting room to a Microsoft Teams Rooms.

2. Room Management Software and Conference Room Scheduling Displays

With everyone slowly returning to office, face-to-face meetings in the office is unavoidable and this can be a potential risk for employers if they don’t take precautions. Moving the seats 1 meter away is not enough in preventing the transmission of virus thus, companies should consider limiting the number of people in meeting room. In order to facilitate an ease in detecting the number of people in a meeting room, there are room management software and conference scheduling displays that will make it easier to manage meeting room capacity. For example, Crestron Room Scheduling solutions will be perfect for companies who are would prefer a fuss-free way of managing their meeting room capacity and also to provide a better experience for their employees. The solutions contain a wide range of options that companies can choose from such as touch screens, mount options, indicators and occupancy sensors. In this case, the occupancy sensors can communicate directly with any Crestron scheduling touch screens to instantly update room status and gather usage data and does not require any special programming. This will help to alert IT/Facilities manager if there is overcrowding in the meeting rooms. Furthermore, the built in Crestron software can directly connect to most popular calendaring platforms such as Microsoft, Google, Ad Astra and CollegeNET.

3. Wireless and Touchless Devices

Wireless and Touchless Devices are considered to be one of the trends for meeting rooms in 2021 due to the pandemic. Thus, there are companies that came up with wireless and touchless devices that can be used in any meeting rooms to reduce the potential risk of virus transmission. For instance, Barco’s Clickshare device enables any user to walk into any meeting room with their own laptop and connect wirelessly to every aspect of the meeting room ranging from camera, microphone, speaker – regardless of manufacturer or models. Furthermore, there is no software needed, no touch panels to control and no settings to be managed. Not only that, but it is also fully compatible with Windows, Mac, iOS and Android devices and can be used alongside any Unified Communications technology and a wide range of AV USB peripherals. With just a conferencing button and the Clickshare app, you will be able to collaborate more effectively and safely in meeting rooms.

Another wireless and touchless device that companies can consider for their meeting rooms will be Alexa for Business, a virtual assistant AI technology that is developed by Amazon. Users can now turn on any devices with just using voice command. For example, by saying “Alexa, join my meeting”, Alexa can find the upcoming meeting from the calendar, turns on the display, and connects you to the meeting. Furthermore, Alexa for Business can integrate with popular video conferencing devices, room control systems, meeting room scheduling options and even calendar systems.

Meeting Rooms in 2021

It is to no doubt that the pandemic has disrupted the way we work, live and communicate. Who would have known that having face to face meetings, sitting close to each other, sharing devices with your colleagues are no longer normal. These external forces has caused companies to prepare their offices for their employees to return to the office, safely. Thus, the meeting room technology trends and ideas in 2021 such as Zoom Rooms and Microsoft Teams Rooms, Room management devices and scheduling displays and lastly, wireless and touchless devices are often sought after by companies who would like a turn their meeting room to a safe collaborative space.

If you would like to get to know more about safe meeting room solutions that are customizable, contact ESCO at [email protected].