Videoconferencing Plans Its Next Move as Workplaces Consider Hybrid Models

As AKQA gradually brings its workforce back to its worldwide offices over the next few months, many of the agency's locations will operate much differently than when they were last open more than a year ago. Like other businesses with physical offices, AKQA is crafting a hybrid model of remote and in-person work, and tools such as videoconferencing platforms, virtual whiteboards and collaborative design software will be vital for coordinating projects. Video collaboration tools like Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Cisco WebEx have become the connective tissue of the global economy during the pandemic. But despite discussions of Zoom fatigue and a lingering association with quarantine life, analysts and companies don't expect the prominence of these platforms to diminish much as employees return to offices more tolerant of hybrid and remote setups. Instead, videoconferencing providers will likely serve as a bridge between remote and in-person worlds. "We're going to use [videoconferencing] and some other technologies that we've started to try to lean into because those are the things that will help knit us together: our people and our culture," said AKQA chief people officer Amy Oliver. Different type of collaboration Zoom saw a 317% year-over-year increase in revenue in 2020 and tallied nearly 30 times as many app downloads (485 million) as it did the previous year, according to Sensor Tower. And despite workers gradually returning to the office, the company beat Wall Street expectations for its most recent financial quarter and raised its financial outlook for the upcoming period. Forrester analyst Nick Barber said he expects to see more demand for real-time collaboration features like virtual whiteboards and interactive notepads in order to make people who are calling in feel like they're part of the office. "You're still going to have this need for collaboration; it's just going to be a different experience," he said. Business Leaders Making Hybrid Work Investments As companies increasingly experiment with hybrid workplaces, a majority of the 127 executives surveyed for a recent PwC report say they are investing in equipment and training to better coordinate between remote employees and those working in the office. 72% are investing in tools for virtual collaboration.70% are investing in secure IT framework for virtual connections.64% are training managers to handle a more virtual workforce.57% are creating conference rooms with enhanced virtual connectivity. Barber said videoconferencing platforms need to focus on features that cut down on the awkwardness that is still associated with video calls, which is responsible for much of the screen burnout many people are feeling. The software could eventually work in a way that better highlights the kind of nonverbal communication that makes in-person conversations unique, he said. "There's this tax of being on video versus being in person because you have to spend more brainpower to decipher like, 'Is this person mad at me? Why are they not looking at their screen?'" Barber said. Future of hybrid work While the pandemic vaulted Zoom into the privileged pantheon of companies whose brand names have become everyday verbs, that association could become a double-edged sword in a post-pandemic world. It and other similar brands have become inextricably linked in consumers' minds with a period of mass fear and uncertainty. But Dean Crutchfield, a brand consultant at Crutchfield and Partners, doesn't think that negative association will pose too much of a lasting problem for the company. While a relatively narrow subsection of virtual office workers have no doubt become exhausted with sitting on calls all day, Crutchfield expects the lasting impressions will relate to the reliability Zoom provided in a chaotic time. "Zoom and other video players have earned tremendous brand equity as an essential tool that enabled millions of people to actually enjoy some of the freedoms and benefits from working remotely and working from home," Crutchfield said. "If there's still an association or drag with the pandemic, I believe it can easily be absorbed by people's trust in the brand." Katianna Galdieri, brand marketing lead at Zoom, said the company is currently pivoting its marketing to focus more on hybrid work environments with features like whiteboards and tools for its conference room-focused Zoom Rooms, such as smart galleries, touchless controls, digital signage and virtual reception. The company is also exploring how augmented reality and artificial intelligence can be used to make its products more interactive. "We are proud of how we have been able to support the global economy and keep people connected throughout Covid; we don’t want to just throw that away," Galdieri said. "And yet it is important that we show that Zoom is and will continue to be an important platform to keep people and businesses connected as we enter into a new era of working in a hybrid model." Microsoft Teams and Cisco WebEx did not respond to a request for comment.