Videoconferencing is efficient, cheaper than flying and better for the planet
Videoconferencing technology is mature and the prices have dropped
By Mark Lorne
November 24, 2009
November 24, 2009
Conferencing solutions have been available to businesses for almost three decades, but until recently adoption has been slow, primarily because the technology was expensive and sometimes hard to use, and also because it was accepted practice to buy plane tickets whenever a meeting with a colleague or client was required.
Every one of those factors, however, has changed in the last few years. Videoconferencing systems have plummeted in price while the quality has leapt forward. And we now realize that frequent business trips are bad for productivity, a drain on family life and on corporate budgets, and a huge source of air pollution.
Modern conferencing solutions deliver audio and visual communications, and support collaboration using multimedia content such as presentations, demonstrations and full-motion video. And the systems can be deployed almost anywhere, from a home office, a small meeting room, a boardroom, to an auditorium used for conferences or training sessions. Lower-end but still functional systems can operate from a laptop computer, meaning any coffee shop with Wi-Fi can become an impromptu meeting room. And these systems are now very affordable.
Start with the dollars
Since 1998, the cost of videoconferencing systems has dropped tenfold, according to Polycom, the worldwide market share leader in this space. The company says most implementations achieve return on investment within six to 24 months. For some companies, the money spent is less than the cost for a single week-long business trip for a group of executives.
Fortis Bank in the Netherlands reported in 2009 that its return on investment was achieved within one year of implementing videoconferencing at a number of its office locations.
Starting costs for a basic conferencing solution in a small meeting room—one suitable for approximately six to 10 people—can start at $5,000. It has to be noted that this is an estimate and costs can range widely, but installing an audio system and a manual screen and projector or a flat-panel television does not have to be a huge expense. Equipment suitable to a larger space—such as a projector with a higher light output, a more powerful sound system and a centralized remote control—will obviously cost more, but ROI is often realized more quickly as these systems enjoy quicker employee adoption. They can also be used for high-value presentations, such as those to clients or investors.
On the other side of the ROI equation is the cost of air travel. Statistics Canada reports that one quarter of all business-travel dollars are spent on airfare, and those costs are rising: the 2008 Business Travel Outlook report from the Association of Corporate Travel Executives and the Conference Board of Canada finds that corporate airfares for domestic travel and trips to the U.S. are climbing by 1.2 per cent, with international airfares rising by 1.6 per cent.
As Forrester Research points out, “Companies are looking first and foremost to spend on technologies that can save money for the business, including unified communications and videoconferencing, to reduce travel.”
The green factor
Companies can also significantly reduce their carbon footprint by travelling less. The David Suzuki Foundation calculates that air travel accounts for four to nine per cent of the total climate change impact of human activity, and since 1990 CO2 emissions from international aviation have increased 83 per cent.
Consider that one business-class ticket on a round-trip flight from Toronto to Frankfurt accounts for 4,272 lbs. of CO2, according to Terrapass Aviation. Now imagine a videoconferencing system replaces 10 such trips a year. How much would that reduce your company’s carbon footprint? The Yankee Group expects more executives are asking that same question: “Videoconferencing has grown steadily as a replacement for travel due to green benefits and lowered travel costs, and [2009] will see the full emergence of this trend.”
While videoconferencing will never completely replace in-person meetings, these can be reduced significantly. If your company regularly sends people on business trips, do your employees, your budget and the planet a favour: investigate videoconferencing.
Mark Lorne is general manager, technology, Grand & Toy
Every one of those factors, however, has changed in the last few years. Videoconferencing systems have plummeted in price while the quality has leapt forward. And we now realize that frequent business trips are bad for productivity, a drain on family life and on corporate budgets, and a huge source of air pollution.
Modern conferencing solutions deliver audio and visual communications, and support collaboration using multimedia content such as presentations, demonstrations and full-motion video. And the systems can be deployed almost anywhere, from a home office, a small meeting room, a boardroom, to an auditorium used for conferences or training sessions. Lower-end but still functional systems can operate from a laptop computer, meaning any coffee shop with Wi-Fi can become an impromptu meeting room. And these systems are now very affordable.
Start with the dollars
Since 1998, the cost of videoconferencing systems has dropped tenfold, according to Polycom, the worldwide market share leader in this space. The company says most implementations achieve return on investment within six to 24 months. For some companies, the money spent is less than the cost for a single week-long business trip for a group of executives.
Fortis Bank in the Netherlands reported in 2009 that its return on investment was achieved within one year of implementing videoconferencing at a number of its office locations.
Starting costs for a basic conferencing solution in a small meeting room—one suitable for approximately six to 10 people—can start at $5,000. It has to be noted that this is an estimate and costs can range widely, but installing an audio system and a manual screen and projector or a flat-panel television does not have to be a huge expense. Equipment suitable to a larger space—such as a projector with a higher light output, a more powerful sound system and a centralized remote control—will obviously cost more, but ROI is often realized more quickly as these systems enjoy quicker employee adoption. They can also be used for high-value presentations, such as those to clients or investors.
On the other side of the ROI equation is the cost of air travel. Statistics Canada reports that one quarter of all business-travel dollars are spent on airfare, and those costs are rising: the 2008 Business Travel Outlook report from the Association of Corporate Travel Executives and the Conference Board of Canada finds that corporate airfares for domestic travel and trips to the U.S. are climbing by 1.2 per cent, with international airfares rising by 1.6 per cent.
As Forrester Research points out, “Companies are looking first and foremost to spend on technologies that can save money for the business, including unified communications and videoconferencing, to reduce travel.”
The green factor
Companies can also significantly reduce their carbon footprint by travelling less. The David Suzuki Foundation calculates that air travel accounts for four to nine per cent of the total climate change impact of human activity, and since 1990 CO2 emissions from international aviation have increased 83 per cent.
Consider that one business-class ticket on a round-trip flight from Toronto to Frankfurt accounts for 4,272 lbs. of CO2, according to Terrapass Aviation. Now imagine a videoconferencing system replaces 10 such trips a year. How much would that reduce your company’s carbon footprint? The Yankee Group expects more executives are asking that same question: “Videoconferencing has grown steadily as a replacement for travel due to green benefits and lowered travel costs, and [2009] will see the full emergence of this trend.”
While videoconferencing will never completely replace in-person meetings, these can be reduced significantly. If your company regularly sends people on business trips, do your employees, your budget and the planet a favour: investigate videoconferencing.
Mark Lorne is general manager, technology, Grand & Toy
