Organisations are Still Challenged on Video Collaboration

Despite Boost in Productivity and Teamwork, Survey Finds Organisations are Still Challenged to Realise Full Potential of Video Collaboration

Polycom commissioned report finds:
• More than 80 percent using video collaboration experience faster decision making, better work/life balance
• Businesses still not seeing true benefit due to limited access and stigmas attached to video conferencing

NEW ZEALAND – 13 January, 2014 – Polycom, Inc. (Nasdaq: PLCM) announced today the results of a new survey which analyses how video collaboration solutions are currently being used in business. The global study, commissioned by Polycom and conducted by Quocirca, LTD, found more than 90 percent of those who regularly use video to collaborate are experiencing higher productivity, better teamwork, financial savings and reduced travel expenses. Over 80 percent directly link their fiscal savings to making faster business decisions and improving employee work/life balance.

Although the survey uncovered the many benefits of using video collaboration, barriers to broad adoption still exist. One of every two people surveyed suggested that having more access to video would increase use. Very few organisations have broadly rolled out video to desktop and mobile users, and typically have limited availability of video to the larger conference rooms.

"The value of most networking technologies tends to increase disproportionately the greater the numbers of individuals connected,” said Rob Bamforth, of research and analysis house, Quocirca. “Video conferencing is no exception. Moreover, increasing usage also generates more familiarity and comfort with the whole experience. Encouraging a culture of video adoption would therefore seem to benefit both the individual and the organisation.”

Forty-five percent of end users surveyed frequently use their mobile devices, such as tablets, laptops and mobile phones, to join a video conference, and 35 percent of digital natives—workers who are 25 years or younger and will define the future of work—use video frequently and from anywhere. These numbers are expected to grow as the amount of mobile devices increases and organisations continue to offer more flexible working arrangements.
“The way people work is changing. Mobility, BYOD, social and collaboration solutions like video conferencing combined with the desire to reduce real estate costs are causing businesses around the world to rethink the traditional office setting,” said Jim Kruger, Chief Marketing Officer, Polycom. “We’re seeing the measurable impact video collaboration is having, but with just a fraction of organisations around the globe using video regularly, the results of this survey illustrate its potential in any work environment and across every industry.”

Video collaboration is driving measurable results for organisations across regions and industries, and the Polycom – Quocirca survey validates video collaboration can boost productivity and fiscal savings. Specific findings for APAC include:

• In APAC, executives (86%) and managers (89%) lead the use of video within an organisation
• Of those surveyed globally, APAC leads in the use of video for executive management meetings (66%) and recruitment (30%)
• Additionally across APAC, 52% of senior executives, 37% of distributed team members, and 31% of remote workers were found to have embraced the technology more than everyone else
• Travel cost savings is still the number one benefit for video use in APAC with 87% citing it as medium to high priority
• 70% of those surveyed in APAC cited an increase in the use of video in day to day business
• More than 90% of APAC companies surveyed access meetings through room based solutions

To learn more about how your company can build a culture of collaboration, please visit the following blog.

About Polycom
Polycom helps organisations unleash the power of human collaboration. More than 400,000 companies and institutions worldwide defy distance with secure video, voice and content solutions from Polycom to increase productivity, speed time to market, provide better customer service, expand education and save lives. Polycom and its global partner ecosystem provide flexible collaboration solutions for any environment that deliver the best user experience, the broadest multi-vendor interoperability and unmatched investment protection. Visit www.polycom.asia or connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn or the Polycom Asia Pacific blog, www.polycom.asia/theview, to learn more.

NOTE: The product plans, specifications, and descriptions herein are provided for information only and subject to change without notice, and are provided without warranty of any kind, express or implied. Polycom reserves the right to modify future product plans at any time. Products and related specifications referenced herein are not guaranteed and will be delivered on a when and if available basis.

© 2015 Polycom, Inc. All rights reserved. POLYCOM®, the Polycom logo, and the names and marks associated with Polycom’s products are trademarks and/or service marks of Polycom, Inc. and are registered and/or common law marks in the United States and various other countries. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Notes to the Editor:
Objective (from Quocirca): This report is intended to help existing video users understand how their video culture compares with others and what they could do to boost adoption and thus gain more value from video, based on six key adoption criteria that define a spectrum of video culture maturity. Those who have yet to invest in video can also see what they should do from the outset to create a stronger culture of video adoption and therefore maximise its value to the organisation.
How the Survey was Conducted:
• 800 online customer surveys were conducted
• Companies in 80 countries were interviewed
• 8 in-depth interviews were conducted
• Survey was broken into primary groupings including:
o Geographical region
Vertical industry including
Government
Healthcare
Education
Financial
Manufacturing
Technology
Professional Services
Other (unclassified)
o Company size
o Respondent job/responsibility

About Quocirca
Quocirca is a research and analysis company with a primary focus on the European market. Quocirca produces free to market content aimed at IT decision makers and those who influence them in businesses of all sizes and public sector organisations. Much of the content Quocirca produces is based on its own primary research.
For this primary research, Quocirca has native language telephone interviewing capabilities across Europe and is also able to cover North America and the Asia Pacific region. Research is conducted one-to-one with individuals in target job roles to ensure the right questions are being asked of the right people. Comparative results are reported by geography, industry, size of business, job role and other parameters as required.
The research is sponsored by a broad spectrum of IT vendors, service providers and channel organisations. However, all Quocirca content is written from an independent standpoint and addresses the issues with regard to the use of IT within the context of an organisation, rather than specific products. Therefore, Quocirca’s advice is free from vendor bias and is based purely on the insight gained through research, combined with the broad knowledge and analytical capabilities of Quocirca’s analysts who focus on the “big picture.”

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