As businesses move to re-open offices and support hybrid work environments to keep employees connected, the adoption of new and emerging collaboration technologies has accelerated. Prior to the pandemic, remote work, for example, was a benefit not every business offered, but as employees continue to shelter in place and successfully prove remote work is sustainable with the help of platforms like Microsoft Teams and Zoom, businesses are now evaluating the technologies required to optimize hybrid in-office and remote teams. A recent global study we conducted of CIO’s and other business leaders indicates that 46 percent anticipate needing either more meeting rooms or larger meeting rooms when returning to offices to be prepared.
“During the initial onset of the pandemic, we began to look at ways our technology and integrations could support businesses through a period of change, as the ‘normal’ way of working in-office was rapidly shifting,” said Henry Levak, Head of Product, Logitech Video Collaboration. “We identified that our existing machine learning platform, Logitech RightSight, could be extended in combination with our Logitech Sync cloud-based technology to support business operations and help employees feel safe in the workplace.”
From AI and machine learning, to using your voice to start your meetings, Logitech’s proud to be powering experiences that help businesses operate and maintain employee safety, including Logitech Sync software, now with Insights, and new touchless experiences with our partners.
The (Conference) Room Where it Happens
Starting today, through Logitech Sync Insights, you can identify over- or under-utilized rooms, set conference room occupancy limits, and track changes over time. For example, if you’re limiting the number of people in a given room, you can check your Sync dashboard to see if people are adhering to protocols or if they’ve exceeded the limit. Sync Insights utilizes our Logitech RightSight™ technology running on your meeting room PC, enabling AI to detect objects and count the number of people in a room.
After speaking with our customers, we learned that many plan to limit the number of people in conference rooms and are eager for solutions that enhance existing physical limitations like fewer seats or signage. Now, through AI, we can take it a step further and provide valuable insights that allow businesses to enhance how they operate as people return to their offices.
You can log in to your Logitech Sync account today and request Insights in Beta to get started, which is free through the end of this year.
Hands-Free Collaboration
While businesses across the globe slowly re-open and allow employees into their offices, restrictions and hygiene protocols will be important safeguards for end users. Another example of Logitech supporting enhanced collaboration while keeping these safeguards top-of-mind is through hands-free experiences in meeting rooms with partners including Amazon, Google and Microsoft.
Earlier this month, we announced our new Logitech Solutions for Zoom Rooms with Alexa for Business so employees can start, stop and book meetings with a simple voice command, eliminating the need to touch surfaces or controllers for added peace of mind. You can also now say “Hey Google” on Logitech Solutions for Google Meet to use your voice to join and leave video meetings, dial a phone number and more. A Logitech MeetUp or Rally conferencecam detects voice on the mic pod, enabling touch-free join, exit or dialing functionality, another simple way for employees to minimize surface contact.
Beginning later this year, touchless experiences by Microsoft will be available for Logitech Room Solutions for Microsoft Teams. This will allow in-room participants to ask Cortana to join and leave a meeting, in addition to using the Teams mobile app on their smartphones as a room remote to mute and unmute the room, adjust audio volume, turn cameras on and off and exit the meeting. In-room participants can currently start a meeting without touching a shared surface by using the proximity join feature. These features provide further safeguards in meeting spaces by eliminating the need to touch shared surfaces to power a meeting.
Whether it’s virtual assistants and voice powering new ways of working or monitoring the usage of your meeting rooms, AI is at the center of how we’re able to provide these types of solutions. In turn, businesses are outfitted with the knowledge and tools to help them improve safety measures and more effectively plan the design and usage of their facilities as this new way of working evolves.
