About 2 months ago we decided to rewrite our client application for Mac OS. One of the new features we had to add was active directory authentication. It took us more time than we anticipated to implement this feature.
Client application for Windows already had active directory integrated. We knew that it worked with no issues based on customers’ reports. But some customers started asking for active directory for the Mac application as well. So here are things we learned while implementing it. There were two steps to implementing active directory:
1 – How to test if our implementation worked? When we implemented the Windows app, an active directory server hosted on the cloud was used for testing. We needed a testing environment for Mac.
2 – What APIs to use? Should we use Mac’s OpenDirectory API for it? Or should we be using openldap API that is cross platform and supports active directory?
Testing is really important part of software development. You have to know how to test each feature of your application. We thought we should set up our own active directory server and create user accounts and use it to test our Mac application. So we setup an Active Directory 2012 R2 on a machine and used it for testing, we had an active directory running. We tried to bind one of Windows laptops to it but the laptop could not find the server. The problem was that DNS server could not find the AD domain name so we had to add AD server IP address as a DNS server. That worked well and the Windows laptop was bound to the AD server. Now, it was Mac’s turn. We did the same thing for Mac, adding IP address of the AD server as a DNS server. We faced another problem with Mac. It was complaining that timeservers did not match. We finally figured out that we had to point the timeserver in Mac to the AD server IP address. Still, the binding process was failing due to a plugin error, which we could never solve. However, when we tried binding, from the status messages of binding process, we could tell that it was able to find the AD server and authenticate the user but fail after those steps. So we thought we do not need to bind the Mac to the AD server. If Mac can do authentication then we can do it as well. We were right!
After dabbling with this issue for more than we should have to get active directory set up on Mac and start implementation. We tried to use OpenDirectory API in Mac to implement active directory authentication but it proved to be very frustrating and had to abandon that route due to limited support and plugin issues Mac OS had. So what should we have done? Python! Believe us, python has API for everything! So indeed, there was one called ldap. We used it to do active directory authentication in Mac. It worked! We looked at its source code and it was C code that was doing most of the core part. We were able to trace the code and saw relevant includes such as #include which grabbed our attention. After researching further, we found out there is actually an API called openldap that is cross platform and supports AD. Why not use that? Ldap python module already has a code that does active directory authentication. So we just learned the function names that should have been used and implemented active directory authentication using openldap C API. At the end of the day, we had around 10 lines of code that took us around 5 days.
All in all, that was a different experience we had. Even though it took us so long to write 10 lines of code, now we support active directory in both Mac and Windows apps and our customers are happy about it. So it was worth it.
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A company’s culture is perhaps the single most important factor that influences its success. However, it is also one of the hardest for CIOs, CEOs, and other business leaders to build and develop. This is because every company culture is unique, and there are a number of characteristics that shape it. For instance, some of the factors that shape it include: benefits and perks, wellness programs, office space and technology, behaviors, work hours, values, and mission.
With so many variables to address, building your own company culture may seem like a daunting task. However, it can influence whether or not your business grows to success or plummets to failure.
Company Culture Matters
A positive company culture can motivate employees, cultivate loyal customer relationships, and increase business success. In a recent survey by Bain & Company, 68 percent of business leaders responded that their culture gives them a competitive edge. Furthermore, 81 percent believed that a business that does not have a high-performing culture will not excel. In a recent Careerealism survey, 66 percent of respondents said that a strong culture is more important to them than a company’s values or beliefs.
Some of the top companies have attributed their success to their culture. Netflix, is one of the biggest proponents for it. For instance, the video streaming giant gives its employees unlimited vacation and doesn’t care how many hours they work. As long as they meet the high-performance demands that the business sets, employees have a large amount of control and flexibility. The model seems to be working for them, but for other businesses, it may not.
Creating a Culture That Works for Your Business
It’s crucial for companies to assess what type of culture they want, and then plan a strategy and structure that can help them achieve it. Every business may be different, but there are some key factors that each should address to build a strong culture.
Organizations can show that they are invested in their employees while also encouraging high-performance. For example, companies can incentivize sales or client retention by giving employees an extra vacation day or a bonus for exceeding established goals. If you want to build a culture that values employee development, offer tuition assistance or training programs.
Give them options
Flexibility is becoming more and more important in today’s workplaces. With advanced technologies like mobile devices, video conferencing, online collaboration tools and wireless presentation software, it is easier than ever for employees to work remotely.
Employees may have children, medical appointments, and other worries that sometimes do not work well with the typical 9-5 workday. Creating a culture of flexibility shows that an organization understands that workers have a life outside of the workplace. It also can alleviate some worker stress by allowing them to flex their schedules when needed.
Model culture with leadership
The leadership team is key to building and fostering a new company culture. If you initiate a wellness program or community charity event, it is important that members of the executive team help organize or participate in it.
Hire talented people that complement your culture
A highly talented individual that clashes with an organization’s culture can be detrimental to its success. If someone doesn’t seem to fit with a work environment, they will most likely start to disengage and become a negative worker.
On the other hand, an individual that complements your company culture is more likely to become an invaluable member of your team. When hiring new employees, it is important to investigate what type of workplace they would work best in. Ask questions like: Would you rather work alone or collaborate in a team? Where do you see yourself in five years? These questions can help reveal how they work and what motivates them.
Communicate
Communication is one of the most important tools to create a winning company culture. Benefits and other perks do not matter if no one knows that they exist or how to take advantage of them. It is important to ask employees what they value on a recurring basis. Instead of doing an annual performance review, chat with workers more frequently and let them know what growth opportunities are available within the company.
Assessing your culture can be as simple as sending an online employee satisfaction survey every few months or having a leadership meeting to reflect on performance. Building a strong company culture may not be an easy task to undergo. However, it is often the key to employee well-being, customer retention, business growth and long-term sustainability.
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Analytics are becoming one of the most powerful tools that businesses and CIOs can have in their tool belts. Simply put, analytics is our ability to track information and use it to make more strategic and fact-based decisions. Gone are the days of making decisions based on gut-feelings or outdated industry reports.
Advancements in technologies, more sophisticated mobile devices, and the proliferation of the cloud, have all helped lead to a world where insightful business data can be tracked and managed efficiently and cost-effectively.
According to a survey conducted by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) at their CIO Network Conference, business intelligence (BI) and analytics is one of the top priorities for CIOs today. In a Gartner survey, 41 percent of CIOs named BI and analytics as their top priority for 2015, ahead of infrastructure/data center and the cloud. Gartner also predicts that the importance of business intelligence and analytics will continue to grow into 2017.
However, just like any tool, analytics is only truly valuable if the owner knows how to use it. Accumulating data and analytics is not sufficient enough to improve the way you do business. Company leaders must turn those analytics into actions that will improve the overall success of their business. How can CIOs use analytics to help their organization grow?
Analytics for Data Security
As the number and cost of cyber attacks increase, companies are placing high importance on data security. According to a 2015 IBM and Ponemon Institute report, the total cost of data breaches last year reached $3.8 million, a 23% increase from the year before. The average cost per record was between $145 and $154. Data security is an issue all industries face, however, the healthcare industry is hit the hardest. The cost in healthcare can reach up to $363 per lost or stolen record .
CIOs can use data and analytics to identify security challenges and weaknesses before attackers. Then, they can develop strong defense plans that help prevent costly cyber attacks from happening.
Analytics for Customers
The IT department and CIO are becoming increasingly more instrumental to the customer service experience. Businesses can analyze the entire customer journey. Big data can also be used to identify prospects and consumer trends and use that information to improve the sales process. A survey conducted by McKinsey & Company found that 50 percent of businesses that use customer analytics are more likely to significantly increase sales.
One company that is using analytics to learn more about their target audiences and to improve the customer experience is Disney. In select Walt Disney Parks, visitors are given wearable devices when they arrive. The RFID armband checks guests into areas that they visit within the park, allows them to pay for merchandise and tickets, and personalizes their entire experience.
The key to Disney’s wearable initiative is convenience and personalization. Customers want to feel valued by the companies that they support. Organizations that invest time and resources into discovering more about their customers and what they want are more likely to build strong, fruitful relationships.
Analytics for Performance
Engagement and productivity are major issues in the workplace. Now, company leaders have more tools to improve worker performance than ever before. For instance, employee satisfaction, turnover, and sales are all valuable pieces of data that can be analyzed. Learning more about your employees, how they work, what motivates them, and other behaviors can help identify strengths and areas of improvement.
Once CIOs have identified those weak points, then they can propose methods to improve them. Furthermore, when new technologies, collaboration tools, or processes have been implemented, they can track their effectiveness in real-time with analytics.
People increasing value data, analytics, and other fact-based statistics to support a point. If you are proposing a shift in strategy, additional funds for a new project, or another plea to your executive team or board members, it’s important to use strong analytics in your wireless presentation. New presentation software has tons of features that allow you to show analytics in interesting and clear ways that get the attention of your audience and help support your claim.
Data and analytics has changed the way that we learn about customers and has opened up a wide range of possibilities for businesses. The best CIOs are the ones that can help their companies use those analytics to improve performance, security, and drive sales.
Additional Reading
What is the Role of the CIO in Driving Enterprise Analytics?
The CIO’s Role in Customer Analytics
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The way we work has changed in recent years. The individual contribution used to outweigh group efforts. Now, we’re seeing work assignments become project-based and requiring teams to complete tasks. In response, an increasing number of tools are on the market to help streamline processes, promote communication and transparency and to make sure everyone is working with purpose and focus.
Some of the best tools are for communication. Others are for knowledge management and transfer. Many work for project management.
For Presentations:
• Ubiq. Wireless presentations made easy with instant access to your meet’s Hive, central access point. It connects people using multiple device types to a presentation where they can share content through a data encrypted, secure system dedicated for your meeting. The added bonus will come in the form of remote presentations, which will open, yet secured access to those beyond the Hive in virtual locations.
• Canva. Presentations and other communication assets may require visual content. Canva is a free, online graphic design tool to create posters, infographics, email templates and more! As a collaborative tool, you can share your design with team members to work together, make changes/edits and gather feedback.
• Mural.ly. Mural.ly is a cloud-based whiteboard application, great for brainstorming sessions. Using virtual whiteboards, called “Murals,” you can invite team members to draw and type onto your board to gather ideas, map out workflows and more. Collaborate in real-time and visually track activity as your project evolves.
For Project Management:
• Asana. Designed to support teams through web and mobile applications, Asana is communication and project management tool that works to keep teams organized and promote open communication. It includes a multitude of features, like interactive checklists, to ensure teams remain on task and rely less on email, where things can get confused or lost.
• Trello. Trello is a card-based project management program. Its application focuses on the use of cards, which work great for online brainstorming sessions. Ideal for content and editorial development, users can pitch ideas, assign tasks, leave notes and visualize progress as cards are being worked.
• TeamWork. This project management system supports file transfers, task assignments and status updates. In addition, TeamWork promotes communication with each task having its own discussion board. It’s user-friendly where both the project owner and the end-user can assign, edit and update tasks based on security settings.
For Communication/Social Media:
• Skype. When Skype was launched in August 2013, it took the telecommunication world by storm. Being able to make calls over an Internet brought people together across country borders and oceans. It’s still relevant and significant to how we do business today. With easy to use software, chats and free audio and video calls to other Skype users are simple. Need to direct dial someone, Skype offers great rates for pennies per minute. Communication provides immediate access with cost savings.
• Yammer. Yammer turns your company’s internal communications into an enterprise social network. Employees access the network through their work email address to communicate with others by departments, groups and interest. Stay on top of projects, understand strategies and break down silos across the organization. Internal communication is no longer just receiving memos through email. It’s now about having actual dialogue amongst colleagues online.
• HipChat. This internal communication tool integrates chat, video and file sharing all within your organization. Set in the cloud, employees can engage in private/group chats, videos and screen sharing from remote locations. It works on a chat room platform, which allows full chat histories to be saved and referenced. We’ve been using HipChat for over a year now, and we communicate over HipChat more frequently than email!
Many of these tools integrate with other applications and can be used across multiple devices. Some have apps for smartphone and tablet available with data being saved and shared on the cloud. It makes collaboration easier to accomplish without having to have everyone in the same room at the same time.
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Stepping inside a meeting room can feel a lot like stepping inside a black hole: Once you’ve moved beyond the event horizon (i.e. the conference room door), the possibility of escaping within a human lifetime can seem extremely remote. Even huddle spaces — the meeting room’s younger, less time-draining sibling — have a well-documented tendency to hold whoever steps inside them captive for extremely long durations against their will.
But contrary to popular opinion, it is at least theoretically possible for groups of people to set foot inside meeting rooms or huddle spaces and re-emerge within just 30 minutes. Here are 4 ways to help accomplish this:
- Create a To-Do List. A to-do list will help you keep track of the meeting. Being able to check off tasks can help to build motivation and to maintain your focus. Our recommendation would be to create your to-do list for all meetings so you know actually what needs to be done for each person of the team. It’ll give you the opportunity to evaluate your performance and make adjustments in your meeting approach. It will also prepare you for what’s to come.
- Time Your Agenda. Your to-do list can help promote time management – which you will know what to speed up and what to slow down. Use your calendar, like Google or Outlook, to send out the agenda prior to the meeting. With Ubiq, you can send your calendar to your conference room TV or interactive displays prior to the meeting to make such that all of the attendees are on the same page. Reserve time to dedicate to projects and tasks, while setting your own expectations for timely completion.
- Set Yourself as “Do Not Disturb.” Many of us still get emails, and instant messages during meeting time. The reason for this is because we feel that we can do multiple things at once including replying back to emails or instant messages, and feel the need to reply back. The truth is that many emails can wait, and setting yourself as do not disturb can be a lot more efficient during meetings. Recently, I was in making a wireless presentation during a meeting. However, while I was making a wireless presentation, there were notifications that popped up from my email and instant messaging. One of the emails that I received was from my sister asking me what to eat for dinner. If I set myself as do not disturb, those wouldn’t pop up. Additionally, I would avoid the embarrassment of people reading my emails or messages.
- Delegate, When Necessary. It doesn’t hurt to ask for support of others when you need it. That’s the whole point of meetings. Discuss all the problems and best practices with your team. That way, everyone can benefit and sharing stories make meetings go a bit more bearable. When you want to achieve all your goals in meetings, delegate tasks to your peers or have shared tasks. Discussing key problems and delegation can help achieve goals in meetings and create more wins to the team.
- Implement a Wireless Presentation System. Every meeting in which users are forced to connect their laptops to the TV or projector with wires or adapters inevitably goes 15 minutes over schedule due to connectivity problems. By investing in a wireless presentation system that allows users to connect their laptop to any audio visual setup regardless of its video outputs, all of this wasted time can easily be avoided.
With fewer distractions and proper delegation of work, you can give proper attention in meetings, which leads to an increase in teamwork and productivity. The challenge comes in how you manage our time and efforts independently and collaboratively. These tips should set you on the right path to getting the most out of your meeting rooms and huddle spaces.
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Over the last three weeks we have overhauled our Windows client application. This was prompted by the reaching of our MVP (minimum viable product) and our desire to have a code base that is both updatable and easily debugged. In one of our earlier posts, we discussed our belief in the MVC model and significant code modularity. It was that internal debate that pushed us in this direction. It also gave us a good opportunity to revamp the UI and UX with newer and more professional designs.
We began by trying to adapt as much of the previous code as possible. This meant holding to the same Windows development platform: Windows Forms. Remaining on this platform would guarantee the reuse of our business logic and the libraries would remain. Where problems were likely to be found was on the User Interface (UI) end. The first static designs turned out well. It seemed to be no problem following the images given to us by our UI designer from Bolt.io – our first VC and start-up accelerator.
It was in the implementation of specific UI elements, like a customized list, and animations that we ran into significant problems. As there is no native library option for animations it became difficult to move forward on this platform. We were forced to port our code over to Windows Presentation Framework (WPF). With their XAML layouts and native animation APIs, this development foundation is much better suited to building customized, good-looking and smart UIs. Perhaps we were wrong in our preference for WPF UI design tools, but as the lead on our UI development team has a stronger background in mobile development, this was his preference.
Anyway, the trouble was going to be implementing our business logic solutions within this new framework. This was made easier by them both belonging to Windows Visual Studio and therefore being compatible with C# or C++. Also aiding this switch was our decision to modularize the code. It allowed for us to attach it to the front end piece by piece, whereas before it was an ugly fusion of view and logic.
When we finally started we found little resistance from WPF in the execution of our designs. It was, for the most part an easy switch. We only ran into any trouble when piecing together our custom PasswordBox element. We required it to have a placeholder and as far as we could tell the native object did not have such an option. Our solution was to situate a TextBlock on top of the PasswordBox until it is selected, at which point we send “focus” to the PasswordBox and hide the TextBlock. A simple, but hacked together solution.
In all, this was a rewarding experience. We managed to modularize our code, update our design and add animations to what was once a static application. Beyond that we gained experience in the more modern development environment that is Windows Presentation Foundation. The guys at Infragistics still see a use for WinForms and they may be right. However, my recommendation to all, and I wish that we had found this earlier in our prototyping stage, is to move yourself into a future of glossy UIs and responsive UX.
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The days of being bound to a single desk are coming to an end. Companies are shifting how they conduct business, thanks to technology. Virtually and remotely, we are seeing work culture change with the times, as employees are taking charge in how and where they work.
According to a study conducted by The Freelancers’ Union and Elance, 34% of the U.S. workforce consists of freelance workers. The union predicted that at least 50% of U.S. workers will be freelancers by 2020, less than 5 years from now! The Society for Human Resources Manage (SHRM) also reported in their 2012 study that 46% of participating organizations in the United States have virtual employees, including full-time, contractors and freelancers. Multinational businesses were more likely to encourage remote work at 53% over those solely based in the U.S.
While Yahoo’s Marissa Miller has banned employees from working from home, Harvard Business Review revealed that there are benefits to both employees and the organization by encouraging teams to work remotely. A study was conducted by Ctrip, a Chinese travel website, whose cofounders gave call center employees the option to work from home for 9 months. The employees had higher performance levels, increased job satisfaction rates and lower rates of turnover. The company also saw cost savings in operations, space and furniture.
In addition to working remotely, technology has changed communication styles. Virtual and wireless conferencing brings people together without barriers of time and location. Instant messaging and texting have reduced the wait time for the telephone or an email. VoIP and video gives employees a choice to speak face-to-face or just audio. With the array of devices used to perform tasks, technology has created greater flexibility and accessibility.
Employees are working more project-based than as individual contributors. They are evaluated not just for their work, but how they work with others, both internally and externally. People are being encouraged to no longer feel tied to their desks. Some companies are redesigning their spaces with open floor plans, recreational areas, cafes verses a “break room.”
For those who work remotely, especially freelancers, there are now co-working spaces to ignite idea sharing and conversation to help one another hit targets, reach goals and complete tasks. The company office is not necessarily the central place for knowledge. Employees can become more social with their peers.
The traditional workplace still has its place for those who need more discipline and structure. However, it is becoming more open to change with employee benefits such as flexible time, unlimited sick times, longer paid time off and being provided with mobile and smart devices.
What about IT? IT departments should be ahead of the curve when it comes to the ways technology is disrupting the workplace and changing company culture. Not only should the teams be versed on the latest hardware and software applications, it should be mindful of how employees are working and communicating. Partnering with Human Resources is a great way to gain insight to put against industry trends and benchmarks. That way, IT can develop programs and implementation strategies that will make support the shift in workflows, connect employees and their third parties and drive business successes.
So, what does the future of work look like? It’s however we want it to look like with no boundaries – it can look like a coffee shop or no more cubicles. This all depends on the employees, and how it can increase creativity and collaboration. We all have the opportunity to work how we want, when we want without barriers.
Where’s your ideal place to work?
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Unified communication is the technological integration of communication from a variety of access points, software and platforms. It streamlines the flow of real-time interaction across an organization. From instant messaging to file sharing, it removes barriers of time zone, location and device type.
Having a unified communication tool will put communication solutions at employees’ fingertips from anywhere at any time. The need for travel is reduced, due to increased remote access for virtual team members and guests. By promoting internal and external connections anywhere at anytime, the goal should be towards productivity and efficiency for all. The greater the productivity and ability for clearer communication and sharing, the more motivated employees will be.
What about security? IT departments can better manage data flow and usage. The access parameters set will run across all integrated applications with the hope that future integrations or additions would be met with ease. It turns communication into an enterprise system. That system can lower administrative costs and the strain on team resources.
What should you look for in a unified communication tool?
- Improved user experience. Every employee is different. How they interact with tools is determined by their flexibility, comfort and knowledge. Understand how your employees are currently communicating, meeting and engaging with each other. Find opportunities to improve the experience. Provide solutions and support to get them on board to change company culture in breaking down barriers. Recently, one of our staff members at Ubiq participated in a Twitter chat with users and IT professionals, and they were mentioning that if their unified communication tool is not easy enough for the users to use it, they won’t use it. However, they mentioned that it takes up to 3 months for users to understand how to use it and adopt the product.
- Greater accessibility and collaboration. Your employees may be far and wide. They need a central point to come together to share ideas and create dialogue. A unified communication tool creates new means to gather information from a mix of traditional and non-traditional ways. From the twitter chat, it was obvious that instant messaging, email and presentation tools were key aspects for a unified communication tool to increase collaboration.
- Data shareability. With technology, communication becomes data. That data needs to be processed…to go somewhere! How ideas are exchanged rely on data sharing. A unified communication tool will enhance collaboration by sharing files, screens and other information more readily. The optimal tool will not require a waiting period for analysis. It’s work that employees can now do together.
- Seamless integration. By integrating existing applications into a centralized system, it is important to not impact current workflows. Communication is very important to the success of a business. It should not be disturbed. It should be enhanced! Users care if the tools are easy to use and can be accessed all in one place, and your IT Department cares about one-time setup and putting less work for them after the integration.
As more business is being conducted in the cloud, communication needs to be seamless. Not only should it break down silos across departments, it should be open to the many touch points employees have to each other: phone, email, instant message, video, social media, etc. The way we speak and share with each other at work has changed. Unified communication tools will help take our interactions to the next level with ease from any place.
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In this day and age, avoiding technology in the workplace is like trying to avoid dairy at an ice cream shop. The best we can hope for is to harness technology and control its use. Controlling the use of technology in the conference room is no different.
As technology becomes more pervasive in our personal and work lives, here is a look at some of the biggest reasons why employees my actually hate the conference room technology that was intended to make life easier.
- Constant Dependence on Technology. The number one reason employees might dislike technology is the very fact that we are dependent on it to get the job done. How many times has everybody gone home early because the computers went down? How many meetings have been called off because of technical difficulty?
- Crippling Effects of Technology Malfunctions. Along the lines of point #1, employees hate attending a meeting where the wireless presentation equipment isn’t working, or where a computer has crashed. These meetings become extremely unproductive while all attendees wait for a solution to be reached.
- Work Time Infringing on Personal Time. It used to be that when you were at work, you were at work, and when you were at home, you were at home. This is not always the case now with modern technology. There is often an expectation for employees to “call in” to important meetings, even if you are on vacation. This can start to feel rather restrictive.
- Limited Interpersonal Communication. There are many reports and studies on how rare personal conversations are becoming. Have you ever sat in a conference room waiting for a meeting to start and nobody is talking to each other because they are all staring at their phones? Digital messaging can be harmful to an employees ability to verbally communicate.
- Emails, Texts and Other Interruptions Affect the Productivity of Meetings. It can be very frustrating, as a meeting attendee, to be forced to wait for the presenter to stop and answer a text, or a phone. It is equally as frustrating when a presenter has to deal with attendees who are more interested in their phones than what is being presented.
- Assimilation to New Technology. Employees are often required to upgrade to new devices that are compatible with new technology at work and in the conference room. There is always an assimilation learning curve with any new device. Employees, especially those that are not as technologically savvy, can get very frustrated when learning a new device.
- Cost of Required Technology. Similar to point #6, Employees can get frustrated with the cost of required upgrades. That is, unless the employer is willing to foot the bill.
- Technology Taking Over Jobs. In today’s workplace, many jobs are being automated and employees are being replaced by technology. This can create a general resentment toward technology in the workplace. Current conference room technology also allows for more remote working arrangements and can dramatically widen the talent pool.
- Excessive Monitoring Inhibits Creativity. Many employers are choosing to implement monitoring devices and software to keep closer tabs on employee productivity and other activities. Some of the most creative employees feel that this type of rigid monitoring of activity can stifle the free spirit of creativity and innovation.
- Microphone Feedback and Distortions. Last, but not least, one of the most hated technology problems in the conference room is the microphone. From ear-splitting feedback, to conference phones that can’t quite pick up every voice in the room, the microphone can be a very frustrating piece of technology.
While it is impossible to solve every problem that employees have, there are a few things companies can do to help their workforce feel more comfortable about new technology.
First would be to create a progressive environment which embraces change and subsequently embraces technology. Second, plan and budget for regular technology upgrades. This keeps your equipment compatible, and will reinforce your commitment to staying technologically current. Lastly, take the time to train employees on new technologies, and allow for open dialogue about what will help the most.