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technology and good meeting practice.
The rise in flexible working means that people aren’t
always in the same place and this makes the task of
scheduling and booking rooms that much harder. Using
a meeting room booking solution can help make the
entire process smoother.
Integration of our platform with other technologies,
such as Microso Azure and Exchange, enables
businesses to ensure participants have reminders in
their diaries for the time the room is reserved, creating a
more joined-up approach.
It’s not uncommon, these days, for there to be a mix
of people attending in person, dialling into a call, or
participating via video link, which comes with its own
challenges. By integrating with Microso Teams or
other video providers like Zoom, you can ensure that
meetings can start promptly, avoiding disruption or
confusion. This ensures the entire process of a meeting,
from organisation through to participation is managed
using one easy-to-use platform.
Increasingly, businesses are moving towards
activity-based working, providing their employees with
a choice of settings for di erent tasks - from small,
intimate rooms for one-to-one chats, to bright, spacious
boardrooms
for highpowered
business
meetings.
Di erent
settings can
support the
aims of your
session and
determine
what the tone
is, so it’s vital
you have the
right space for
the job.
Last year,
when opening their new HQ, Bupa had to house
2,000 sta and create a space to promote agile
and flexible working. Using data-led insights, they
designed a mix of rooms suiting their varying needs
- accommodating collaboration, idea sessions, video
calling and conferencing - all managed using workspace
technology.
Workforce priorities are changing and so
organisations are having to prioritise finding a more
flexible and technology-led way of working. E ective
use of space - and a comprehensive means of managing
it is key in this and is instrumental in promoting
productivity.
Poorly managed meeting rooms, or inadequate
facilities can leave employees feeling unmotivated
and frustrated. Your sta have important tasks to
undertake each day and using so ware for room
booking can be the di erence between a company
that is over productive, rather than being busy, but still
underproductive.
THE INTERIORS DESIGN EXPERT’S VIEW
SAMANTHA HOUSE, SENIOR DESIGNER, AREA
SQUARE
For a meeting to
be e ective, not
just productive,
everyone needs to
know why there
are there. So,
before you even
get to the design
of the space you
might be using you
need an agenda
and some rules of
engagement. That
might sound a bit
authoritarian, but
o en there is too much time wasted at the beginning of
a meeting. Yes, there’s time for some social preamble,
but it helps if people know the objectives and there is
some clear respect in terms of using the time well.
So small things like not answering your phone or
looking at emails or social media, not speaking over
each other but do say what you mean and turn up on
time ready to contribute. Make the time constructive,
don’t waste it and one way to do that is make sure
one person is in charge, implementing the rules. That
person is also going to have to take responsibility
for making the most of the technology available.
However, to do that you need to know how to operate
the kit – again, we waste time by fiddling around with
connectivity, linking to screens or complaining about
skype. These tools work if you know how to use them.
There’s an argument that face-to-face is always best,
and it does help with social interaction and wellbeing,
but in our fast-moving digital world sending a skype
or conference link with meeting invite adds some
flexibility. Using IT properly helps people to stay
connected, it uses time well and allows people to work
from home or travel less and reduces the organisations
carbon footprint.
The actual space used for a meeting definitely a ects
the mood and the productivity. Let’s face it, sometimes
we can struggle to get everyone in a room. The trend
towards guaranteeing people more natural light o en
means meeting spaces are now nearer the core of a
building, away from the windows. But access to light is
just as important for a meeting as it is to an employee’s
workstation. So, your meeting rooms need secondary
light – sometimes so er or harsher, brighter depending
on how that space might be used – but di erent types
of glazing, lighting all help. No one likes a room with no
natural light at all.
Equally no one likes a space where the layout is a
FM CLINIC
Craig Seager
Let us help change your world.
T: +44 (0)1708 251900
E: info@fsifm.com
www.fsifm.com
Samantha House
ADVICE & OPINION
link
/www.fsifm.com
