Video Chat Elevates Business Productivity

Call Center productivity is actually trending upward. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the increase in overall worker output edges out worker hours, reflecting a slight increase in productivity. It’s a trend that’s likely to continue, as more companies are incorporating video chat technology into business processes. There are a few benefits to direct communication options for companies, such as reducing expenses, increasing quick and efficient business interactions, and training the workforce.

Time Management

Anyone who has ever worked in a business environment knows that meetings can get out of hand. One meeting can suck the time out of the day. It gets really bad when you start having meetings about your initial meeting. The barrier to productivity is staggering with some workers falling asleep, day dreaming, or texting under the conference table. For businesses that follow the time is money strategy, reducing the number and length of meetings is vital to increasing productivity.
That’s where video chat technology comes into the picture. It’s one way to cut down on those pesky, time-laden meetings. Productivity goes up when workers are able to instantly connect with team members from their workspaces. Some businesses are eliminating conference room meetings altogether, opting for a technology-driven business culture.
Time management is one of the most important variables in complex business structures. Online chat is especially valuable, if your enterprise has multiple domestic or international sites. Travel expenses can add up. In 2017, the U.S. labor force took 462 million trips for business, totaling $317 billion. Meetings and events account for nearly 40 percent of business travel.
Talking online makes sense, because workers have opportunities for great collaboration, problem resolutions, and better communication right at their fingertips.

Engaging Remote Technicians

One of the biggest challenges to maintaining a remote technical workforce is ensuring that staff members feel like they are part of a cohesive team. Chatting online helps team members to work together on projects, check-in for milestones, and ask important questions. Technology bridges the isolation gap that often plagues employees and contractors who work from home.
Several large businesses, including American Express, CVS, and Amazon are increasing the number of remote workers that they hire. These businesses recognize that there are ways to structure the process that ensures each worker’s daily efficiency.
Much like working in the office, remote workers need assurance of their value and clear direction about expectations. Luckily, employee engagement can happen through the internet. Creating assignments, recognizing achievements, and getting to know the workforce on an individual basis are still great aspects of managing a team, even a remote one. It’s important to let the workers know that you care about them, as well as the tasks. After all, telecommuting workers are human, and their output will reflect the company’s social dynamics, even if they do work through a technical interface.
Integrating video chat into the remote workers’ day is one way of keeping the team on track. Scheduling online meetings helps the workers to stay abreast of the team’s progress and to provide individual contributions to each project’s success.

Training New Technicians over Live Video

Video chat allows employers to introduce at-home training to workers on numerous topics. Remote employees interact with clients, initiate sales pitches, close deals, distribute products, and provide services. For each task, the company has a structured process. Going over expectations step-by-step with team members ensures that everyone is on the same page.
Online group training is an open forum for workers to receive valuable instruction and ask questions. The more detailed the training, the less chance the worker will make a mistake in the field. Chat is an invaluable tool for human resources managers to use, as they go over legal and corporate expectations with employees and contractors.
In addition, employers shouldn’t assume workers know how to structure the day. Take time to train staff members on the best way to prioritize and track tasks from home. It’ll be well worth the effort, saving your company money and boosting employee productivity.

Responsive Employers

Actually seeing a worker online gives insight into non-verbal cues that an employer might miss in a verbal conversation on the phone or in a written email. Real-time communication through video chat is the perfect medium. It prompts supervisors to follow up with those staff members or contractors who don’t quite look like they’ve got whichever concept that you’re teaching down to a science.
Video chat is more reliable than audio for understanding someone’s reaction or judging a worker’s input. You’re building a company culture with every interaction. Even though it’s through the lens of technology, the relationship with the remote team is very important to the company’s bottom line. It needs the attention and the personal touch that visual technology provides.
Employers who take the time to invest in a robust video chat system will find that it enhances workers’ productivity. By ensuring seamless, face-to-face communication, businesses can grow the workforce, train staff members, complete projects, and create a positive company culture. The use of video to connect workers at the office and at home is a popular trend that will surely continue, as companies use technology to facilitate effective business communication.