If you work in an office, meetings are a fact of life. Modern workforces are often remote and dispersed, and even when they’re not, organizations rely on meetings to collaborate and communicate effectively.

Yet, meetings are often considered inefficient and unproductive, particularly when disruptions occur. Screens freeze, the wireless signal drops unexpectedly, and cords run rampant.

To better understand these challenges, the RoomReady team conducted our first-ever State of the Meeting Room survey. 204 meeting leaders, who are each responsible for at least three meetings per week, provided feedback. We found some surprising statistics on just how much time and productivity are lost when meeting rooms are inefficient.

Let’s discuss some of the meeting issues we found, and how the latest innovations in meeting room technology will alleviate these challenges in 2020.

1. Finding a meeting room will get easier

The challenge: Meeting room obstacles often start before reaching the door.  More than half of the survey’s respondents (54%) agreed that finding a meeting room can be problematic. No-shows are frequent: One-third of meeting leaders said rooms are booked but sitting empty, and 39% reported rooms are often double-booked. Whatever the case, efficiency is negatively impacted.

The solution: Meeting room technology that collects data across the office, helping teams crack down on “zombie rooms” – spaces booked with recurring meetings, but not actually in use. A business can use a single dashboard to track rooms in use, the number of occupants in each room, the prevalence of meetings and volume of attendees. By tracking these no-shows, scheduling tools automatically release these empty rooms back into available inventory – mitigating the impact of bad booking behavior.

2. Launching meeting room technology will become simpler

The challenge: Although starting a meeting shouldn’t be a stressful event, technology failure can make even an experienced meeting leader sweat.

Connection delays, such as slow Wi-Fi or erratic or silent audio, can throw off the presenter and distract the audience. Echoes and background noise make it difficult to hear the presentation. And unfamiliar interfaces are simply too hard to use. 32% of survey respondents said if they could do away with one pain point from the meeting room experience, they would eliminate difficulties in launching meeting room technology.

The solution: Simple meeting room technology that eliminates complexities. With a single touch, presenters can connect with colleagues in the same room and around the world, error free. No spotty Wi-Fi, no time lost because of technology disruptions. Instead, meeting leaders can collaborate with their team efficiently and effectively.

3. Technology will boost employee engagement

The challenge: When meeting room technology fails, the downtime makes it easy for attendees to become disengaged, go off track and behave unprofessionally. They might revert to side conversations, texting, chatting, checking emails, taking phone calls or even doing unrelated work rather than focusing on the task at hand. In fact, one-quarter of respondents would switch technology if it could increase employee engagement.

The solution: Meeting room technology that works every time. When the presenter controls the room from the minute he or she walks through the door, and technology works as it should, teams are better engaged and empowered to communicate more effectively. They’re more motivated to contribute their own ideas, brainstorm and talk through concepts, whether they’re in the same room or remote.

The big picture: Meeting rooms will become centers of collaboration

Modern meeting room technology helps solve many of the issues meeting leaders regularly face, whether it’s easily finding a meeting room, launching the technology and enabling better employee engagement. It powers innovative, data-driven solutions that transform meeting spaces into productive collaboration centers.

At RoomReady, we offer audio visual solutions designed to address every angle of your meeting room – from improving room scheduling procedures with the Connect, to simplifying meeting launches with the Go and tracking meeting engagement data with the View.

Interested in learning more? Contact us today.