The benefits of video conference solutions in making meetings more effective have been expounded by a performance improvement company.

Donna Merrick of Consult Capital spoke to Fresh Business Thinking about ways in which meetings can be improved, given how many employees are beginning to consider them as a “waste of time”.

One of her suggestions when considering the most convenient meeting location is to make use of “teleconferencing”, which has been “massively beneficial in terms of facilitating efficient meetings.”

Firstly, Ms Merrick highlighted the fact that using such solutions saves time and money. It brings together people from different sites, cost-efficiently and immediately.

She also asserted that teleconferencing can maintain the productivity of employees, no doubt through quicker decision times and less time wasted getting to or from unnecessary meetings.

Lastly, she emphasised the huge advantage of being able to include people who were previously excluded due to distance, customers, suppliers or colleagues who are based overseas, for example.

Other tips that have been suggested to get most out of a meeting – which could be applied to those held via video conference – is to issue and agenda “with specific times allocated for each item”, Business 4 U says. This helps not only to prepare all delegates for the meeting, but prevents is from running over schedule.

Additionally, meeting organisers need to consider an appropriate time of the day to hold the discussion, bearing in mind any time or working week differences.

The Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) has announced train fares are to increase by an average of 5.9 per cent in January, The Guardian reports.

Rail passengers will see the increase applied across England, Wales and Scotland from 2 January, with the extra money being ploughed back into station improvements and faster train services.

The increase still hovers above the current rate of inflation, which was 5.2 per cent according to the Retail Prices Index and has been described as “eye watering” by passenger group Campaign for Better Transport.

The rise in train fares may prompt some businesses to forego unnecessary rail travel by allowing employees to work from home or via video conferencing services to communicate with potential clients or colleagues across the world from a more convenient location.

Working this way is becoming increasingly popular as it reduces man hours wasted by travelling to and from meeting venues, plus promoting employee wellbeing by reducing stress caused by commuting. 

It’s a cruel blow to the many people who have abandoned their cars due to economic issues and been forced to use the train. The last time rail demand was so high, says BBC News, was in the 1920s.

Currently, rail passengers contribute £6.5 billion towards the the railways, while taxpayers pay £4 billion. ATOC says that the increase is an attempt to cut the taxpayers’ share.

The prospect of black ice across Britain is causing many motorists to err on the side of caution this season, reports the Guardian.

Traffic warnings have been issued throughout the country after collisions in Gloucestershire, Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire have led to hospitalised motorists.

A spokesman from Cambridgeshire Police commented: “The weather is making driving conditions very difficult and I would urge drivers to take extra care when out on the road.”

Commuting on the roads is a necessity for many workers but some firms allow employees to work from home thanks to video conferencing services. If drivers feel unsafe on the roads during winter, video conferencing with company staff and important clients from home could be a crucial investment for a business.

Scotland appears to be facing the brunt of the bad weather, with BBC News reporting the Met Office has currently issued more than three times’ its previously monthly record for weather warnings.

Scottish transport minister Keith Brown hailed the work of those advising motorists, stating: “Having Transport Scotland, the police, rail operators, road operating companies and the Met Office working side by side and agreeing messages for the travelling public has worked well so far, but we must stay sharp and keep up the good work.”

Research has revealed that traditional working practices and commuting are taking their toll on the average British worker, People Management reports.

A survey carried out by ICT company, 2e2 has found that two thirds of workers feel “restrained” when bound to a nine to five working day, claiming they would be more productive if they could work more flexibly, be it different hours or location.

The study also examined the effects that commuting to meetings or the office can have on effectiveness. It found that, due to various delays and transport problems, 1.5 days per employee, per year is lost. That equates to a massive £1.21 billion deficit.

Additionally, the convoluted journeys are causing employees to be more stressed and tired, resulting in reduced productivity and/or illness. This further costs UK businesses £1.03 billion every year, according to HR Magazine.

It’s no surprise therefore, that so many companies are using video conferencing solutions, to negate the need for travel, reduce lost man hours, maintain employees’ work life balance and cut costs.

The instantaneous nature of such communication means that business transactions can take place much faster, too.

Commenting on the findings, 2e2 director, Mike Hockey said: “Employers often don’t realise the impact of working culture on productivity. Different people have different working patterns and the traditional 9 to 5 way of working doesn’t suit everyone.” 

In order to help businesses manage their cloud computing system, Cisco has released an entirely new framework.

Designed to help businesses “build, manage and connect to public, private and hybrid clouds”, the framework has been named ‘Cisco CloudVerse’.

What’s more, eweek.com explained that Cisco is pushing the framework as the “first door on which potential cloud-system buyers can knock”.

According to a report on Cio-today.com, Cisco is aiming to help businesses adopt an “efficient” approach to their cloud storage; potentially meaning that those companies choosing to rent out video conferencing facilities will have no problem accessing any information they need mid-conference, as it will all be on hand.

Although previously known for its video conferencing and networking solutions, Cisco is now turning its attention to other technologies. In fact, one market analyst – Zeus Kerravala – has explained how the company is trying to get ahead of the game with cloud technology.

“CloudVerse is interesting because while other companies are trying to figure out what they are going to do in the cloud, Cisco is providing a framework to help,” said Kerravala.

“Cisco has forecast cloud adoption in its recent index, and they are the first company to do that. Now, they are offering the elements to help drive that adoption.”

Over half of British businesses believe that flexible working technologies would benefit their company, according to a new poll.

A OnePoll survey of 1,000 British companies has indicated that 51 per cent of business owners would find technologies such as cloud computing, remote server systems and video conference facilities useful during their working day.

What’s more, a quarter of firms have named the introduction of flexible working practices as their top priority for the coming year.

Of those already using flexible working technologies, 55 per cent were using video conferencing services whilst 30 per cent had given their staff tablet computers to help them work on-the-go.

Michael Stephens, who is the general manager of an independent video conferencing provider, claimed that the need for such facilities is only going to grow in the future.

Speaking to pcadvisor.co.uk, he said: “Even with the latest budget announcement supporting SMBs, the costs of travel will continue to rise, and therefore a need for high quality, interoperable and business-ready solutions at an accessible cost.

“Businesses of all sizes are cutting costs across the board but perceive that it is too complex to implement the required technologies to enable their staff to work efficiently from any location.”

According to onestopclick.com, the majority of firms planning to increase their flexible working abilities are in the healthcare sector.