As the seventh annual National Work Wise Week kicks off, there is an emphasis on the use of innovative technology as a way to help businesses run more effectively and allow employees to work smarter.

Run by Work Wise UK, the themes of this year’s ‘celebration’ are smarter travel, working remotely, mobile working and virtual meetings.

It is hoped that businesses will use the week to try out some smarter working practices – perhaps holding a meeting via video conference or allowing employees to work from home – to measure the productivity benefits. 

Working remotely has also been highlighted as a way in which businesses can more easily adapt to change, manage through austere times and even possibly minimise the need for redundancy , thebigwheel.org.uk suggests.

Work Wise UK’s CEO, Philip Flaxton, told business.week.com: “During this age of austerity, an increasing number of organisations have realised the benefits of smarter working practices.

“There are a range of innovative business management practices that have emerged which have changed the way we work. Smarter working practices have developed as a result of technological advancement and enable a far better use of limited resources a time.”

Seamus King, who is a technology journalist for Australian news website ABC News, has claimed that the firms making best use of video conferencing facilities were those who used a bit of originality in their strategies.

Addressing business owners from his home country in an article for abc.net.au, he claimed that it should be easy to think of original ways to use video conference software with a bit of imagination.

He said: “The most innovative Australian companies are already embracing the way they do business – from wineries holding ‘simultastes’ of the new vintage with customers to insurers providing better customer service through video interactions.

“Remembering we are a country on the move, think about what you might do differently, as well as what you might do more. Like me, you’ll probably make mistakes along the way, but that’s part of the process.”

Mr King’s views could arguably be echoed to business owners in any part of the world – not least the United Kingdom where the use of video conferencing continues to grow at an impressive pace.

One development that could encourage more original usage of video conferencing is the creation of holographic 3D video conference software.

According to smh.com.au, the product is being developed in Canada and could be available for a mere $5,000 (£3,098) within the next five years.

The announcement from the Open Visual Communications Consortium (OVCC) – a group conjured up by a number of networking, communications and video collaboration vendors – comes six months after its creation, reports eweek.com.

It is hoped that the addition of the software giant – as well as other new starters, Kathea, ACT Conferencing and Tata Communications – will boost the group’s vision for a standardised video communications world.

“Microsoft’s membership represents a significant vote of confidence in OVCC as the way to commercialise hosted UC (unified communication) services with Microsoft technologies,” said John Poole, vice president at OVCC.

Mr Poole explained that Microsoft’s inclusion would enable the group to supply service operators with more cost-effective solutions, which would increase the adoption of video by enterprises and SMBs (small and medium-sized businesses).

Andrew McFadzen, OVCC president, adds on businesswire.com: “OVCC members are eager to offer enterprise customers greater reach and more choices for consistently high-quality video communications, and our continual growth demonstrates that the industry values the OVCC blueprint and collaborative market approach.”

The addition of Microsoft and others has increased the OVCC’s membership count to 23, greatly aiding its goal to connect millions of users across all six continents.

That’s according to communications expert Roopam Jain, who directs the Unified Communications and Collaboration at research firm Frost & Sullivan Inc. She explained on techtarget.com that it has become a big focus for big businesses, for all the right reasons.

“[Users] are looking to maximise their return on investment (ROI) by making video extensive to an increasingly diverse base of endpoints and clients regardless of network,” Jain went on to say. “The true potential of video lies in extending it to a larger network of users.”

Jain continued to explain that those creating video conferencing technology have recognised this potential and begun to react. She added: “Service providers will play a key role in enabling any-to-any video communications.”

However it isn’t just the interoperability factor of video conferencing that is driving uptake, as the same report – cited by avtechnologyonline.com – revealed.

The way it can help enterprises save money – reducing the need for expensive business travel, which is only one example – and can help support business continuity provides a big draw for those businesses who need reliable services.

Maintenance staff have walked out over pensions discussions, affecting the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines, thisislondon.co.uk reports. If not now, it is likely that many employees will face delays or be unable to reach the office during the Olympics and Paralympic Games, resulting in millions of pounds of lost productivity to the UK economy.

Thus it is essential that business continuity plans and technological resources are trialled now, with any omissions rectified ahead of the summer. 

Six million people are expected to use the tube during the Games, thus crossing the capital to meet clients could be extremely difficult. The London Tube strikes – if the numerous Olympics warnings have failed – might prompt businesses to make better use of video conferencing facilities nationwide in order to ensure that meetings can continue without disruption.

Remote access and the provision of smartphones or tablets could also help ensure that work carries on should the office be out of bounds, for any reason. However, freshbusinessthinking.com reports, a new poll has found that over half of small businesses have no contingency plans in place, either for the Olympics or to cope with any other unforeseen incidents.

LogMeIn, the remote access provider, found that just 18 per cent of small businesses were sufficiently equipped, both in terms of policies and infrastructure, to allow work to continue as normal. The tube strikes might hopefully force the remainder to revise their contingency arrangements.

The East and Midlothian Pulmonary Rehabilitation Team was handed the Improving Quality prize at the 2012 Advancing Healthcare Awards following its decision to broadcast exercise classes to patients using video conferencing software.

The software allows one teacher to hold two rehabilitation classes simultaneously in different locations for patients. It has been a hit with sufferers of the lung disease for some time.

Amanda Stears, who is a specialist physiotherapist within the team, was delighted to have been recognised for the innovative approach to rehabilitation sessions.

In an interview with scotsman.com, she revealed that the team is looking to upgrade its video conferencing facilities as soon as possible, although for increased reliability, the team may wish to consider hiring out specialist facilities instead.

She said: “We have been delivering our pulmonary rehabilitation solely through digital means for the past two years and the results have been great.

“We are now moving to phase two of our project where we are trailing the delivery rehabilitation directly into patients homes. Patients are equipped with a specially-designed phone with a screen and matched up with a physiotherapist who supports them as they exercise.”  

According to csp.org.uk, the team beat five other innovative physiotherapy projects in order to scoop the prize.  

By using video link-ups, those situated in courts, jails or police stations will be able to keep track and contribute to trials conducted via video link-up, in a huge move for video conferencing and telepresence.

The idea has already been implemented in facilities in five districts, but plans are being drawn out to have the technology installed in all prisons by the end of 2012.

Cited by inblive.in.com, director-general of prisons Alexander Jacob said: “The project was implemented as part of the prison modernisation programme. The project would help speed up the judicial process and reduce the expenditure in transporting the accused to jails.”

The system should also help to eradicate problems that occur during the transportation of the more high-profile or notoriously difficult inmates to courts, as with the conferencing capabilities, the whole process can be conducted within a cell.

Speaking in relation to the systems being installed in even more prisons across India – fully completing the project - Mr Jacobs believes the technology will make guards’ jobs easier once it’s been made available, stating: “Taking the prisoners in vehicles involves huge risk and it can be solved once the project is implemented.”

Some new systems have already been put to use, as earlier this month, asianage.com reported on the technology being used to conduct a trial involving 120 Somalian pirates.

The accused are situated at Taloja Jail and are currently being trialled through a webcam in their cells. 

Edie.net reports that that group is so far pleased with its progress, considering it it reduced air travel by 16 per cent in 2011, saving around 24,000 air miles and 72 tonnes of CO2.

The pledge formed just one part of a raft of measures that will see the company reduce its energy, water and waste operations by 15 per cent by 2014.

Other measures include upgrading its building management systems to identify where other savings can be made within the organisation and improving its waste and recycling policies.

However, the biggest emphasis still lays upon the shoulders of video conferencing and other virtual solutions, of which the group is relying on to reduce its travel CO2 emissions by a massive 50 per cent by 2020. 

Scotsman.com quotes RBS chief executive Stephen Hester, who said of the matter: “I’m very pleased RBS has set ambitious targets to reduce our environmental impacts and help save resources over the coming years.

“Big business, big employers like RBS have a duty to manage their carbon footprint. It’s also an opportunity for us to show RBS is changing and that we recognise our responsibilities as a global citizen.”

Citing the thoughts of Melissa Fremeijer, a senior research analyst at intelligence firm IDC, Tech Eye reports that the eight per cent hike in plane taxes could make video conferencing a cheap alternative to flying.

Considering that oil prices have also affected the cost of flying, this could make the case all the more likely, Fremeijer said.

“The EU has the Emissions Trade System, which costs airlines and airports money. They also need to ensure that emissions meet the agreed Kyoto deal. There’s more criteria for companies to now look at web conferencing,” the analyst previously told ChannelBiz UK.

She pointed to video conferences rapid growth figures in 2011 to back up her claim, which grew by around 20 per cent. Industry reports also confirm that travel cost is also the most frequently cited business reason for turning to video conferencing facilities.

In addition, video conferencing helps those who are in several geographical locations get in touch quickly, without the need to travel.

“By enabling a near face-to-face quality meeting experience involving multiple, geographically dispersed participants, business operations are significantly accelerated. This enables companies to bring new products or services to market more quickly, thus delivering a tangible competitive advantage,” Ms Fremeijer explained.

Other benefits that it can bring to a company include making employees happier by allowing them more time to spend with their families. It can also make them mentally fitter by removing the stresses and fatigue of travel, the expert added.

PC Advisor reports that the new TX9000 and TX92000 telepresence suites, which feature three-mighty 1080p 60fps screens, are designed for “high-intensity” collaboration purposes, such as brainstorming and planning sessions, or even critical problem resolution scenarios.

With scope to accommodate up to six users, or 18 in the more advanced TX9200 suite, the telepresence technology provides native interoperability support for SIP, BFCP, H.264 and Telepresence Interoperability Protocol (TIP).

Furthermore, unlike some telepresence suites, the TX9000 doesn’t require additional lighting or audio support.

Although what’s most exciting about the TX9000 and TX9200′s release, is that the suites can be set up within just two days, says Jeff Seifert, CTO of Cisco Canada.

“We have reduced the complexity of the hardware and chassis which makes it much simpler to install, and reduces costs,” Seifert said on eChannelLine.com.

“It also requires 20 per cent less bandwidth than its predecessors while providing the same quality, so there are further savings there,” he added.

Communications industry analyst Maribel Lopez from Lopez Research says the release shows Cisco is serious about its commitment to bringing truly collaborative features to the marketplace.

“The goal for Cisco is to change what collaboration means. For example, no vendor is the established choice for doing secure cross-company collaboration with video and document sharing and repositories,” she said.