8 Ways More Immersive Video Conferencing Can Boost Your Productivity

The earliest iterations of video conferencing date back to the 1920s, when telephone companies began experimenting with the idea of “videotelephony.” New innovations in video conferencing and video chat technology like Personify, an immersive chat app that leverages the Intel® RealSense™ 3D camera to give you the most engaging chat experience you’ve ever had, are poised to transform office interactions once again. Here are 8 ways more immersive video conferencing will boost your productivity—that Employee of the Month trophy has your name all over it.

1. It Cuts Out Distractions

Anyone who has ever been sent an adorable cat video knows that distractions are the mortal enemies of productivity. And recent studies and productivity experts are in agreement that multitasking lowers one’s retention rate, decreases focus, and generally slows down one’s work. With the Intel® RealSense™ 3D camera, new immersive video conferencing cuts out distractions by allowing you to remove the background from your video chat. This puts all focus directly on the speaker (rather than on their bustling office space).

2. It Helps You Lead the Discussion

In addition to cutting out the background completely, users of immersive video conferencing technology are able to place themselves in front of a custom screen. This functionality is invaluable for virtual presentation leaders. They can pull their slideshows or talking points right up on their viewers’ screens and then overlay their own video image on top. Presenters can then point directly to the content they are discussing. Rather than seeing your audience mentally checking out of a video presentation, you’ll see they’re more engaged than ever.

3. It Eliminates Clutter

Organization experts have found workplace clutter can be a real drain on productivity. Studies show that people waste an average of 4.3 hours a week just searching for papers. This builds frustration and stress, which in turn reduces concentration and creative thinking. By streamlining meetings with immersive video chat, you not only eliminate physical clutter, like those pesky presentation binders, but also digital clutter, so you can put all your energy into the task at hand.

4. It Increases Face Time

Email communication is inefficient (with all the back-and-forth, dropped threads, and delayed response time… we’re getting a headache just thinking about it) and can lose a lot of its nuance in translation. Tone is nearly impossible to portray in an email, which can lead to messy miscommunications. While the phone is marginally better for communication, it still removes facial expression and body language from the conversation. For times when in-person meetings are impossible, innovative video chat helps to get your message across clearly the first time so you can get everyone on the same page and get back to work.

5. It Takes You Outside the Conference Room

Older, bulkier video conferencing systems relegate all parties to conference rooms, which can make scheduling a videoconference a nightmare. By adding the Intel® RealSense™ 3D camera to your PC, you remove the conference room from the equation so coworkers can meet whenever and wherever is most convenient for them. Studies have also shown that leaving the office for periods of time can also boost productivity, so why not take your next video conference to the park (or a café or break room)? When you video chat with a depth-sensing camera, you can even remove the park from the video so your partner will be none-the-wiser.

6. It Makes You More Active

Immersive technology such as gesture control gets your whole body involved with your computing—video conferencing included. While we wouldn’t go so far as to equate gesture control technology in the workplace with gesture control exercise games, it’s true that losing the mouse and keyboard gives you more freedom of movement. And any boost in physical activity—even just the hand motions needed to control the screen—increases concentration (biologically, physical activity increases the body’s mitochondria production, which gives the brain more energy—it’s a literal boost in brain power). This lift in focus is the reason why many office workers are trading in their chairs for standing or even treadmill desks.

7. It Increases Teamwork

Recent studies show that compared to conference calls, video conferencing increases participation among meeting attendees and strengthens a feeling of collaboration. The digital sharing of documents, which immersive video conferencing via the Intel® RealSense™ 3D camera makes possible, also makes the discussion feel more open. All of these things create a more positive work environment, which in turn spurs productivity.

8. It Allows For Flexible Work Options

Research demonstrates that more flexibility in work options, such as the option to work from home part-time or telecommute, improves employee satisfaction and motivation. And by using immersive video chat with the Intel® RealSense™ 3D camera, remote workers can seamlessly integrate themselves into the office environment (and their managers will never know they haven’t changed out of their pajamas).

Intel® RealSense™ technology with immersive video chat via 3D camera enables more than just talking—it’s an entirely new way to communicate. Learn more here.