By Francesca Lohman, senior product marketing manager
A prominent research firm recently estimated that only 4 percent of U.S. information workers use Web conferencing on a daily basis.
It got me to thinking about the ways we use Adobe Connect here at the company. Granted, I work on the product team – and everyone at Adobe has what essentially amounts to an unlimited license – but what is it that makes working this way so fundamental and basic to us, like using email or IM? Admittedly, we’re “alpha-users”, but much of what we’re doing is worth consideration by our customers.
I participate in Adobe Connect meetings several times a day, every day; not one goes by when I’m not either hosting or attending. I estimate that on average, I’m in Adobe Connect meetings 4 -5 hours a day… wow!
A few thoughts/examples, some more serious than others:
- Even when meeting casually (e.g., sharing info or brainstorming), I’ll often jump into my Adobe Connect room so the other person can see the notes I’m capturing — and maybe (hopefully?) take the content more seriously. 😉
- As a team, we have all of our meetings (even with everyone physically present) via Adobe Connect. This may sound odd – sitting around a conference table but using Adobe Connect as the meeting progresses – but in doing so, we can share anything without delay, see notes in real time, capture actions on the fly, chat without disturbing the speaker, and record the whole thing for those unable to attend.
- Persistent meeting rooms let me house past agendas and quickly prepare new ones (“Agghh, the meeting starts in three minutes!”) – no need to go searching for notes.
- My meetings are stacked up or I need to multi-task and don’t want to be rude? Sometimes undocking and running to a conference room on the other side of the building or another building altogether is unnecessary – I’ll join via Adobe Connect, and feel more productive as a result.
- Our IT help desk staff uses Adobe Connect for internal Adobe desktop support and troubleshooting. I can’t imagine how much time (both mine and theirs) has been saved by remote screensharing and, when needed, relinquishing control of my system. I’ve even picked up a few tips along the way – like the famous C: prompt (fun fun)!
- We were evaluating logo gear to support the recent launch of Adobe Connect 8 – I was in San Jose and wanted to provide input, while other teammates were in our San Francisco office. I needed to see the samples to help select what would be best and keep the process moving. No brainer: Adobe Connect video pod – very clear and real-time. Done. Next.
- Video is great for closing distances – we routinely use it for critical communications, but it can also provide a more light-hearted moment from time-to-time. A colleague in the U.K. who was working from home once pointed his camera toward his backyard to prove that it was, in fact, NOT raining in London that day. He forgot his laundry was drying on the line, though, and needless to say was more than a bit embarrassed by the sight he broadcast to us. We still laugh about it today. Kidding aside, a lot can be lost through just a phone conference…something we never struggle with here.
Our slogan used to be, “The next best thing to meeting in person.” Now we meet in person and use Adobe Connect at the same time. Are we addicted or is it just too useful? I don’t know, but I’ll let you know when a work day goes by that I don’t use and truly gain from it – just don’t expect to hear from me anytime soon.
Do you have other examples to share of day-to-day uses you couldn’t do without? Mine is by no means an exhaustive list; would love to hear from you in comments.
Cheers,
Francesca