Video Conferencing ROI? Gather the Data.
When I talk to video program managers, ROI comes up at some point – no surprise there! You may need to justify an existing video conferencing solution, upgrade it or show its contribution to the bottom line. First, I point out the obvious. Services are intangible. So it’s important to consider both qualitative and quantitative aspects of ROI.
Important metrics are user adoption rate, reliability and ease of use. Adoption rate depends on (1) clear company guidelines for use of video conferencing; (2) employee communications, such as e-mail campaigns, brown bag sessions and tutorials, that motivate people to use the video conference room instead of an airplane; and (3) positive experiences that make users repeat users. A few simple things go a long way to improve user experience. Clear operating instructions in the conference room, for example, that include immediate access to help. And few or no technical glitches, which brings us to reliability.
In an ideal world, every conference room is configured the same with equipment by the same manufacturer because this reduces potential interoperability issues. In reality, every VNOC (video network operations center) works around differences in equipment and configurations. Reliability influences adoption rate, of course, so tracking things that affect reliability is important for ROI data sleuths.
VNOC reports provide data on problematic sites, details about conferences that had issues or problems, help desk performance such as time to answer, SLAs, quality management activities, bridge availability (or not). Reports also can substantiate recommendations to solve certain kinds of quality issues. For example, the VNOC staff may spot a pattern, such as a series of failures in a particular location that can be fixed with a software or hardware upgrade.
A good way to measure ease of use is with end user surveys. Just be sure your questions are specific and meaningful. For example, if you want measure users’ perceptions of whether or not they have successful meetings, ask questions based on your criteria for a successful meeting, such as on-time starts. In my view, successful meetings happen on time as requested without technical disruption, and unsuccessful meetings start late in one or more locations. A VNOC tracks on-time starts and technical disruptions, if and when they occur, so these reports can validate or help to explain survey results.
Often the cost of a video conference compared to the expense of a business trip is sufficient to satisfy ROI questions. But over time, you can also compare adoption rates to your baseline goals and track decreases in travel expense. When you need more data, VNOC reports add more to your story. Happy sleuthing!