Cisco teleworker / telecommuting survey, June, 2009.

Teleworker / Telecommuting Survey

"In the age of a global market, time and distance separates people and workspaces. Cisco has long recognized that telecommuting and collaborative technologies are effective in breaking down separation barriers and enabling the transition to the borderless enterprise. In addition, as demonstrated by our recent study, a properly executed program for telecommuting can be extremely effective at unlocking employee potential by increasing work-life balance, productivity and overall satisfaction."
Rami Mazid, vice president, Global Client Services and Operations, Cisco

Cisco released the results and findings of its Teleworker Survey, of about 2000 it's own workers which was actually an in-depth study of almost 2,000 company employees. The study, researched the social, economic and environmental benefits and short falls of telecommuting at Cisco. The results were not a surprise to me as a Telecommuter, there were significant increases in work-life flexibility, productivity and overall satisfaction as a result of their ability to work remotely. Personally in addition to working from home for three days of the week, I have greatly reduced international travel as well.
Cisco's Internet Business Services Group, the company's global strategic consulting arm, the company has generated an estimated annual savings of $277 million in productivity by allowing employees to telecommute and telework. In addition, with the steady adoption of enterprise-class remote connectivity solutions like Cisco® Virtual Office, the recently announced Cisco OfficeExtend, and virtual collaboration tools like Cisco WebEx^TM, (I am a big fan of WebEx for iPhone)Cisco anticipates that employees and employers will continue to see a rise in the benefits associated with telecommuting.
You can read the full report at Cisco.

Tags: Teleworker, Telecommuting Survey, cisco, Cisco TelePresence system, telecommuter, Cisco® Virtual Office, Cisco OfficeExtend, Cisco WebEx, Cisco, Telecommuting, Work-Life Balance, Work from Home, Flexible Work, Employee Satisfaction, Productivity, Collaboration, Mobility, Unified Communications

Collaboration Everywhere With New Cisco Telepresence Systems And Applications

Unified Video Conferencing
Cisco Telepresence has introduced an array of improvements and additions to the system. These include the Telepresence System 1300, User Applications, the capability connect over T1/E1 connections and the WebEX integration. But as for me the telepresense system 1300 and the Telepresence recording studio stands out. These products clearly indicate where Telepresence is heading in the future. As we mentioned earlier, HD Online Conferencing is not only for elite is becoming clear.
From Cisco Press Release;

• Cisco is delivering Cisco TelePresence technology to more users and organizations with:
• Cisco TelePresence System 1300 Series: The first Cisco TelePresence system designed for up to six people in a shared-use meeting room uses one screen and three cameras. The Cisco TelePresence system 1300-65 uses a 65-inch plasma screen and is the first in a new series of products that takes advantage of existing conference room tables, providing more flexible deployment options for branch offices and businesses of all sizes.
• Cisco TelePresence Extended Reach: Cisco TelePresence can now run over bandwidth connections as low as 1.5 megabits per second (T1) in 720p resolution with quality of service (QoS) while preserving the Cisco TelePresence experience. Extended Reach also supports Cisco TelePresence over open Internet connections, such as high-speed FIOS or DOCSIS connections. This capability adds to the existing immersive experience of Cisco TelePresence at 1080p or 720p resolutions.
• Cisco is expanding the application of Cisco TelePresence beyond meetings with:
• Cisco TelePresence Recording Studio: Cisco TelePresence customers now have a quick and easy way to create high-quality video messages or record presentations for instant, highly secure playback on Cisco TelePresence units in 1080p HD quality. In conjunction with Cisco's recently announced Media Experience Engine, users can also view Cisco TelePresence recordings at standard resolution on many other video-enabled devices, such as a PC, mobile phone or digital sign.
• Cisco TelePresence Event Controls: This new application provides event managers with new tools they can use to produce internal and external Cisco TelePresence events. With a set of simple and powerful controls, event managers can create and host high-quality and cost-effective internal or external events in standard Cisco TelePresence rooms including presentations, keynotes, lectures and seminars.
• Cisco is helping enable seamless "any to any" video collaboration with:
• High definition interoperability: Cisco TelePresence meetings can include video from any standards-based high-definition videoconferencing system as well as standard-definition video conferencing, WebEx and other desktop video applications like Microsoft Office Communicator. This provides organizations with the ability to scale collaboration, take advantage of existing resources, and continue to provide a simple, immersive experience to Cisco TelePresence users.
• Cisco WebEx integration: With "any-to-any" video interoperability, Cisco WebEx Meeting Center meetings with Cisco Unified Video Conferencing provides advanced video capabilities for WebEx® that enable more of an in-person experience. Any device that can connect to a Cisco Unified Video Conferencing multipoint control unit (MCU) can now be displayed in a Meeting Center meeting, including immersive experiences such as Cisco TelePresence as well as videoconferencing and desktop collaboration applications. The solution increases the number of viewable attendees to 16, lets you display high-definition video and adds video controls.

Tags: HD Online Conferencing, Cisco TelePresence system, TelePresence System 1300 Series, TelePresence Recording Studio, Cisco WebEx, Unified Video Conferencing

Telepresence Is Not Only For Elite

http://snapvoip.blogspot.com/
Telepresence has been looked at a product for high level executives and managers but I know many people who uses Cisco Telepresence that does not fall into that category. For some of us it is a productivity tool that we use day to day. But due to nature of compny policy, I cannot disclose the details. At the same time I am sure there are many others who use the product and could comment.
Cisco is looking for your input in this arena and David Hsieh, vice president of marketing, emerging technologies, Cisco. posted the following on Cisco Collaboration blog;

"If you are a Cisco TelePresence user and you’re not an executive, we’d like to know how you use TelePresence in your job. Leave a comment and if we can follow up with you, include your email.

If you have an idea about how we could make Cisco TelePresence even more accessible to anyone, anywhere, leave a comment and if we can follow up with you, include your email."

Time to present your ideas!

Tags: Cisco TelePresence system, Collaboration, emerging technologies, Cisco

Cisco TelePresence Technology To Save Thousands in Company Travel Costs And Reduce Carbon Foot Print For HSBC Group

Cisco TelePresence At HSBC

HSBC, one of the world's largest banking and financial services organizations, today announced the opening of a new internal network of conference rooms that create an ‘in-person’ meeting experience. Utilizing Cisco TelePresence technology, the rooms make real-time, face-to-face interactions between key remote locations possible using advanced visual and audio collaboration technologies. With life-size, high-definition images and spatial discrete audio, Cisco TelePresence recreates the interactivity, spontaneity and nuanced communications experience of an in-person meeting.

“Our current meeting and collaboration tools provide significant increases in productivity, but are no substitute for in-person meetings,” said Chief Information Officer Ken Harvey. “Cisco Telepresence gives us the experience and benefit of actually being in the room with colleagues on the other side of the world, without having to pack a suitcase.”

HSBC’s Cisco Telepresence rooms will initially be available at six HSBC locations worldwide; London, Chicago, Hong Kong, Mexico City, New York, and Dubai. Suites include a specially-designed table for up to six participants and incorporate cameras and displays, lighting, speakers, microphones and projection capability or, in smaller rooms, smaller equipment which can be used with existing office furniture.

For every 2000 miles of personal air travel, one tonne of carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere. A single Cisco TelePresence meeting that might have required three employees to travel from Hong Kong to Chicago, can HSBC save up to $50,000 in airfare and travel costs.

“We’re proud to work with HSBC on their Cisco TelePresence initiative. Our companies are committed to doing everything we can to preserve the environment and transform the way we do business, and this technology is just the beginning,” said Marthin de Beer, senior vice president for the Emerging Technologies Group at Cisco.

HSBC and Cisco are working closely with Dimension Data, a Cisco Gold Certified Partner, on the TelePresence deployment.

Tags: Cisco TelePresence system, HSBC, HSBC Group, Cisco, spatial discrete audio, collaboration tools, Emerging Technologies Group