The conference room is an important area in any office space. This space can be an incubator for innovative ideas, significant meetings and hosting current and prospective clients. Making sure this space, and the technology in it, accommodates the current and growing needs of your company means taking different factors into consideration. As you begin planning for your upgrade, here is a list of 8 common mistakes to avoid in your decision making process.
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More than a meeting room
Your conference area is more than just a common meeting space for coworkers. Even if it’s mostly used internally, creating a space that helps cultivate innovation and cohesiveness makes it an important piece of your work space. If the space is used to communicate with or host partners, clients or consultants then there are different amenities and capabilities the conference room will need. Knowing the types of people the room will host will help you understand how the conference room is more than just a meeting room
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Tech that isn’t user friendly
An aesthetically nice looking space is one thing, but if the technology inside doesn’t meet the needs of those using it, then the room could eventually become useless. It’s also important to know the technology of those you talk to externally. Remember to keep it user-friendly; not just for the employees but also for any guests the space might host. Not knowing what is being said in the teleconference or not being able to adapt your device to share your screen can lead to a failure in being able to effectively and efficiently communicate. This could send the message that what they had to say or show wasn’t actually that important.
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Harsh lighting
Lighting in a room holds a lot power. Too much and people can become irritated or look washed-out on a video conference. Too low lighting and people can become lethargic and have a hard time seeing during the presentation. Part of creating the right look and feel into a space that was created for collaboration and communication is making sure you have the right lighting and the ability to make adjustments when needed.
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Not enough storage space
Part of creating a great conference room is having a nice, clean space. When planning out your conference room, make sure you have plenty of storage space for any extra cords, chargers and adapters along with any other amenities you like to keep on hand.
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Bad acoustics
Feedback, echoing and outside noise during an important meeting will only frustrate any conversation you’re trying to cultivate in a conference room. Ceiling height, wall thickness and material and the amount of people in a room can impact the acoustics in your conference room. As you plan your new meeting space make sure you take into consideration the importance of good acoustics and sound masking. This will help reduce distractions and keep productivity going in the right direction.
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Too cramped or too big
It’s important as you think about the design of the conference room that you have a good feel for how many people use the space at any given time. Too many people and it can become cramped, uncomfortable and difficult to conduct a good meeting or conference. Too few people in a large space can make the conference feel flat or unenergetic. If the numbers in a room tend to fluctuate frequently, one consideration is designating a large meeting room for bigger gatherings, and a smaller room for littler gatherings.
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Not being heard (or seen)
The team has prepared day and night for the big video conference meeting, but it could all be for nought if the technology in the conference room doesn’t work properly. The right kind of mics, speakers, video devices and presentation technology that ensure all are heard and/or seen during the meeting can be the make or break of closing the deal. Not knowing who is talking, what they are saying or having cumbersome technology leads to miscommunication, lost time and general frustration.
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Wrong room configuration
Setting the right room configuration for the needs of those using it helps to make sure that not only can each person see and hear what’s going on, but also that they can be seen and heard by whoever their audience is. It’s important to make sure the room isn’t set up in a way that blocks out certain members from being heard or seen. Anyone can put a rectangle table and some chairs in a room, but careful consideration to the flow and use the room can give a better idea for what fits best.
Conference room design is not a “one size fits all” but rather comes with having a good pulse on the current and growing needs. Meetings can serve as the lifeblood of any organization so knowing the ins and outs of who those meetings serve, what they need once the meeting has begun and how you hope that meeting goes can be tied to how well the room is designed and developed.
Are you ready to redesign your conference room? Contact us today to start the conversation.
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