Video Teleconferencing Training

Video teleconferencing provides employees access to training from anywhere.

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In a world where small businesses are expanding to include remote employees and offices, video and teleconferencing abilities are becoming more important for employee training. Through the ability to connect face-to-face with a video teleconference, employers save money and time and gain interaction and engagement, which are essential for small-business owners.

Bringing People Together

Teleconferences, live exchanges linked by telecommunications systems, can bring businesspeople together to interact face-to-face, even if they work thousands of miles away from one another. For example, employees in Dubai or Dublin can meet in real time with others in Atlanta or Albuquerque, New Mexico. The ability to teleconference enables an employer to effectively train employees without respect to geographic limitations. Through technology such as Voice Over Internet Protocol, exchanges that include video, audio and document sharing can be used as training options for the small-business owner.

Saving Time and Money

Instead of having to wait for multiple groups to be trained at various training sessions, every employee can attend training at once through video teleconferencing. Training everyone at the same time through teleconferencing is efficient, requires no travel time for the trainer or employees and provides an opportunity for everyone to receive identical training. Also, for training elements that must be conducted immediately for critical reasons, teleconferencing can accomplish the goals of a time-pressed employer or business owner.
Only one trainer is required, which reduces teaching costs. Fees for training facility rental or costs of refreshments required for training sessions are eliminated. In a study published in the 2010 "Handbook of Ambient Intelligence and Smart Environments, " Philips Research Europe found teleconferencing reduces a company's carbon footprint. The costs to drive one hour to a meeting or training session equal 1, 000 hours of Web conferencing.

Related Reading: Factors Impacting Employee Training

Connecting Employees

According to the Telework Research Network, between 20 and 30 million Americans work from home at least one day per week, as of 2012. The number of Americans who work from home at least one day per month has increased by 74 percent since 2005. Because of this, teleconferencing and video options are becoming increasingly important. Being able to train remote employees through communicating over the Internet or phone is a necessity that even small-business owners must consider.

Considerations

Technology has made it easy for small-business owners to take advantage of video and teleconferencing opportunities. Cloud technology allows employers to save documents and files to an online-based server, where multiple employees can access them to work with them during a Web conference. Web-conferencing software is readily available online through Skype or Google Talk. High-definition video recorders can take video and allow easy methods of uploading for use later as training modules. Chat, instant messaging and webcams provide options for business owners to communicate with their employees in an online atmosphere.