CoSo Survey: Employees Needs Push but are Ready for Video Collaboration

by CoSo

March 9, 2016

Today we are very excited to announce the results of our new Employee Attitudes toward Video at Work survey.

The survey netted some rather surprising data. Video has tremendous potential as a collaborative tool. And, thanks to smartphones and the web, it’s readily available to just about everyone. But while video continues to find new use cases among consumers, it’s growth in the enterprise has been remarkably slow: of the 41% of workers who use video as a collaborative tool, 57% report relying on it less than once per month.

The problem may be a matter of muted imagination. Since the 1990s, video’s role in the enterprise has traditionally been limited to formal video conferences and training sessions. Today, despite all the ways video can be tapped for closer ad hoc work sessions, 81% of workers say most of their video interactions are scheduled in advance and only 19% are launching video from their mobile phones. This lack of spontaneity and mobility is shutting workers off from many of video’s most compelling use cases.

Even more surprising: this limited usage was seen across all age brackets—even the otherwise highly tech-dependent Millennials.

This isn’t to say workers are consciously opposed to video, and camera shyness is not an issue. In fact, less than 20% said they were uncomfortable with having their live images captured or stored. And less than 10% said they worry about impromptu video sessions catching them under dressed.

Plus, despite the low occurrence of instant video interactions, employees do see the value. 46% said video has enabled faster communication, and 31% said video helped them build stronger relationships. And there is some viral effect—47% say they turn their webcams to allow video sharing when they see others have done the same.

But otherwise, video’s role in the enterprise continues to be stuck in the past. What’s the hold-up? As CoSo’s Christopher Martini theorizes in his 3 Keys to Unlocking Video’s True Workplace Potential, employees aren’t being more proactive in using video to drive more advanced collaboration, simply because nobody is showing them how. CIOs, take note!