ZOOMTOPIA
More than just Video As the year drew to a close, Zoom held its partner event on the banks of the River Thames, where we got the chance to pick the brains of Smita Hashim, Chief Product Officer and Graeme Geddes, Chief Sales Officer.
Q What are you seeing at developments in employee engagement and experience? the moment that’s driving Smita Hashim: “I think the first thing to say is that hybrid working is here to stay. There’ll be a variety of practices around it, but it’s an expectation now and it’s how the world expects to connect. But hybrid brings a lot of challenges, from employee disengagement, workspace set-up so everyone can fully participate, to how to create content and ensure employees are productive and engaged, which is driving developments at the moment. The other part is generative AI and I think these two are beginning to intersect and drive a lot of innovation across the board, from the employees, the customers, and the ecosystem, connecting various apps and workflows together. I think that will continue and we’ll see it move from hype to reality to iterations.”
Q How do you decide whether a meeting is worth being impersonal or over a video call? Graeme Geddes: “This is something where industries and companies are figuring it out. I think different cultures, both geographically and company cultures, have different requirements to be in person. I don’t think we can take a broad brushstroke and say that there’s a one-size-fits-all approach. At Zoom, we find there’s a tremendous amount of value in doing our annual Zootopia conference but it’s not just an in-person event, we have a huge amount of participation virtually, which gives partners who can’t come to the event the ability to participate.” Smita Hashim: “We believe there isn’t a perfect future, it’s different for everyone. The technology is providing businesses with more and more ways to be flexible in the ways it works for them. I feel like more work
Smita Hashim
www.zoom.us
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