Advantages and Disadvantages of Videoconferencing for Conducting Business Operations: Case Studies of Four Selected Organizations

Abstract

In any organization, it is important set goals for without these, the organization may die out. Goals are the reason for any organization’s existence. All of the actions and strategies taken by the organization are geared towards achieving them. Whatever strategy an organization implements to reach such goals, communication plays a very crucial role. By its nature, communication is a complex process that many people still do not understand. It is the key to being able to attain goals effectively and efficiently. As time passed, developments in communication have been made to make communication easier. From the telegram to the electronic mail, communication technology has indeed evolved. Today, organizations found the need of making communication easier for themselves and for their stakeholders and so many organizations employ different communication tools in the organization. One of the newest communication tools being used by organizations today is videoconferencing, a tool comprised of a camera and TV screen and a satellite that is connected to another end point so it enables users to see each other and communicate even when they are actually in two different places. Past studies made about videoconferencing do not give any information with regard to its advantages and disadvantages. Because this new tool in communication is beginning to be used by organizations in the Philippines, the researcher finds it significant to solve this gap in knowledge for the benefit of organizations in the Philippines. In this light, the researcher aims to answer this main problem: “What do the four selected organizations commonly experience as the advantages and disadvantages of videoconferencing in conducting their business operations?” The type of research applied in this paper is exploratory research using case studies as its primary research design. Because videoconferencing is a new topic, the researcher only intended to scratch the surface of the topic, which was to know the advantages and disadvantages of videoconferencing. The population of this paper included four organizations in Metro Manila that uses videoconferencing. The organizations chosen must have been using videoconferencing for at least year. The researcher used purposive sampling technique particularly snowball sampling. The key informants per organization must already have participated in videoconferencing meetings. In this research, two data gathering tools were used. Qualitative data was yielded from the interview schedule, which is the primary tool for data gathering. The interview schedule entails questions that would yield information about the organizational profiles, the purposes of using videoconferencing, the benefits and disadvantages of videoconferencing and suggestions of the four organizations in achieving videoconferencing’s maximum potentials. On the communication tools being used by the organizations prior to the employment of videoconferencing, a checklist was used with follow-up questions on how the organization utilize their communication tools. The data gathered from the interviews was interpreted through thematic and componential analyses. Findings based on the data gathered yielded results that answers to the sub-problems of the study. The four organizations include Mosaic Communications (MozCom), an Internet Service Provider in the Philippines; Campaigns and Grey, an advertising agency; Sieg Web Solutions, a web services provider for international companies; and the Department of Agriculture, the agricultural sector of the government implementing programs in developing agricultural businesses in the country. These four organizations started using videoconferencing around 2000 to 2002 for different purposes including Management Committee (ManCom) meetings, client briefings, client meetings and distance learning sessions. The most common tools being used by the four organizations prior to the employment of videoconferencing are websites, email, bulletin boards, telephones, mobile phones, Intranet, general assemblies, press releases, newsletters, and teleconferencing equipment. As these organizations employed videoconferencing, they have experienced the same benefits, which include saving of resources, presence of direct and immediate feedback, allowing for multi-tasking, compensating for absence, building stronger relationships, and recording for future references. But at the same time, some disadvantages of videoconferencing were also cited such as the limited bandwidth, expensive infrastructure and costly maintenance, and the inadequate knowledge of the users about the equipment. Suggested solutions have been made to maximize the benefits of videoconferencing namely: testing equipment, use of web videoconferencing, and making a technical person available. Based on the findings, it can therefore be concluded that videoconferencing as a tool for their business operations has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantages include the following: saving of resources, presence of direct and immediate feedback, allowing for multitasking, compensating for absence, building stronger relationships, and recording for future references. It is, however, accompanied by disadvantages, which include: limited bandwidth, expensive infrastructure and costly maintenance, and the inadequate knowledge of the users about the equipment.