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by A.B. Covell Designing a Videoconferencing Solution

Putting It All Together

You've got a handle on the basic videoconference product categories and features; you understand network considerations and multipoint capabilities; and of course, you've analyzed the business processes that might benefit from the technology. Now it's time to plan and implement videoconferencing to address those business needs and opportunities.

As with many technologies, it's a smart move to pilot test some products at the outset. You can test Internet, POTS and ISDN desktop solutions with minimal investment of time and money. This will give you a chance to get some reactions from potential business users, and help you to better-understand the utility of videoconferencing. Pilot testing will also give you some experience with the characteristics of products that make or break them. For example, one of the things most people realize du ring this phase is the importance of audio. With any videoconference, as long as you can establish and maintain decent audio connections, the show can go on. You can lose the video, and still muddle through. But lose the audio, and you're cooked. Pilot tests will also provide an opportunity for you to project any impact on your network and/or costs for switched services.

If you are interested in the higher-end services, such as room and rollabout systems, it may not be feasible, given the costs, to pilot test. But you can probably still rent a system from a local hotel or consultant who specializes in videoconference services, or you may be able to use the videoconference or room facilities found at the local offices of major communications carriers. And, if your needs are irregular, it may turn out that renting facilities as needed may be a viable option as an alternative to purchase and implement on-site.

During and after your testing, it's important to seek answers for some important questions, which will undoubtedly vary given a specific scenario, but will serve to raise some critical issues that must be dealt with when planning a successful implementation. For example:

Who do you anticipate will use the systems and for what?

While this is intimately tied to a well-thought out business rationale, it also dictates many technical considerations. The answer will determine what video and audio quality you can get by with, along with the network flexibility that will be required and the need, if any, for document and applications-sharing tools.

What demand do you expect over the short, medium and long term?

You need to think about the potential for significant demand on your systems and how you and your network will respond.

What are your system architecture options and costs?

You'll need to map out the alternatives for larger scale deployment, and develop cost estimates to help guide the process of choosing between alternative implementation s.

How does your expected rollout fit with the evolution of videoconferencing technology?

For some applications, Internet solutions will make the most sense over the long haul, even though Internet videoconferencing is really not ready for prime time right now. You may want to consider a package that has a vendor commitment to the Internet behind it.

Where in the organization is there support for the technology?

Whether your supporters are in the executive suite, the MIS wing, or in the trenches, your implementation strategy will need to take this into account. A top down implementation will look much different than one that percolates up from the trenches. Both can be big winners if done properly.

What about staffing?

As with any new technology project, you'll need to assess the impact on your staff. Will you be able to assign personnel to configure new equipment? And will your videoconference users be able to operate self sufficiently, or will training or technical support need to be set up to ensure that the system is workable?

The questions you ask, and the answers to those questions, will form the basis of the next round of implementation activity, which will include acquisition, implementation and training. Your business process and technology analysis and pilot testing will also guide your implementation, and with this foundation, successful deployment will be assured.