Hybrid Meeting Rooms: Common mistakes to avoid
A successful hybrid meeting room brings together an audience in a room with those joining by remote in a way that the technology is unnoticeable.
Sounds simple yet, it’s often that hybrid meeting rooms fall short. Remote attendees can't hear people at the far end of the table. The camera shows half the room. Screen sharing takes three attempts.
Here are some common mistakes to avoid:
1. Positioning the camera too high
When the camera is mounted above a wall-mounted display, it looks down on participants. Remote attendees see the tops of heads instead of faces. Mount the camera at or just below seated eye level — ideally below the display or integrated into it.
2. Ignoring the far end of the table
In long, narrow rooms, microphones near the display pick up nearby voices clearly but miss people at the far end. Assess the room to decide on multiple microphones distributed along the table, or a ceiling array that covers the full room evenly.
3. No dedicated network connection
Video conferencing is bandwidth-intensive and latency-sensitive. Relying on the building's general WIFI will run risk of intermittent connection, disrupting the flow of the meeting. Instead, run a dedicated ethernet connection to the room system where possible.
4. Forgetting about content sharing
Audience participation works best when people are able to share content from their laptops. Consider wireless content sharing (most certified room systems include this) with a backup wired connection (HDMI or USB-C).
5. No ongoing management
It’s easy to treat the room as set-and-forget. Firmware needs updating. Licences need renewing. Configurations drift. Without ongoing management, a room that works perfectly at handover will gradually degrade until someone reports it as "broken" six months later. Include this your Managed IT services and avoid costs that come with the Break-Fix approach.
Need help with your meeting rooms?
Whether you're fitting out a single room or rolling out hybrid meeting spaces across multiple offices, our team can help. We assess your rooms, consider existing hardware and recommend your best solution going forward.
Book a free room assessment with Ucomm — we will review your spaces and recommend a solution that fits.