Promoting equity in video meetings fosters inclusivity, ensures equal participation, and enhances collaboration by creating a level playing field for all attendees, regardless of location or abilities.

Remote participants often feel underrepresented when dialling into a meeting room full of people. Their view is often almost CCTV like, a distant overview, whilst those in the room can make eye contact, read body language and hear clearly. Added to this, audio can be echoey making it difficult to keep track.

When we talk about Equity in meeting rooms, we strive to make all participants, remote or in-room have the same ability to provide input and experience the meeting in the same way. We can do this, in conjunction with the overall office design, by choosing a best-of-breed selection of hardware capable of elevating the experience to parity.

Displays

Both the size and format of meeting room displays are important.

The size is calculated so all participants see the video and presentation content easily, without causing strain or fatigue – the industry recognised DISCAS formula guides us here.

When considering format; single screen, dual screens or ultra-wide displays, we must consider the room use, audience and the physical installation constraints. Each format has its own merits, and we can advise on the best choice for your environment. The benefits of moving away from a single display is better visibility of all participants and any shared content.

Audio

Installed hardware should be appropriate for the room size, sufficiently loud so-as to be heard clearly and with sophisticated AI-enabled microphones that balance audio levels and eliminate background noise, making it easier for everyone to contribute.

In support of good audio, control over background noise and reverberance should be established. Our acoustic survey and treatments will help reduce echo, enabling all uses to hear and be heard.

Assisted listening devices to support the hard of hearing should also be considered

Camera

In-room participants see remote joiners clearly, typically as a head and shoulder image allowing them to gauge reactions and make virtual eye contact. Legacy camera equipment does not provide this level of equity, providing a distant zoomed out view to the remote participants and marking a clear disadvantage to them.

Best-of-breed modern cameras leverage AI to provide capabilities like speaker tracking, auto-framing, and facial recognition that captures both the group and the active speaker automatically so all parties can hear, but also experience the visuals of a conversation.

In addition, content cameras are often deployed above whiteboards to allow annotations to be shared in real time with all participants.