Austin, TX, Aug. 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Accruent, the leading provider of solutions to manage the built environment, has announced that its EMS room and resource scheduling software is now the first to offer native integration with leading video conferencing technologies Microsoft Teams and Zoom. These integrations will help organizations connect their workforces in both physical and digital environments and reduce friction for collaboration created by uncertainty in future use of organizational facilities. As a result, users will now be able to schedule both in-person and digital meetings from within EMS via web interface, mobile device, Outlook and Google calendars or third-party workplace apps. Additional integrations with widely used conferencing applications are planned as well.
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the landscape of corporate and commercial facilities overnight. While the number of remote workers had already nearly tripled since 2005, a Global Workforce Analytics report based on its “Global Work-from-Home Experience Survey” indicates that 82% of employees want to work from home at least some of the time even after COVID-19. As employer focus changes from packing more people into less space to a focus on the health and well-being of employees and guests, remote work will likely continue to increase. To assure employees’ sense of safety and use real estate more efficiently while fostering innovation and workplace flexibility, companies are turning to resource scheduling solutions such as EMS.
Accruent’s EMS is a room and resource scheduling solution that enables users to schedule and manage meetings, conference rooms, events, shared workspaces, equipment and other resources to maximize availability and reduce the time and effort needed to execute effective meetings. EMS also allows companies to track and report on the utilization of physical space and resources across all their facilities to assist in daily space management and long-term facility planning. With the integration of digital collaboration platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams, EMS is uniquely positioned to assist companies in both managing the return to work after COVID-19 and preparing for future events that disrupt the workplace. EMS:
- Is the first and only space management solution to provide native integration with the leading video conferencing technologies – Microsoft Teams and Zoom
- Provides the controls necessary to digitally reconfigure workspaces and enforce social distancing policies in meeting rooms, common spaces and hoteling or hot desking areas
- Allows system administrators to specify who has access to which spaces and when to reduce energy expenditures and facilitate targeted cleaning and sanitizing of spaces
- Delivers direct integration with other workplace technologies such as room and desk signage, occupancy sensors and visitor management solutions that will remain critical to support traditional workplace operations as well as the new needs of the socially-distanced office
- Reduces the need for employees to wander through office spaces seeking space for meetings or conversations by providing immediate access to space availability via mobile, web, Outlook or G Suite Calendars, workplace experience apps, and more
- Brings workplace utilization data together in a single, on-demand system of record
COVID-19 has disrupted the use of corporate and commercial workplaces in a historic manner. While some companies adapted quickly to these changes, others are still working towards the right solution for their business. In the future, those companies that are unprepared will be impacted even more as their competitors will be ready. Software solutions such as EMS will be a significant part of that readiness.
“Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, total occupancy levels in buildings will be lower going forward. IT and facility managers will, therefore, need to adapt their buildings so that meeting rooms can facilitate both in-person and virtual attendance,” said Ibrahim Yate, Industry Analyst at Verdantix, an independent market research firm that specializes in smart building technologies. “Integrating Microsoft Teams and Zoom with Accruent’s EMS puts space scheduling and virtual collaboration in a single platform, removing the need to use multiple systems to arrange a meeting.”
Accruent serves more than 10,000 customers worldwide in markets including retail, manufacturing, corporate facilities and real estate, healthcare, higher education, public sector, utilities and telecommunications, providing comprehensive software solutions for the built environment. Its EMS room and resource scheduling software is used by more than 25% of Fortune 100 companies and is deployed in seventy-five countries worldwide.
“Workplace planning has never required the degree of flexibility that is required today, and companies will need to account for the potential of even greater uncertainties in the future,” added Aaron Hamilton, Vice President Human Resources, Accruent. “Accruent is proud to deliver tools to organizations that help them plan for the well-being of their people, prepare for changes in how they operate and continue to perform their missions even in difficult times.”
About Accruent
accruent.com, @accruentllc
Accruent is the world’s leading provider of intelligent solutions for the built environment – spanning real estate, physical and digital assets, and the integrated technology systems that connect and control them. Accruent continues to set new expectations for how organizations can use data to transform the way they manage their facilities and assets. With major office locations in Austin, New Orleans, London and Amsterdam, Accruent serves more than 10,000 customers in a wide range of industries in more than 150 countries around the world.
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