Electronic meeting systems – what they are and how they could benefit Australian government organisations

Abstract

Meetings are very important in any organisation and the Australian public service is no exception. Unfortunately, meetings are costly and time consuming, and often are ineffective and inefficient. Participants are regularly left with feelings of dissatisfaction after the meeting. Electronic meeting systems (EMS) were first developed in the United States in the 1980s to make meetings more effective and efficient. They are now more user-friendly, internet-connected and support multimedia. However, EMS have not been adopted to the extent that could be expected. This study draws from an extensive literature review supplemented by three case studies of Australian companies that provide EMS products and services (Global Learning Pty Ltd, Grouputer Pty Ltd and Zing Technologies Pty Ltd). The study provides answers to six questions: • What are electronic meeting systems (EMS)? • What is the evidence that using an EMS does improve meeting productivity (efficiency and effectiveness) and satisfaction? • Are there other benefits from using these systems? • How does the use of an EMS bring about these improvements in meetings and group collaboration? • What factors need to be managed in order for the organisation to obtain the most benefit from these systems? • Could EMS be used to improve meetings and business processes in Australian (including state/territory) government organisations? The study concluded that EMS could be used to great benefit to improve meetings and their outcomes for an enormous range of tasks that are carried out in all levels in the Australian public sector. EMS have successfully supported meeting sizes from two people to 700, and an even larger number of participants is possible.