Avoid Business Travel Hassle and Go Green with Online Meetings ...

Business travel is expensive. A flight, hotel room, the time spent waiting through security or traffic, it all adds up. But what about the environmental price tag?

Your carbon footprint is a representation of the effect you ? or your business ? has on the global climate in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases you produce. A flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles for one person emits 755 pounds of CO2?? that?s five percent of a US home?s electricity for an entire year. But being environmentally aware is only the first step to solving the pollution problem. Sustainability is possible and as organizations are adopting a greener approach, they will need to take proactive steps to reduce their carbon footprint.

With today?s readily available technology, reducing work commute and business travel has never been easier. Video and web conferencing tools, such as PGi?s GlobalMeet, are affordable, easy-to-use and require no hardware other than a laptop, tablet or smartphone ? tools that most businesses already have.? With the spiraling costs and increasing inefficiency associated with business travel, video conferencing is a viable alternative to many unnecessary business trips.

As?a former business risk consultant, I was traveling every single week, Monday through Friday. My primary business office was based out of Atlanta, but I went in so infrequently that I never even asked for a parking pass. Although I enjoyed accumulating the miles for the diamond hotel status and flight upgrades, the back and forth travel was mentally and physically exhausting. Looking back, 60% of the work done through travel could have been accomplished in Atlanta through virtual web conferencing.

In the US alone, the Telework Research Network estimates that 15 to 20 million business professionals consider themselves to be ?road warriors.? ?Just think of all the carbon emissions we could eradicate if corporations made a firm commitment to meet over the web ? even if periodically. From a cost perspective and an employee sanity perspective, the positives far outweigh the negatives.????

A common travel justification heard often from my managing director was, ?the only way to ensure clients renew our contract is to make sure they see you every day. If they don?t continuously see your face, we?ll be the first out the door when it?s time to cut costs.? At the time, this logic made perfect sense. Now, that reasoning simply isn?t true.

PGi?s web conferencing tools are?remarkably personal.? GlobalMeet has an active talker feature that switches between speakers? webcams so you can see who?s talking and pick up on nonverbal cues that are as effective as if you?re standing face-to-face having a conversation. Consultants no longer need to fly coast-to-coast to put a face with a name.? With GlobalMeet, my face can be ?in? the meeting without ever having to book a flight. The client stays happy and I can rest assuredly knowing that I?m doing my part to make the world a cleaner place.?

In celebration of Earth Day, trade in your luggage and check out GlobalMeet?s web conferencing tools free for 30 days. Visit?GlobalMeet to learn more.

Images courtesy of Discovery Student Adventures and ABC News.

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