Commission en direct
PERSONALLY SPEAKING
Video-conferencing
T
he way we work is constantly
evolving, particularly as we try
to meet the challenges posed by
climate change. Video-conferencing
is one such development which has
allowed us to reduce the numbers of
unnecessary missions and gain time.
Video-conferencing is an environmentally
friendly way of bringing together lots of
people at the same time without having to
travel long distances by car, train or plane.
Aside from the environmental benefits,
there are many other good reasons for
adopting video-conferencing as part of
your daily work. Commission en direct
spoke to two members of staff about their
experiences with this innovative form of
working. You can also read more about the
practical side of how to video-conference
in this week’s Commission en plus.
Peter Leser
Infrastructure and Security, DG RELEX
© JMT
Peter Leser – Relex K7
Infrastructure and Security.
How has video-conferencing been
incorporated into your unit’s work?
In our unit we use video-conferencing
about twice a month and it has definitely
made a big impact on our work. We deal
with the EU Delegations all around the
world; and if you want to speak to more
than one person in the Delegation, it is
invaluable. If you want to have everyone
around the table it is much more efficient
than making numerous calls and emails.
We started using video-conferencing
around 2006, and I can definitely say that
we have saved time and missions.
Our unit deals with premises for
Delegations and residences for the Heads
of Delegation. A recent example is the work
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, architects, lawyers and
other consultants based in Tokyo. A large
part of the meetings with them was by
video-conferencing. Video-conferencing is
great for discussing matters like contracts or
financing, but when it comes to things that
you need to actually see, like building plans
or the colour and texture of materials, it
can be trickier or even impossible via video-
conferencing!
What differences have you noticed
between a face-to-face meeting and one
held via video-conferencing?
I feel that video-conferencing is a very
positive thing and not just in terms of saving
on time and costs. In my experience, people
are generally more punctual in a meeting
held by video-conference and I feel that
people also arrive to the meetings more
prepared and they keep their points more
concise. It feels altogether more focused.
Have you had any problems so far?
We did have one amusing incident where
we were under the impression that we had
a video-conferencing appointment at 10.00
with a Delegation. When we switched on
the conferencing equipment and connected
we could see the Head of Delegation and
other staff sitting in the meeting room,
except all their heads were turned away.
We started to say hello, but there was no
reaction, then we all started lots of waving
and still there was no reaction! It was only
after we called the Delegation secretary
that we found out they were expecting the
meeting on another day and they had left
their equipment accidentally on standby,
so they didn’t even realise that there were
– for a few minutes – some extra guests from
Brussels at their meeting!
Karen Williams
Director of IDOC, DG HR
How has video-conferencing been
integrated into the work of IDOC?
It is quite early to draw any conclusions
on the impact which video-conferencing
has had on our work, but we have had a
few video-conferences in order to reduce
the number of missions taken, and often it
is much more convenient for all the parties
involved in a disciplinary procedure. If
we have a hearing that will last one hour
and it is scheduled for 10.00, people who
are travelling from Luxembourg or Ispra,
for example, will have to come the night
before, which can obviously be detri-
mental to efficiency at work. It is much less
time-consuming and cheaper to do it by
video-conference. Just two weeks ago we
completed the last step of a disciplinary
567 | 17.09 > 23.09.2010
Nominations
La Commission
a décidé de nommer :
procedure via video-conferencing, and it
went really well.
As well as saving time, reducing unnec-
essary missions also saves money from the
European budget and, of course, for the
European taxpayer. Obviously, it is also
good for the environment.
z Fabienne Ilzkovitz
Directeur
Direction « Marchés et cas V :
santé, transports, poste et autres
services »
DG COMP
z Yves Steinitz
Directeur
Direction « Transformation objectif
2012 »
Office des Publications
© JMT
Karen Williams – Director of IDOC.
Any difficulties encountered so far with
video-conferencing?
Due to the fact that we have very well
documented cases, for things that need to
be discussed in depth, it is often not suitable
as we need to go through a lot of papers. z Andriana Sukova-Tosheva
Also, on the organisational front it is really Directeur
important to know the correct procedure Direction « Fonds Social Européen,
for setting up a video-conference if you Suivi des politiques nationales
want to avoid difficulties. The interaction correspondantes I, Coordination »
between all the services is also really crucial DG EMPL
– staff need to know who should be doing
what. It is a relatively new process for us,
and we are still learning the ropes.
Do you think that video-conferencing poses
a risk to privacy?
I don’t think that it takes away privacy,
because when you book a conference room,
you don’t need to declare the details of what
you are going to discuss in the room, and
it is no easier to intercept than an email or
a phone call.
Further, our overall working practice z Armindo Silva
is much attuned to the need for privacy Directeur
– for example, we never store case files on Direction « Dialogue social, droits
common shared drive spaces. sociaux, conditions de travail,
adaptation au changement »
• Emily Macintosh, Cend DG EMPL