It’s easy to take collaboration tools for granted. They’ve evolved gradually over time, adding a feature here and upgrading a user experience there. Now, platforms such as Cisco Webex allow users from around the world to collaborate via HD video, screen sharing, voice and chat. They really are incredible tools that allow for a level…

Last month, I had the luxury of spending three days discussing the state of collaboration in the marketplace by participating in CDW’s Collaboration Roadshow. These Collaboration Roadshow sessions are an opportunity for customers or potential customers to join some of CDW’s best and brightest at one of our local offices and discuss their organization’s collaboration…

A few weeks ago, my wife and I went to see Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr (who, by the way, is awesome) in concert. We were only a few feet from the stage, but just before the show started, I noticed that the speakers were situated far behind us and aimed away from where we were…

It happens almost by accident. An organization adopts a cloud collaboration suite, giving employees the ability to share files, exchange messages, manage their calendars and set up voice and video calls — all on a single platform. But then the company merges with another organization, which is using a similar platform from another vendor. Meanwhile,…

Meeting technology has changed a lot in the past 10 years. A decade ago, most videoconferencing solutions were far from user friendly. Setting up or starting a video meeting usually required help from the IT department. The equipment tended to be expensive, especially if you wanted to deploy a solution with high picture quality or…

Sometimes, when I’m speaking with IT managers about how to build out video collaboration systems for their organizations, they want to start the conversation by talking about a particular high-end Logitech camera, or a specific, slick Samsung video panel. Often, these technology pros have a mandate from on high: A leader within the company has…