4 Collaboration Predictions That Will Affect Higher Education in 2016

According to an statement by Polycom 2015 was the year of collaboration.

The company originally predicted 2015 to introduce big changes in the collaboration realm that would affect structural changes to the way people meet, real-world work spaces and huddle rooms.

From the trail blazed by collaborative solutions, Polycom predicts seven major themes to hit the tech industry this year – four of which will bleed over into higher education.

1) Millennials are shaping the workplace

According to a statement by Polycom, millennials became the largest generation in the U.S. labor force in 2015. Millennials are most active and engaged in the workplace with social networks and solutions, and gravitate towards video for communication and work.

Millennials also expect the technologies and experiences they encounter in their personal lives to be readily available in their workplaces. Polycom believes that companies that do not accommodate millennials’ expectations will “miss out on top talent.”

Colleges like Ball State University and the University of Toledo are investing in technologies that incorporate collaboration and settings that look like places where students will one day work. These investments function to both boost the ROI of the institutions and prepare students for real world workplaces.

2) Mobility centers around the collaboration of devices

Instead of deeming work as a place you go to, it is now considered anyplace you are standing, as long as you have a device in hand. Polycom says this idea is focused around the notion that people should be able to complete work from any location, at any time with any device.

Collaboration is popping up more among mobile devices, and is integrated across different devices and locations. Polycom says this year will focus on the experience mobile devices provide users, and how providing consistent connections across those devices is key to happiness in the workplace.

Colleges are also trying to get this theme down pat. Some colleges, like Duquesne University, are ripping out their routers to give students a better device connection. Similar to the workplace, students expect to be able to learn and collaborate with peers anywhere they are – from the classroom to the quad and to the local coffee shop.