Regional Customer Meeting
Today, Dallas-based AT&T revealed that by hosting its regional customer meeting via Telepresence, as opposed to face-to-face, it reduced carbon emissions by over 62 metric tons. Not only did AT&T reduce carbon dioxide emissions, it saved Regional Advisory Council (RAC) participants upwards of $100,000.
The AT&T Asia Pacific Group meets biannually, with about 20 of its regional and international customers who comprise the RAC. The group discusses a broad range of topics, including new products and services; investment plans for upcoming markets; and service quality and support.
"These meetings are critical in terms of getting direct feedback from some of our biggest customers," said Bernard Yee, Vice President of AT&T Asia Pacific. "While we don't intend to do away with face-to-face meetings entirely, we felt that hosting this meeting by Telepresence was not only the responsible thing to do in the current economic climate, but also a great opportunity to showcase how efficient and cost-effective this solution can be for our customers."
In the past, RAC meetings have been held on location in China, with participants typically designating 3 to 4 days for the event (including travel time). AT&T funded the meetings - often costing more than $100,000, while customers paid for travel and lodging expenses. According to Will Thomas, AT&T Asia Pacific RAC Chairman, the remote meeting was efficient, providing a truly personal, lifelike virtual experience.
"These meetings are all about open, honest exchanges of views and opinions from both sides," Thomas said. "We not only managed to achieve our key meeting objectives in about four hours, we also had the chance to thoroughly test the technology by involving so many people in multiple locations."
"Aside from the cost savings we achieved by meeting in this way, we were able to be more productive and improve our work life balance by avoiding the need to travel, as well as reduce the impact on the environment," Thomas added.