Vanessa Lovatt is Chief Evangelist at Glisser
The urgency of the global climate emergency has meant that, now, more than ever, businesses in all industries are looking for ways to tackle their carbon footprints. The good news is that, having successfully embraced remote working during the Covid-19 pandemic, many are now recognising that reducing business travel is one of the most effective ways of boosting their sustainability credentials.
Indeed, some of Europe’s largest banks are planning to slash travel by as much as half from pre-pandemic levels after the coronavirus crisis recedes. ABN, for example, is aiming to halve its air travel compared with 2017 over the next five years, while Noel Quinn, chief executive of HSBC, told the Financial Times he expected to reduce his own travel by about half post-Covid, taking fewer, longer trips to the lender’s global hubs to lower the number of flights required.
A move to virtual events
For many organisations looking to cut back on travel, one of the main focal points will be considering how they can continue to attend events in the post-Covid world. And for the businesses hosting events, the challenge will be in offering a virtual alternative for those no longer wanting to attend in-person.
We’re fast realising the extent of the problem with physical events. Conferences, customer forums, investor days and the like, represent a big part of business, but unfortunately, it’s now recognised that they generate significant emissions and frequently output wasteful materials.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, analysts who have spent time calculating the carbon footprints of in-person versus virtual events, have found consistently that online events have a smaller footprint, even when conservatively over-estimating the carbon emissions from digital communication technology.
For example, the CO2e emissions are around 160g per hour for video conferencing and 36g per hour for streaming videos. That means that over a three-day event, a participant’s emissions move from a potential 2.52 tonnes (the equivalent of a flight from Asia to the UK) to 4.8kg CO2e, which is a 99.8% emissions reduction. And of course, in addition to their reduced carbon footprint, virtual events also typically generate less waste due to the provision of digital-only materials (so no printing or paper waste) and no large-scale food and beverage services. And importantly, no corporate ‘swag’ which typically ends up in landfill.
As an extension of our commitment to helping companies across all industry sectors reduce their carbon emissions and contribute to a net zero future, Glisser will shortly be launching a sustainability report and calculator, to help companies assess not only the cost savings of a move to hosting online events, but also the carbon savings resulting from the associated reduction in travel, food and beverage, and venue heating and cooling, among other factors.
Engaging virtual audiences
The environmental cost of hosting physical events is clear. And the appeal of virtual events from a sustainability point of view is compelling. But, as employees admit to being more than a little ‘Zoom fatigued,’ businesses will need to prioritise making their virtual events more engaging if they’re to successfully connect with their audiences, and to avoid them switching off altogether.
This is where bespoke technology can help. Although basic video conferencing tools have been great for bringing together small groups, their limitations are exposed when used for larger virtual events, providing little interactivity and a basic user experience. More sophisticated technology is needed for bringing together a larger number of people in company event scenarios.
For example, hybrid event platforms enable attendees to ‘move around’ an event as they choose, rather than confining them to a Zoom ‘waiting room’. Not only can the platform play host to presentations on single or multiple stages in real time, it can also support interactive polls, quizzes, chat functions and more, allowing online attendees to feel engaged and involved with proceedings.
Preparing for a hybrid world
No one in the business world is expecting that physical events will disappear completely – business leaders still believe in the power of face-to-face connections, and rightly so. Hence, it’s likely that a hybrid format will be the end game – providing a best-of-all-worlds model. With a hybrid approach you can host a compelling in-person event for local attendees, while allowing those who can’t – or prefer not to – travel, to attend online. And by offering the opportunity to participate online, you’re helping those companies cutting down their business travel meet those obligations.
Again, the right tech can help in a hybrid environment, ensuring a cohesive experience for both off and online attendees. From branding and signage opportunities, to clear direction as to how each attendee can get the best out of the event, a good hybrid event platform will make sure delegates feel that they’re getting the most for their investment.
So, while the move to online events may have been born from necessity caused by a global pandemic, today, through the tech industry’s innovative and continued product development, companies can reach their sustainability goals while still successfully engaging with their audiences. Through the strategic use of hybrid event platforms, the future is bright for company events – and for the millions of attendees who rely upon them.