The Rise of Remote: Why We Introduced Virtual Meetings to Skedulo

When COVID-19 hit, businesses across the globe were forced to make changes to the way they work almost overnight.

Team collaboration shifted from in-person to virtual, and organizations looked for new ways to serve customers while complying with strict lockdown measures. At least one Skedulo client switched from delivering 100% of their services in-person to delivering 100% virtually.

The hasty transformation put many business under severe pressure, but they responded with determination and resilience—and are now exploring the long term benefits and return on investment that a shift to remote could provide, such as:

• Increased productivity
• Less down time between meetings or appointments
• Ability to move to smaller offices
• Reduced expenditure on mileage, and others

For example, leaders in the healthcare sector say the industry progressed 10 years in just 2 weeks. And since the shift, organizations that had previously considered a virtual model impossible have already begun to see its potential. 

Now, the challenge is on to refine the processes of a new virtual or hybrid model to ensure they are as efficient as possible. 

We heard the call from our customers who were experiencing these challenges and have responded with new Skedulo functionality to solve them. 

Scheduling virtual meetings was a manual nightmare

Our clients told us they were finding it difficult and time consuming to schedule virtual meetings. 

For those in the healthcare sector, these challenges included:

1. No easy way to ensure proper governance of which appointments could be virtual and which had to be in person
2. A time consuming process to set up the virtual meeting and manually email instructions to the customer
3. No integration with staff calendars, making it difficult to assign the job to the right person 
4. Trouble managing exceptions and changes if the allocated staff member couldn’t take the appointment

Excited to help our clients overcome these challenges, we set about developing an automated solution that would integrate directly into Skedulo for maximum efficiency.  

Skedulo adds virtual meetings

Now, our clients can schedule and manage their virtual meetings directly within Skedulo. 

When a customer requests a service, Skedulo will instantly determine if it is approved for virtual delivery. If it is, the system automatically creates the virtual meeting on behalf of the assigned resource and adds the meeting information to the job. 

Skedulo then sends a branded and HIPAA-complaint email to the customer with details on how to access their virtual meeting. 

When exceptions occur—such as a staff member falls sick and is unable to take the meeting—Skedulo will manage the creation of a new virtual meeting link and send the updated information to the customer. 

These changes offer many benefits to our clients, including:

• Self-contained scheduling within the trusted Skedulo platform
• Reduced manual error
• Increased efficiency
• Faster exception handling
• Better customer experience
• Record of all virtual meetings

Currently, Skedulo is integrated with the Zoom video platform. But as with everything we do, virtual meetings can be customized to meet the specific needs of our valued clients.  

Preparing for the future of virtual service delivery

Moving forward, we know virtual meetings will become an increasingly important part of scheduling. 

In the healthcare sector, a recent report estimates the US telehealth market will grow at an annual rate of more than 29% between 2019 and 2025. This steep rise in telehealth service delivery was fueled by COVID-19, but will remain due to its ability to help solve a variety of challenges—such as providing medical care to people in remote areas, coping with the demands of an aging population, and managing the increasing incidence of chronic disease. 

In Australia, government reforms to make telehealth services eligible for a Medicare rebate are expected to endure beyond the immediate COVID situation (a decision the government is set to make in September this year). 

In addition, consumer sentiment has also changed. People are more open to receiving services from the comfort of their homes; a cultural change that is unlikely to fade as tech-savvy younger generations emerge as our next cohort of consumers. 

For industry professionals, this shift will also impact how they spend their working weeks. For example, field staff who were previously on the road 5 days a week before may now spend 2 days a week in the field and 3 days conducting virtual meetings. 

No one knows where the pendulum will land. But it’s our goal to be with you every step of the way so you are equipped for efficiency no matter what.

Book a free demo

To find out more about Virtual Meetings, or to book a free demo, contact us.