Conferencing Continues as a Critical Application to Keep Companies Productive; Survey of employees finds that conferencing is more valuable than a cell phone for keeping teams connected.

CHICAGO -- Four out of five American workers claim they're being asked to do more work today, according to a new survey from Wainhouse Research and InterCall(R), and the most logical place to seek help is office technology. Conferencing, the survey concludes, is the key to boosting productivity and is more valuable than a cell phone when it comes to getting work done.

The survey asked 750 professionals to rank their most valued company resources and conferencing came in second with 17.8 percent of them ranking it as the most valued resource, ahead of the only 16.8 percent who chose the mobile device. The computer desktop ranked number one at 23.7 percent.

Conferencing, whether it's via the Web or video, or a standard conference call, already accounts for more than half of all meetings today. Experts see that share growing.

"With an increasingly globalized work force it's anticipated that in the next two to three years more than 70 percent of all meetings will be online versus in person," said Marc Beattie, manager and partner with Wainhouse Research.

As technology makes it easier to communicate there is a greater emphasis on teamwork. The survey shows 60 percent of respondents are working in departments that have grown in the last two years. Conferencing makes communication among groups easier, so teams are more productive.

"Conferencing is no longer viewed as simply a replacement for business travel," said Bob Wise, vice president of marketing and strategic business development for InterCall, the nation's largest conferencing services provider. "Employees are choosing it to make their meetings more efficient so they can spend more time getting work done."

In fact, 72 percent of those surveyed are using conferencing services more frequently than just one year ago. Only 9 percent said they're conducting more meetings in-person. Does this trend portend a future where everyone is working at home, cut off from personal human contact? Actually, it's bringing people together. The survey says that more than 40 percent of virtual meetings take place in a good old-fashioned conference room.

"Businesses with multiple locations, overseas operations or that work with a number of vendors would benefit greatly from conferencing and see a real boost in their productivity," said Wise.

Conferencing usage is growing in all regions of the U.S. but the heaviest users are still in the technology-savvy Bay Area, and global centers New York and Washington D.C. Here's how the rest of the country ranked:

1. San Francisco              6. Cleveland
     2. New York                   7. Boston
     3. Washington D.C.            8. San Jose
     4. Los Angeles                9. Charlotte
     5. Atlanta                   10. Kansas City

About InterCall

InterCall, a subsidiary of West Corporation, is the largest service provider in the world specializing in conference communications. Founded in 1991, InterCall helps people and companies be more productive by providing advanced audio, event, Web and video conferencing solutions that are easy-to-use and save them time and money. Along with a team of over 500 Meeting Consultants, the company employs more than 1,500 operators, customer service representatives, call supervisors, accounting, marketing and IT professionals. InterCall's strong U.S. presence, which includes four call centers and 26 sales offices, is bolstered by a global reach that extends to Canada, Mexico, Latin America, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, China, India, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. For more information, please visit www.intercall.com.