I recently sat down with Nick Tidd—Vice President of Global Channel Sales at Poly—and we talked about all the ways Poly has responded to our changing workforce (both internally and externally).

Below are a few brief highlights of what we talked about. To hear the entire conversation, click the link at the end of this blog.

So tell us a little bit about Poly, and what solutions you are providing.

Poly is the combination of Plantronics and Polycom. We brought together both companies’ headset and handset portfolios, and our video technologies can be found around the world. It's interesting as we navigate these trying times. It's really been a test for the technologies that help us connect regardless of platform, location, and environment.  

What resources are you offering that help customers stay connected while working remotely?

I think the biggest challenge has been getting the products to the people who need them. We’ve seen an unprecedented demand for our technology, and we’re seeing lots of people who are using our headset, voice, and video products to work from home. There’s also a huge demand for our camera technologies, whether that's in the Studio platform, EagleEye Mini, or EagleEye Cube products. I don't know of a single manufacturer that's not been impacted in some way with supply chain.

Webinar attendance is at an all-time high, because the craving for information as is at an all-time high. Video usage is also at an all-time high. And I think some of this is going to become a natural part of our day-to-day efforts. We were looking at a recent poll from Gartner the other day. It said that 74% of CFOs expect a shift to staying and working at home permanently. So I think this is going to be the new norm.

What are some specific things Poly has done to help employees succeed while working remotely?

I'm a big believer in face-to-face interaction with partners to really understand what's making them tick. Obviously, that's been replaced with video, but I think it's taught us to be more productive with our video meetings. It's taught us to be more collaborative.

We’re also encouraging our employees to have a strong work/life balance. Walk away for 15 minutes, go and spend some time reaching out to a loved one.

What have you learned from working through the pandemic? How are you putting those insights to work for your customers and employees?

I have some insights into how the technology is being used. The pandemic has forced us to evaluate how we use technology, manage it, and ask if it gives us the ability to switch between platforms.

As we come out of this, there's a concern that there may not be enough capital in the markets. So we’re going to see a shift toward devices, a model for hardware-as-a-service, and the need for OpEx-based models. I think it’s going to change the dynamic of how we deliver product—whether those are leases or rentals. Managed services are going to become critically important, so I would encourage partners to think of the nature of managing devices, decentralizing resources and the workforce, and how all of that will be managed.

Is there one device that you couldn’t live without?

Not just one device. My EagleEye Mini camera has the ability to see and communicate with people. And my stand up desk—it’s my number-one exercise piece. And then, of course, there's the multitude of headsets that I'm fortunate enough to have for when I want to take a cell-phone call or walk around the block, or hop on my bike. But, probably my number one is my video technology.

Is there anything else you’d like to add as we're finishing up?

Yes, I would like to really thank the partners. As many of them know, we introduced a new partner program on April 7. The timing was interesting, but we also spent a lot of time reviewing how we could enable our partners through communication and collaboration. Thank you to those who’ve been very diligent about logging in.

The last thing I would ask of you as you're working remotely is to use the tools. Let us know what you think of them, and how we can improve them.

For more information about partnering with ScanSource for your Poly products, visit our website at scansource.com/poly. And, to learn more about how we can help you support remote workers, visit our Go Remote website at scansource.com/goremote. Many thanks to Nick for his time, and we invite you to watch the entire video interview with him. Stay well everyone!