Are you suffering from Zoom burnout yet?

Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams or Google Hangouts — game-changers all.  

For business people, politicians, entertainers and families, these video communication technologies have become essential tools during the Covid-19 pandemic which has required that people work from home or in isolation.

They have become so integral to the much talked-about “new normal” that they are now simply another part of the daily routine.

Yet humans, being what they are, can also become frustrated with things they take for granted. As much as an unco-operative garage door can get the blood boiling, so too can video conferencing platforms.

Indeed, there is now a phenomenon called “Zoom burnout”, which describes people becoming fatigued with unreliable video communications or having to sit through endless meetings listening to others ramble on.   

In cases where there are large numbers of people involved, some can easily become distracted because they feel the digital gathering is not being at all productive.

So how have Eastern Cape users been coping with it all?

Buffalo City Metro spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya says there have been challenges, but officials are getting there.

“BCM invested in Microsoft Teams and has signed an enterprise agreement with Microsoft to use its products. Most of the difficulties experienced were lack of training and knowledge of the product by users,” Ngwenya said.

“It is pleasing to note that we are improving the more we use it. High data costs became an issue for users.”

Being in long meetings can be draining, especially if one has to look attentively at the screen for long periods.

Ngwenya said his team had familiarised itself with this kind of socialising in November, and in March  rolled it out to the rest of the organisation, fast-tracked by the need for physical distancing, he said.

“The advantage of the program is that it makes provision for raising your hand if you want to speak. When a meeting is concluded, it allows the attendance register as well as the recording to be kept by the creator of the meeting.

“Challenges that we are experiencing include those around sound and muting. Users have speakers and do not turn them down and this causes an echo. However, it is improving as users are complying with requests to turn off their microphones if they are not speaking.”

He said it was pleasing that they seemed to have overcome the initial teeth problems.

“We are functioning very well, having held numerous virtual council meetings and daily Covid-19 work-stream meetings, including workshops, that our participants are well accustomed to now,” Ngwenya said.

The Wesley Guild SA Facebook page hosts video chats for young people who engage on matters  affecting their lives.

The page caters to followers of the Methodist Church youth organisation.

Page administrator Xolani Sigcau said they started using Zoom a month ago, but data costs were a challenge.

“It’s convenient for us because the information flows and we can plan programmes that will reach our audience. This is the new normal of keeping in touch, “Sigcau said.

Border-Kei Chamber of Business executive director Les Holbrook said chamber members used different platforms.               

He said the oldest platform, Skype, was more for social and domestic use, although there were still people using it.

“We were initially using Skype, but now Zoom and Microsoft Teams are equally supported.”

“For meetings where there are over 50 participants, there needs to be some intelligent facilitation and a good administrator who controls the sharing and management of attendees. What is prudent is to ensure you have a set pro forma of the meeting and protocols, especially ‘muting’ and requests to be heard.

“We have not yet unpacked the 4IR, so is this is the new normal, as it is commonly referred to? It will be so for many years. There are, however, millions not connected, so it remains a challenge for remote areas and places with no internet and Wi-Fi.”

Holbrook believes that nothing will ever beat a “good old telephone call”.

“That’s why business people have phones. Some prefer a text message, but most like to have ‘face  time’, so remember to ‘leave a message at the sound of the tone’.”