It is more common these days for businesspeople to attend internet-based training and meeting. Although there are some drawbacks of such a form of interaction, I would argue that there are far more benefits.
At first glance, telecommuting is very attractive. One of the key benefits of online meetings and training sessions is relieving employees of exhausting commute to workplaces at rush hours, and allowed to arrange their time at their convenience, thereby making work/life balance achievable. Another obvious benefit of saving more time is that the employers can increase the efficiency of cultivating freshmen by inputting more training in a flexible time and place, as long as teleworking is accepted by the mass.
On the downside, however, unreliable internet connections can disrupt effective online communications.
This can lead to misunderstandings, business conflicts and loss of sales, in some cases. Face-to-face interactions, however, greatly reduce the chance of these problems arising. Another issue is that online training sometimes seems ineffective. For example, when they receive training in customer care, trainees need to see people’s full body language rather than just a face. In addition, collaborative work between participants is better done in a ‘live’ situation than online as it is difficult for a trainer to monitor trainees in breakout rooms.
To conclude, online training and meetings have brought some benefits for businesses, but overall, I believe that the drawbacks play a bigger role than these advantages.