white paper - a competitive spark: how today’s energy companies use video - panopto video platform

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www.panopto.com 855.PANOPTO TM 7 Ways Today’s Energy Industry Uses Video SPARK A COMPETITIVE

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  • www.panopto.com855.PANOPTO

    7 Ways Todays Energy Industry Uses Video

    Sparka Competitive

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    Panopto creates software that enables businesses and academic institutions to record and view searchable video presentations in minutes from any device. Businesses can use Panopto to record and live stream:

    Employee training and onboarding video

    Review, recap, and summary communications

    Product demonstrations All-hands meetings Sales and marketing

    presentations Web conferences Executive communications Events for customers, press,

    and investors

    Panopto also enables individual employees to record and share videos in a secure, centralized video library. This facilitates:

    Social and informal learning Capturing the knowledge of retiring employees Sharing knowledge across a global workforce

    Panoptos video library includes unique search functionality that enables employees to search inside videos for any word mentioned or shown onscreen during a video.

    Panopto is currently in use at Fortune 500 companies around the world and is the fastest-growing lecture capture solution at leading universities. Privately-held, Panopto was founded in 2007 by technology entrepreneurs and software design veterans at Carnegie Mellon Universitys School of Computer Science.

    Panopto was recently recognized by Gartner as a Leader in its 2014 Enterprise Video Content Management Magic Quadrant. Learn more at http://panop.to/gartner-leader.

    Want to try Panopto for yourself? Visit www.panopto.com today for a free 30-day trial or to schedule a demonstration of our software.

    panopto on a page

    Click for a 3-Minute Introduction to panopto

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    A Competitive Spark ............................................................................................... 4

    7 Ways Energy Companies Use Video To Create A Competitive Advantage ...... 5

    To Demonstrate and Review Processes ............................................................ 5

    To Preserve and Share Knowledge ................................................................... 6

    To Better Equip Field Technicians ...................................................................... 7

    To Enhance and Scale Training ......................................................................... 8

    To Enable Social Learning ................................................................................. 9

    To Communicate with Customers and Stakeholders ..................................... 10

    To Maintain a Central, Secure Library of Video Assets .................................... 10

    What To Look For In A Video Platform For An Energy Company .......................... 11

    In 140 Words: Panopto Helps You Make The Most Of Your Expertise .................... 15

    Get Started With Video In Less Than One Day ...................................................... 16

    OVERVIEW

    How Todays energy IndusTry uses VIdeoa Competitive Spark:

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    A CoMpetItIve SparkThere is a new face of todays energy industry: scientists.

    Unlike any other industry in the world, the modern energy industry brings together a diverse array of experts. Chemists. Geologists. Engineers. Physicists. Leading minds capable of locating undiscovered reservoirs, extracting chemicals at the molecular level, and efficiently utilizing previously-thought untappable resources.

    Todays energy companies are filled with experts of a different stripe as well smart grid designers, energy market makers, regulatory environment minders, and millions of other specialist roles that contribute to making the industry one of the worlds most profitable even as the sources of energy become more expensive.

    All that intellect is essential because today the energy industry is beset by complexity on all sides.

    Regulators have proven quick to legislate how energy companies can do business, often restricting processes or subsidizing new technologies well before any evidence of their outcomes can be produced. Such regulation is seldom sweeping; rather, it is limited to certain practices in certain places at certain times. For large energy concerns, its a regulatory environment that virtually mandates attempting to do business one way in one place, and another way elsewhere.

    The modern energy industry relies on

    experts and their expertise

    and your ability to help make that knowledge available to others.

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    Markets, too, offer a host of challenges. Top of mind for virtually every energy company now is the United States shift toward energy independence, and the resulting boom thats resulted in alternative oil production, domestic mining and drilling, and natural gas production.

    Yet another challenge looms inside office walls. The entire industry is seeing its talent pool shrink, with seemingly few options for maintaining the specialized expertise todays energy companies rely on. Schools are producing fewer scientists, and as existing institutional and technological experts look toward retirement, the threat of losing market share to brain drain has become very real.

    But there is reason to maintain high expectations. After all, if any business has proven adept at finding new resources and adapting to new conditions, its the energy industry.

    Today the energy industry has turned to technology for an ally in almost every aspect of doing business. While many of the technologies now essential to these businesses are proprietary specialized tools designed to address niche opportunities, one stands apart as a flexible, versatile means that helps companies do more in almost any environment video.

    7 WAys energy CompanIes use VIdeo To Create a Competitive advantageVideo is helping energy companies make their expertise more agile capturing innovations in extraction, manufacturing, refining, and distribution, preserving institutional knowledge, and sharing ideas and information vital to sustaining ROI even while resources fall and regulations mount. So just how are modern energy companies putting video to work?

    To demonStrate and review proCessesWhile the energy industrys products often go unseen recognized only after the fact, when the lights do turn on, the car does speed up, or the gears do start spinning its processes are often the subject of scrutiny.

    Energy companies must be able to visually demonstrate processes to prove compliance with regulations, as well as show ability to meet market, customer, or partner demands. Demonstrating processes can also yield internal benefits lean production or continuous improvement teams may identify opportunities to improve efficiency, save costs, or enhance safety.

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    Yet conducting regular on-site demonstrations is no small task. Refining and processing environments are often not conducive to physical tours and some production and extraction locations may not actually be accessible at all. And even when locations may be accessible, on-site demonstrations are often unadvisable for reasons of safety, security, and production efficiency.

    Video offers an alternative means for energy companies to show how their processes actually work. Video technology makes it easy to record and share processes in action, even those that take place on remote drilling platforms or offshore wind farms. Such recordings make it easy to capture regulatory or safety protocols in action, document processes and identify issues for continuous improvement, or simply monitor ongoing activities in these important investments.

    To preServe and Share InsTITuTIonal, TeCHnICal, and sCIenTIfIC knowledgeThe modern energy industry relies on a bevy of PhDs tapping a careers worth of experience to squeeze out every last spark from existing resources. Its a lifetimes work of driving down production costs, identifying new resource opportunities, and managing markets to ensure intelligent capacity and distribution.

    Only problem is, all that know-how walks out the door every night with your employees and doesnt come back when tenured veterans retire or are poached by other organizations.

    Click for a sample process documentation video.

    Click for a sample knowledge management video.

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    But losing experts doesnt have to mean losing their expertise. As the New York Times has noted, more and more organizations are using video to preserve all that knowledge while employees are still on staff so it can be referenced and utilized even after a team member leaves.

    For an industry often at the forefront of chemical and geographical research not to mention regulatory adaptation, geopolitical negotiation, and enhanced, smart grid distribution creating a library of that knowledge will likely be essential to preserving the detailed information teams rely on every day to build market share for their organization.

    Video makes creating such a library easy instead of relying on dense technical writing, experts can simply click record and present what they know. A modern video platform like Panopto makes it easy to record with any webcam, capture the contents of a computer screen with presentations, data, or other visualizations, and even record and sync multi-camera views from specialized video cameras and HD camcorders so your experts can truly show what they know.

    Better equip field teChniCianS To reporT and repaIr IssuesWhether its at the extraction site or on the last mile of distribution, energy companies rely heavily on the capabilities of their teams in the field to make sure everything works as it should. But as processes become ever more complex, with ever more technology required just for day to day business, the weight of their roles is creating two big challenges for many specialists.

    First, field team members must now see and document more than ever before every last data point on an increasingly long checklist. Moreover, as these employees are often the first line of defense against catastrophic breakdowns, they must also note problems and find a way to clearly communicate issues back to management.

    Second, as field teams prepare to remediate issues, the massive growth in technical complexity in the energy sector makes it more difficult for even the best specialist to

    Click for a sample field tech recording.

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    understand the inner workings of every last process and component. Technical manuals offer some relief, but the dense nature of their text has been known to lead to further confusion and even more issues.

    A modern video platform, however, helps energy companies address both these concerns. Video recordings of maintenance check-ins can be used to supplement traditional reviews and a new generation of wearable cameras like Google Glass can even allow technicians to capture that video hands-free. Likewise, video provides field team members with a quick and easy way to document and share issues with visual clarity that text reports cant match.

    Video is also a valuable tool for offering on-demand training, on-location. Field team members preparing to remediate an issue inside a transfer station, for example, may use their laptop to call up a video walkthrough of the transfer station type in question then use their smartphone to play a step-by-step guide to fixing the problem while they work, helping to reduce errors by allowing them to literally see each step as they go.

    To enhanCe and SCale safeTy, Hr, & skIlls TraInIngAs processes become more intricate and just about every role more complicated, delivering regular, detailed, and accessible employee training has become essential for most energy companies.

    The rapid pace of todays energy industry has made the issue of training truly critical not only do companies need to ensure employees understand all the new processes and technologies introduced seemingly every day, but as the industry experiences a wave of mergers and acquisitions, more and more HR teams are being tasked with making sure all those former competitors are brought up to speed on the right way to do things in the new organization.

    Yet its no longer enough to leave a manual at an employees desk, or to hold occasional in-person classes on a few select topics. In order to help employees succeed, organizations need to provide access to as rich a library of training and instructional information as possible.

    Click for a sample employee training video

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    Fortunately, video makes it easy to build and share a library of training materials. Using no more than just a standard laptop webcam and PowerPoint, most businesses can easily record a vast amount of training material, which can be uploaded into Panopto and shared instantly with employees to view on any device. And theres virtually no limit to what video training can teach already Panopto customers use video to train on compliance requirements from HR, safety best practices, role-specific skills training, benefits planning, and almost anything else.

    To enaBle internal knowledge Sharing on markeT, sCIenTIfIC, or regulaTory opporTunITIesMedia coverage of the energy sector often leads outsiders to believe the industry relies on great flashes of innovation, discovery, or insight in order to make advances. The next big oil strike, the next revolution in solar, the next wave in battery power the notion that the industry moves in giant leaps is common. Its also absolutely wrong.

    Studies have shown that people achieve greater success more rapidly through steady incremental improvements derived from social learning. Waiting for that eureka moment is wasted time teams go farther when they test and build little by little on past successes, finding ever more ways to optimize, standardize, or creatively apply whats working today to yield even greater success tomorrow.

    For organizations like energy companies that determine bottom line results based on how well they can apply incredibly sophisticated science to the chaos of the physical world, sharing expertise or experience among colleagues can be a key that may unlock vast and unexpected new opportunities. Subject matter experts in energy concerns can share details that demystify complicated regulations, provide insights on geopolitical shifts and resulting business environments, and show applications for technical and scientific advances that may in turn lead to even more valuable discoveries.

    Click for a sample social learning video.

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    To CommuniCate wITH CusTomers & sTakeHoldersMost modern energy companies are active members of the public sphere between interacting with customers, partners, regulatory agencies, and local governments, todays energy organizations know well the value of communications. Sharing the right messages in the right ways can occasionally even be the difference between whether new projects move forward or find themselves stalled.

    Yet corporate communications for such a diverse array of audiences is no small task. Consumers are notoriously distracted, and often focused on the bottom line of their bills. Governments and regulators, meanwhile, may be overly-tuned to single issues and miss the bigger picture. And no one has time for yet another email or letter, no matter how well written or how important the subject.

    Research indicates video can help. Forrester notes that people are 75% more likely to watch a video than read an email. Including video in customer communications can help make people aware of new options available, or new measures of concern. Likewise, video can more effectively showcase new technologies for partners, new compliance measures for regulators, and new plans for governmental organizations. Best of all, because video is a visually rich format, even a simple video recording can often get your message across better than even the best websites or brochures.

    To maintain a CenTral, seCure lIbrary of VIdeo asseTsNo matter how any given energy company uses video most often, in the end, nearly every one creates a robust library of video files in the process. Panopto is the only video platform that integrates best-of-breed recording and webcasting with a secure video library. All of your Panopto recordings and live webcasts are automatically uploaded into the library and converted for optimal viewing on any computer, tablet, or smartphone. Pre-recorded videos can also be uploaded and converted for playback on any device.

    Click for a sample corporate communications video

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    And as the video library grows, Panopto provides a unique video search engine that makes finding information inside your videos as easy as searching for content within email and documents. Simply enter a phrase like electrical structure into Panoptos video search engine youll find every relevant recording in your collection and be able to fast-forward to each point in your videos where the term is mentioned.

    what to look for In a VIdeo plaTform For An energy CoMpAnyAs video becomes ever more integral to how energy companies communicate, teach, and share ideas and information, many are quickly finding that now is the right time to review how theyve managed video content in the past and how they plan to manage it in the future.

    Thats because video is unlike any other content:

    Different video recorders often produce different types of video files many of which cannot be played back on other devices

    Video files are significantly larger than text documents and can quickly exceed maximum file size restrictions on common content management systems

    And video files are traditionally impossible to search, limiting the value of any recording to only those who already know what topic the video covers

    The growing prevalence of video has prompted Forrester Research to recommend organizations Plan for video content, not just videoconferencing. Doing so, contends Forrester, offers the promise of a variety of rewards, including reducing the cost of meetings and events, improving training and executive communications effectiveness, driving remote employee engagement, and encouraging social learning and sharing best practices.

    Delivering those returns starts with finding the right video platform and that, in turn, starts with asking the right questions. Every organization will have its own list of video must-haves; here are 10 items to consider when your organization drafts yours.

    Click to learn more about how a vCMs works

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    .1Are All spoken And written words AutomAticAlly indexed for seArch?In the energy industry, its not uncommon for training, demonstration, or conference videos to run 30-60 minutes or longer. That means being able to find and fast-forward to specific moments is essential. Youll want a video platform that searches not only by title and description, but that can actually index any word spoken or shown on-screen in the video, and allow viewers to instantly fast-forward right to the exact relevant moment.

    whAt steps must A user tAke to record A video then shAre for viewing by the intended Audience?There are two simple requirements for virtually every organizational video. First, it must be recorded. Second, it must be shared. And while that may sound straightforward, many video platforms simply dont fully support video workflow meaning what should be an easy, seamless process may end up requiring additional software, added support, and a steep learning curve for new users.

    Ideally, you want an end-to-end solution that runs on any computer, recognizes any and all recording equipment, and automatically takes care of the technical video management steps meaning your employees will be able to simply click record, capture their video, and click stop, while the video platform takes care of the rest.

    whAt hArdwAre is required to record, live streAm, uploAd, mAnAge, And view videos?A constant issue in producing video is the ever-growing number of devices for video recording and video viewing, and the wide variety of file types those devices may produce or play. Some video platforms have sought to manage that complexity by requiring specific hardware and limiting the types of devices their systems can work with. In the energy industry, however, this can create hurdles to organizational video adoption, as many of the specialized recording tools designed for on-site use by field professionals simply may not work with those systems. For better results, you want a video platform that can support virtually any video or audio recording device from HD camcorders to inexpensive webcams and even specialty recorders.

    For video management, editing, and playback, meanwhile, availability is the key feature. Web-based tools that run in any web browser tend to be easier, more flexible options. And as mobile recording and viewing becomes more commonplace, youll also want to consider the availability and functionality of the video platforms native mobile apps.

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    whAt steps must A user tAke to live streAm A presentAtion?Live streaming video of a conference, simulation, or presentation are quickly becoming essential for training and communications. But as organizations seek to broadcast events, announcements, and even internal meetings in large organizations, many have found themselves exceeding the maximum audience capacity for traditional video conferencing solutions.

    Webcasting offers a solution the ability to live stream a presentation over the web, to an external or internal audience of thousands or even tens of thousands. But not every video platform offers webcasting as a standard feature, and even fewer include it as an option in the normal video workflow meaning it can be hard for first-time users to find and take advantage of. Be sure to check with your video platform options to see exactly how each enables webcasting, and how much work is required to set up each live broadcast.

    how mAny video inputs cAn be simultAneously recorded?When it comes to energy production or distribution, many concepts simply cant be captured with a single viewpoint. Whether its a process or lab demonstration, a technical training video, a multi-person conference panel, or a number of other potential uses, its helpful to have a video platform that can record more than one stream of video. Not all platforms, however, can meet this need.

    You want a platform that makes it easy to record video from a virtually unlimited sources recorders plugged into a laptop, mobile devices recording independently, one or multiple computer monitors the more flexible your solution, the better.

    cAn the video plAtform be extended or customized to fit in your orgAnizAtions infrAstructure?Today most energy businesses have developed their own formal or informal workflows for managing video. Without the ability to easily integrate into those existing workflows, any new video platform risks becoming more work for your team and less likely to be used to its full potential.

    What you want is a video platform built to integrate with your organizations learning management systems (LMS) and identity providers, and one that includes admin tools and developer APIs for extending and customizing the video platform further.

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    whAt elements Are included in the video plAtform, And which must be purchAsed As Add-ons?Total cost of ownership (TCO) is a concern for virtually any technology youll purchase, and video platforms are no exception. Some platform solutions offer an impressive feature list, but force customers to purchase each as a separate add-on to a much more basic set of core capabilities.

    Every organization has different priorities in managing total cost of ownership. For most, a single comprehensive solution for capturing any kind of video, streaming live events, and managing videos in a secure, searchable library will offer the greatest ROI.

    how does the plAtform protect AgAinst outAges And system fAilures during recordings & events?No provider, no server, and no data center is immune to outage in some form. When bad things happen, whether its a power failure, a network outage, hardware crash, a blue screen, or a misbehaving driver, you should expect your video platform to have a plan in place to prevent data loss.

    Ideally, you want a platform that relies on geographically dispersed redundant servers to protect against server issues, and failsafe recording features to protect against problems on local machines and ensure interrupted recordings are repaired and restored as quickly as possible.

    cAn the plAtform scAle with ongoing growth And spikes in user demAnd?Video is only just reaching the tipping point in most energy organizations. Virtually every technology analyst expects the total amount of video organizations produce and consume will increase exponentially in the coming few years which means any video solution you buy today will need to scale to meet your needs tomorrow.

    With a video platform, scalability applies to a number of elements in the system, including: web servers which require scalability to accommodate increasing HTTP requests, encoding servers which need to scale as more and more encoding jobs are submitted, and data scalability to accommodate a rapidly increasing amount of video storage. Youll want to be sure your platform options can account for each of these factors.

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    Are there nAtive mobile Apps thAt provide support for video seArch And viewing?More and more professionals in the energy industry are using tablets and smartphones to view video. Compared to other industries, few energy workers are stationed in front of a PC throughout the workday now with trends like bring your own device (BYOD), flex time, and a host of other modern working arrangements, enabling mobile access to video viewing, sharing, recording, and managing absolutely essential.

    Your video platform needs to make sure youre covered. At a minimum, every video uploaded into your video content management system should be encoded for playback on mobile devices. Ideally, your platform should include native mobile apps for both iOS and Android, providing support for your team to view and search your videos from anywhere.

    in 140 wordS: panopTo Helps you MAke the Most oF your expertIse WIth vIdeoExpertise fuels the modern energy industry. The latest scientific research, the most complete data analysis, the most thorough understanding of market and regulatory conditions for energy companies, the knowledge of their employees (and the ability to access and act on that knowledge) is the foundation for building a competitive advantage.

    Panopto is a video platform that enables you to preserve institutional knowledge, support social learning, scale employee training and development, and better support your teams in the field helping your energy business discover and leverage new opportunities, produce and deliver a superior product, and build market share.

    Named a Leader in Gartners Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Video Content Management and commended by Forrester for the best support for video search, Panopto makes it easy for your organization to record anything and find everything.

    For more, visit www.panopto.com.

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    Fill out a free trial form at panopto.com/free-trial/ or give us a call at 855.PANOPTO

    Our team will contact you to discuss how youd like to put video to work in your organization, and help you determine if Panopto would be a good fit

    Well set up your video platform site with you that same day, help you brand it for your organization, and include a set of welcome and how-to videos for first-time users

    From there, youll be ready to go! Youll have complete access to upload existing videos, record new videos, share and view recordings, and search your videos for specific details

    get Started in leSS than 1 day