Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Virtual Meeting Platform Creates Space for Ad Hoc Interactions

Online event and meeting platform Shindig has introduced Watercoolr, a tool for more informal virtual get-togethers such as coffee breaks, ad hoc meetups, hallway conversations and other spontaneous interactions.

Watercoolr provides a secure, 24/7 virtual meeting space where colleagues can gather and engage one-on-one and in groups. The platform allows for multiple conversations to take place concurrently; while participants speak in one group they can see but not hear other groups, and they can pop in and out of groups as desired. Users can also set up specific meet-up times for more structured events.

The technology was "designed to help organizations combat the increasing fragmentation, siloing of critical information, isolation of team members, and general deleterious effects of remote and hybrid work on innovation and operational efficiency," the company explained in a news announcement.

"Watercoolr has solved a key problem that no other company has addressed," commented Rob Enderle, president and principal analyst at the technology consulting firm Enderle Group, "and that is how to bring casual conversations and creativity back into the workplace, replicating the in-person experience in the closest way possible."

"Pre-pandemic, managers could rely on informal networks created by their physical spaces to ensure that one corporate hand generally knew what the other was doing. That can no longer be taken for granted in today's hybrid workplace," said Steve Gottlieb, Shindig founder and CEO. "Watercoolr was devised because of key clients sharing with us their realization that those informal, unstructured communications were essential to their organization's performance and their demands for a solution that would foster such interactions amongst the hybrid workforce."

For more information, visit the Watercoolr site.

About the Author

Rhea Kelly is editor in chief for Campus Technology, THE Journal, and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Campus Technology Announces 2025 Product of the Year Winners

    Sixteen companies were selected as winners for their product achievements.

  • AI word on microchip and colorful light spread

    Microsoft Unveils Maia 200 Inference Chip to Cut AI Serving Costs

    Microsoft recently introduced Maia 200, a custom-built accelerator aimed at lowering the cost of running artificial intelligence workloads at cloud scale, as major providers look to curb soaring inference expenses and lessen dependence on Nvidia graphics processors.

  • large group of college students sitting on an academic quad

    Student Readiness: Learning to Learn

    Melissa Loble, Instructure's chief academic officer, recommends a focus on 'readiness' as a broader concept as we try to understand how to build meaningful education experiences that can form a bridge from the university to the workplace. Here, we ask Loble what readiness is and how to offer students the ability to 'learn to learn'.

  • row of digital padlocks

    2026 Cybersecurity Trends to Watch in Higher Education

    In an open call last month, we asked education and industry leaders for their predictions on the cybersecurity landscape for schools, districts, colleges, and universities in 2026. Here's what they told us.