"There is a bit of grace missing": Understanding non-use of mobile robotic telepresence in a global technology company

Boudouraki, Andriana; Reeves, Stuart; Fischer, Joel; Rintel, Sean

Abstract

Mobile robotic telepresence technology may be a potential solution to hybrid communication as it allows remote attendees embodied movement in space. Yet, there is little exploration into how its affordances fit with the practices and needs of workplaces. This paper presents findings from interviews conducted following a discontinued deployment of telepresence robots at the offices of a global technology company. The findings indicate that in this case 1) The knowledge workers were equipped to manage hybrid work, 2) the robots offered limited perceived value, and 3) the robots were a poor fit to the knowledge workers' physically distributed workflows. Drawing workflows and non-use literature, we explore how features of the technology failed to align with the office's work practices and needs, and discuss the implications for evaluating the low use of robotic telepresence.

Citation

Boudouraki, A., Reeves, S., Fischer, J., & Rintel, S. (2023, July). "There is a bit of grace missing": Understanding non-use of mobile robotic telepresence in a global technology company. Presented at TAS '23: First International Symposium on Trustworthy Autonomous Systems, Edinburgh, UK

• Presentation Conference Type: Edited Proceedings
• Conference Name: TAS '23: First International Symposium on Trustworthy Autonomous Systems
• Start Date: Jul 11, 2023
• End Date: Jul 12, 2023
• Acceptance Date: Jul 11, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Jul 11, 2023
• Publication Date: Jul 11, 2023
• Deposit Date: Jun 6, 2024
• Publisher: Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Article Number: 15
• Book Title: TAS '23: Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Trustworthy Autonomous Systems
• ISBN: 9798400707346
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3597512.3599710
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/22726750
• Publisher URL: https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3597512.3599710