By Julie Trescott

Tired of long, ineffective meetings? If so, you are not alone.

According to a 2004 poll by Genesys Conferencing, most meetings don’t convey the information that employees need. Thirty-four percent of the 1,000 workers surveyed said they consider more than half of all meetings unproductive.

Genesys hopes to change that. A video, audio and Internet conference company, Genesys opened a sales office on El Camino Real in Los Altos in January. The French-based business aims to increase the effectiveness of meetings by providing collaboration and conferencing services to more than 18,000 clients in 24 countries. The company’s most popular product, Genesys Meeting Center, allows customers to hold interactive virtual meetings.

With businesses like Dell Inc. and Microsoft Corp. already on board, Genesys added a location in this region for easy

availability to even more computer

companies.

“Web conferencing as a technology is becoming a very popular choice with high-tech companies,” said Vice President of Corporate and Internal Communications Tricia Heinrich. “It makes sense to have an office in Silicon Valley.”

They chose Los Altos specifically because of its proximity to both San Francisco and San Jose.

The Los Altos office has nine employees, including Director of product management Jeff Wong, and ambitious growth plans for the future. “We plan to hire five sales representatives by the end of the year,” said Heinrich. “If demand increases, we will add staff appropriately.”

Heinrich said that having a presence in the Bay Area has already made a difference in sales. “We focus on international coverage paired with local support,” she said. “Customers respond to that.”

In terms of product development, Genesys is integrating Genesys Meeting Center with other business tools already on the desktop.

Last month, Genesys announced its expansion into China and South Korea. According to Heinrich, the company plans to focus on its North American offices during the next year, since that market represents the greatest potential for growth. After that, the company expects to introduce offices in Eastern Europe and the Asia Pacific region.