The war on e-mail - Business Works
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The war on e-mail

by Joseph Do, CEO, MindLink 'Purposeful collaboration' is a term which refers to a collective approach to digital communication via an 'always on', business-critical platform and it should be core to all firms' working processes and strategies.

In this article I will outline my reasons for embracing purposeful and constant collaboration, says Joseph Do, CEO of MindLink.

Since the first e-mail was sent in 1971, the method of communication has evolved to become a crucial communication tool for both personal and professional use. However, over the last five years in particular, the business world has changed to become an 'always on' environment that is increasingly mobile and social. As a result of this, companies' approach and attitude to working collaboratively has also changed. In response to this, we're waging a war on e-mail in name of purposeful collaboration tools that help people to work more efficiently and productively.

182.9 billion e-mails were sent every day in 2013

On average, 182.9 billion e-mails were sent every day in 2013, according to market research firm Radicati [PDF]. This figure proves that e-mail is the most widely-used professional communication tool, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's still the most appropriate or efficient. People face increasing demands on their time every day and the sheer number of e-mails we send and receive is an attribution to this problem. Communication channels must evolve to fulfil not only requirements, but also collective business needs such as scheduling meetings, sharing data and collaborating on documents.

A mobile and social workforce

As I mentioned earlier, businesses and the people working for them are becoming more mobile. From visiting clients, prospects, partners, working from home or hot-desking, the way people operate day-to-day is developing and, because of this, maintaining productivity and connectivity must be a top business priority. Purposeful collaboration channels - unlike e-mail - cut through the social chatter and allow individuals to focus on business-critical conversations and issues across multiple devices.

A new BYOD (bring your own device) trend is making a whole host of additional communication channels available to the workforce. More and more people are working on their own mobiles, tablets and laptops as part of the natural collapse of static technology infrastructures which rely on desktops and e-mail. According to Gartner, three quarters (75%) of companies say there are more than twice as many personal devices connecting to corporate networks than there were two years ago.

Businesses should act to streamline communication into a single, capable channel, such as a professional collaboration tool, which will help them better manage employees and tighten security.

High levels of security for collaborative digital working

If employees are going to continue working wherever they are, they should be able to share and access all the business-sensitive data or information they need in a connected and closed environment.

With professional collaboration tools, users can stop sensitive information from being mistakenly shared outside the organisation as users have the ability to set clear guidelines on who can share what and where. With e-mail, it is easy for people to accidentally forward data to the wrong person, or for someone to send sensitive information such as sales, market or CRM data to an individual outside of the business. Business collaboration tools can record all information that is sent and received in a compliant format and guard against unlawful access to sensitive information.

Productivity for the time-poor

Cluttered e-mail inboxes make it all too easy for someone to miss the latest version of an attachment, while e-mails with multiple recipients lack a much-needed coherent structure. The whole idea of purposeful collaboration means getting the exact business information everyone needs, whenever and wherever they need it.

With the workforce in many enterprises — and start-ups – becoming more mobile and less siloed, professional communication has to catch up and move into the collaborative future.

the war on e-mail

Business people need to pull themselves out of the deep, murky trenches of e-mail. This is serious, e-mail! This is war!



For more information, please visit: www.mindlinksoft.com



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