Adam Gartenberg posted a link to a recent Forrester publication; I thought I’d post the link to his post. We are after all in this together; the business value of Real Time Collaboration is there and addressing this is equally important for both IBM and Microsoft …
Adam says :
I still get requests through our sales teams or directly from companies questioning whether there is business value in real-time collaboration tools like instant messaging.
Forrester Research has published a good, brief (5 pages) report that summarizes some of the key reasons. The report, titled “It’s Not Your Kids’ Instant Messaging; IM Takes Its Place At The Business Table” does require a purchase (or, I imagine, the appropriate Forrester subscription).
Executive Summary of the Forrester Report :
For a decade and a half, IBM and Microsoft have waged an epic battle for control of enterprise email. That battle is now spilling over into instant communications, such as instant messaging (IM) and Web conferencing. IM is no longer just a way for kids to communicate — it is rapidly becoming an invaluable business tool. As enterprise architects (EAs) struggle to make IM reliable, secure, and auditable, they should focus not on point solutions but on a larger strategy for unified communications (UC) and real-time enablement of business applications and processes. While telecom and audio and video conferencing providers will all vie for a piece of the pie, IBM and Microsoft have laid out their visions and made a compelling case for why IM is within the domain of software infrastructure vendors. One thing is for sure: The convergence of collaboration and communication will drive down costs and drive up efficiencies as IM technology moves us closer to information workplaces.
Link: It’s Not Your Kids’ Instant Messaging
With regards to business value and the role of RTC solution / Presence, Microsoft wrote a whitepaper addressing this. This whitepaper was released with the Introduction of LCS 2005, so some time ago, but still has relevant content :
This document describes the business value of presence within an organization and how this vital information has been integrated into the programs used by most information workers.
It is a distinct competitive advantage to be able to communicate quickly and efficiently in today’s business world. With the increasingly busy schedules and diverse locations of information workers, however, it can be hard to get in touch with the right people at the right time. When people understand how to best contact each other, they are able to focus on getting the information they need rather than wasting time. This is the core of “presence,” knowing instantly whether someone is online and available to communicate.
Now built into a number of applications and devices, from traditional instant messaging clients to Microsoft Office documents and portals, mobile devices, e-mail and telephones, the power of presence lets teams work efficiently anytime, anywhere.
Download: Microsoft.com
