Since the first email was sent in 1971, it has become a crucial communication tool for businesses.
However, volumes have now become unmanageable and according to the research firm Radicati, approximately 182.9 billion emails were sent in 2013. This may be due, at least in part, to changing communication styles - in the last five years, mobile and social channels have also become increasingly important to business life, but this has resulted in more of an ‘always-on’ culture in the corporate world and the disintegration of the typical 9-5. Whilst some countries, such as France, have taken legal measures to preserve the sanctity of their personal lives, others have embraced the flexibility.
Unfortunately, this has also meant that more employees than ever are now accessing their emails through their own devices at any time of the day or night and sending higher volumes of email. Email is a ‘broadcast’ technology, allowing people to send documents rather than being a ‘Swiss army knife’ which allows instantaneous and simultaneous collaboration. Whilst it has its place, as a communication tool it can be overused; not to mention the ease of sending confidential information outside of secure recipients.
The time to move beyond Email is well overdue.
A mobile workforce
The way that organisations operate has developed with technology; it’s now possible to be connected on the move and work as easily from a moving train as within the four walls of a standard office. Furthermore, with people increasingly bringing their own device to work, the multiplicity of devices and communication tools used by employees has soared.
Indeed, 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. Furthermore, the boom in BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) has also led to an army of bring your own apps, which means employees are replicating their personal app usage for work purposes.
Although they may seem more efficient and provide the users with familiar usability and features, using unsecured chat apps such as WhatsApp, or an email client like Live.com, can leave organisations exceedingly vulnerable to outside security threats. There is also the risk of losing a device unsecured by multi-factor authentication or an MDM solution.
Simply put, social messaging apps, such as Viber or WhatsApp, were designed with consumers in mind and may not lend themselves for business conversations and knowledge sharing. The key concerns for any business when it comes to apps, or any new technology for that matter, are security, compliance and integration, and apps designed with consumers in mind generally fail to meet these strict requirements. Arguably, the most important consideration for any new business app is whether it can be incorporated into a company’s DNA. Will it meet security and compliance needs? Can associated data be routed into organisations existing long term storage and archive solutions? Or integrate into internal portals, CRM, email and social media channels?
High levels of security for collaborative digital working
However, there is little doubt that users do need to share sensitive information when outside of the organisation, so a blanket ban will simply cripple productivity. It is all too easy for a file to be mistakenly shared with the wrong recipient; things can be accidently forwarded to the wrong person or a typo in an email address can cause headaches for workforces. Even if mailboxes are stored securely, downloaded or misdirected emails can cause havoc.
Organisations should be able to share data securely without falling back on tools which were cutting edge in the 1980s & 90s.
Productivity for the time-poor
Above and beyond mobility and security concerns, ensuring employees can work as efficiently as possible should be the number one priority for most businesses. Eradicating processes that consume time unnecessarily is key to not only improving productivity, but also to ensure vital tasks do not get neglected. Too often email inboxes become cluttered and it is all too easy for an email to go unnoticed and a member of staff to miss the latest version of an attachment.
With the workplace becoming an increasingly agile environment, most enterprises are now more siloed than they used to be. With this in mind, professional communication techniques need to catch up and mirror the collaborative needs of modern day business. Organisations should streamline communication into a single, secure channel, such as a professional collaboration tool or a single collaborative platform, where company information can be stored securely. This approach offers IT teams the peace of mind that sensitive information will not be shared outside of authorised recipients, while at the same time relieving employees from the general clutter and stresses of email.
This new dawn of ‘purposeful collaboration’ leads us to the big question, has email finally reached its twilight?
By Joseph Do, CEO of MindLink.
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