Which organisation doesn't want to improve how they collaborate?

Softcat's Rhys Lawson explains how evolving end-user demands are affecting the collaboration space

The last three months in collaboration have been a complete eye-opener. I'd challenge anyone to come up with another solution that's more wide reaching.

Which organisation doesn't want to improve how they collaborate? Communicating more efficiently doesn't only save on costs (videoconferencing for meetings is a popular example), it also improves productivity.

This productivity is across a huge variety of areas, and is an exciting conversation, coupled with exciting technology - surely we're all wowed by instant multi-office video calling, in multiple worldwide regions? Admittedly I started my career selling printers, so my experience with exciting tech is limited.

In a world where there are potentially four generations in the workplace needing to understand each other, it seems the focus on collaboration is only going to grow. Organisations have to find a simple way for varied levels of tech-savvy employees to communicate freely, using a continuous and stable platform, across a multitude of devices and locations.

A recent industry study stated that more than 80 per cent of employees consider a lack of collaboration to be the reason behind workplace failures, and over 88 per cent of millennials consider how collaborative the workplace is when choosing their next role.

It is no longer about product and all about business outcomes.

One of Softcat's IT priorities this year is digital workspace. There are multiple streams and business units that make up digital workspace, but the key challenge and focus for the customer can be simplified and grouped into three primary, desired outcomes:

1. Mobility - Need for employees to work securely and remotely

2. Flexibility - Need for employees to use various devices and platforms

3 Productivity - Need for employees to access all data, on any device, anywhere.

Collaboration delivers all three.

If your [customer] is procuring headsets, large display screens, telephony or videoconferencing technology, we must ask why - what are they trying to achieve? No-one would purchase costly hardware without an end goal in mind. These are all distinct examples of how you can improve your communication with a clear aim of hitting one, or all, of the desired outcomes mentioned above.

How can your end users improve their collaboration?

The collaboration team follow a simple four-step process to ensure the most effective solution is created for an organisation's specific needs:

1. Assess - We help organisations gain a deep understanding of their needs, challenges and overall working environment while understanding the true business outcomes they want to achieve.

2. Platforms - We understand any current platforms in use, map user personas and help create a defined strategy that's in line with the business outcome.

3. Products - We offer multi-vendor, market-leading products that are focused on enriching user experience, as well as enabling more productivity and efficiency.

4. Enablement - To ensure fast-track adoption and quick visibility of ROI, we assist with supply, deployment, management and user training.

Rhys Lawson is head of MPS, DaaS and collaboration at Softcat.

This article first appeared here.

The last three months in Collaboration has been a complete eye opener. I'd challenge anyone who can come up with another solution that's more wide-reaching. I mean, which organisation doesn't want to improve how they collaborate? Communicating more efficiently, doesn't only save on costs (Video-Conferencing for meetings is a popular example) but also improves productivity. This productivity is across a huge variety of areas, and is an exciting conversation, coupled with exciting technology - who isn't wowed by instant multi-office video calling, in multiple worldwide regions? (Admittedly I started my career selling printers, so my experience with exciting tech is limited).

In a world where there are potentially four generations in the workplace needing to understand each other - it seems the focus on Collaboration is only going to grow! Organisations have to find a simple way for varied levels of tech-able employees to communicate freely, using a continuous and stable platform, across a multitude of devices and locations. A recent industry study stated over 80% of employees consider a lack of collaboration to be the reason behind workplace failures, and over 88% of millennials consider how collaborative the workplace is when choosing their next role.

No longer about product - all about business outcomes

One of Softcat's IT priorities this year is Digital Workspace. There are multiple streams and business units that make up Digital Workspace, but the key challenge and focus for the customer can be simplified and grouped into three primary, desired outcomes;

(1) Mobility - Need for employees to work securely & remotely

(2) Flexibility - Need for employees to use various devices and platforms

(3) Productivity - Need for employees to access all data, any device, anywhere.

Collaboration delivers all three.

If your organisation is procuring headsets, large displays screens, telephony or video-conferencing technology, we must be asking why - what are they trying to achieve? No one is going to be purchasing costly hardware without an end goal in mind. These are all distinct examples of how you can improve your communication with a clear aim of hitting one, or all, of those desired outcomes mentioned above.

How can your organisation improve its collaboration?

The Collaboration team follow a simple 4-step process to ensure the most effective solution is created for an organisation's specific needs:

1) Assess - We help organisations gain a deep understanding of their needs, challenges and overall working environment whilst understanding the true business outcomes you want to achieve.

2) Platform(s) - We understand any current platform(s) in use, map user personas & help create a defined strategy that's in line with the business outcome.

3) Products - We offer multi-vendor market-leading products that are focused on enriching user experience, as well as enabling more productivity & efficiency.

4) Enablement - To ensure fast-track adoption and quick visibility of ROI, we assist with; supply, deployment, management and user training.