Part of the popular corporate crowd
Ironically, the rise of IM has come just after email became almost universal for business communications. But IM doesn't compete with email, it complements it. "Email is not always instantaneous, and it also requires more maintenance, support, computer resources, training, and attention than IM to be used effectively and efficiently," says Robert Moss, who is reservations director for the Texas State Parks and Wildlife Department.
IM is particularly handy for collaborative environments. An IM user can send private messages to a workgroup, for example, while on a call to an outside client. The workgroup then uses IM to quickly hammer out a resolution to the client's problem without the client being privy to the process. Sure, this can all happen with email, but IM is far easier to use, more convenient, and a lot faster.
"It is very convenient when several of our staff are working offsite or from their homes," says Megan McKelvy, who works for Web development firm WebFirst. The firm has settled on AOL's Instant Messenger for all of its employees and recommends that new employees obtain an account on their first day on the job.
Not only tech companies are plunging ahead with IM. Despite its no-nonsense image, the Navy is an IM hotbed. "What started as a simple test on a battle cruiser between two naval officers is now being deployed across the entire fleet," says Lieutenant Commander Mike Houston, who is program manager for Collaboration at Sea as part of the Navy's San Diego-based Network Centric Innovation Centre. "We now have 5,000 users, and by this time next year, we expect to have close to 50,000."
Lt. Houston cited several benefits of their IM technology, Lotus's Sametime. "With Sametime, discussions can be more frank than what we did before," he says. "We can get a lot more relevant information than being on a radio circuit. Instead of short, concise exchanges, we now have the ability to ask something in depth. By using the chat feature, we can get a much better situational awareness...at the detailed nuts-and-bolts level where people have to execute particular tasks. We can make faster and more accurate decisions."
