Collaborative enterprise applications are on the rise
The consulting firm Gartner predicts an almost doubling of the collaborative applications market between 2020 and 2022, boosted by teleworking linked to covid-19 but above all by the integration of these applications with the other applications of the company, such as ERP, CRM, HRIS, etc.
Gartner also predicts that by 2025, nearly 65% of enterprise application software will have included some form of social software and collaboration features in their product portfolio. Sharing and communication tools, these applications are used by project teams, departments, or even the entire company, in addition to the telephone and emails: less intrusive than the first, they are more user-friendly than the second.
Testifying to this expansion, the growth curve for users of MS Teams (before the generalization of teleworking due to covid-19) clearly shows that the generalization of these applications is underway, independently of unexpected transient situations.
The digital transformation of the employee is a counter-sense
Two major trends collide in the professional world:
The digital transition “is eating the world”. It affects all sectors of activity and not just software: manufacturing, facility management, physical objects (connected, autonomous, etc.), agriculture, health …
On the other hand, the transformations made possible by technological evolutions happen so quickly that organizations and users no longer have the time to make them their own.
The consequences are on the one hand the growing fragmentation of information systems which no longer manage to ingest the continuous arrival of new tools and, on the other hand, the difficulties in appropriating these tools by business users who sometimes feel left out (cf Too many apps)
How can we not agree with them in this more than century-old debate? Is it not possible to reconcile productivity and consideration of the users’ point of view at the same time, for a common benefit?
Conditions for a balanced pact
Automation of processes, industry 4.0, precision agriculture, smart management of natural resources, energy transition… are necessary for the competitiveness of companies, the development of society and the construction of a world respectful of its environment.
On the other hand, limiting red tape, reducing repetitive tasks, preserving health, adhering to the meaning of our actions are expectations that we all have in the course of our work.
We need common ground.
Natural language is a way of bringing digital technology closer to its users:
It allows you to naturally perform requests (“what is the temperature?”) and commands (“start watering”);
Its flexible syntax allows the same intent to be expressed in various ways, avoiding the need to know unnecessary information about interlocutors, whether they are humans, physical objects or applications;
Intuitive and long-lasting, the language allows projects to take advantage of technical developments while preserving the simplicity and continuity of the interactions;
It supports direct communication with users, from their daily tools, already in place in the company.
The collaborative communication solutions having already been deployed, all that remains is to connect them to the digital processes of enterprises.
A few examples
Notification of work orders to maintenance technicians. Query on the status of an equipment. Remote switching off / on of machines. Communication with external partners. Interaction with security teams.
Communication of alerts within a department. Extraction of synthetic information to other departments (for example from maintenance to production). Periodic notification to general management.
Interactions with third-party organizations: customers (individuals or companies), hospitals, schools, sports clubs, visitors to public places, residents of a condominium…
Natural language already brings people together in their family, friendly and professional interactions. The alliance between collaborative communication applications and digital processes in the company is underway, for the benefit of all.
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