Instant Messaging is more than just a toy

Omnipod, a leader in On-Demand secure Enterprise Instant Messaging, announced results of a joint survey with InfoWorld, the leading provider of comprehensive IT intelligence, concerning enterprise instant messaging (IM).

The survey was fielded in June of 2005 and garnered over 500 senior IT professional respondents. The results reveal that enterprises recognize that IM is a critical competitive differentiator and should be viewed as a critical business tool and not just a "toy".

The survey identified that 43% of the enterprise respondents believe that the choice of IM provider impacts customers. Further, 36% of those surveyed responded that IM impacts partners as well.

Typically, IM has been used by enterprises to enhance communication between employees. However, these results show that users are increasing collaboration outside corporate walls using IM. As a result, functionality and usability of the IM solution is key in maintaining good business practices as well as customer service satisfaction.

Further results revealed 72% of respondents claim security as the biggest enterprise concern.

The law firm Dow Lohnes & Albertson (DLA) recently implemented IM to enhance communication with clients and offer attorneys another communication tool to support their practice.

"Clients need to be able to communicate with our attorneys in a variety of ways, including IM. This allows us to be responsive to clients and provide quality services," says Damon Collier, Director of Information Technology for DLA. "What we needed was another layer of communication between client, attorney, and staff that was fast and non-disruptive to the workflow. That's when we began looking at Instant Messaging."

"There's a 'sea change' occurring in the business world where IM is no longer looked upon as a 'toy' but as a useful 'tool'," said Evan Sohn, Chief Marketing Officer, Omnipod. "Our survey with InfoWorld and implementation with customers like DLA serve as proof points that companies are now using IM to their competitive advantage."