Comments on: OMG IM is at work

By: minikristen

minikristen — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 22:14:05 +0000

Kate, interesting point. Does IM favor socialization over productivity? But who’s to say that you cannot be productive through social means? Doesn’t the business world naturally invite social interactions and information exchanges? Don’t business models get better only through engaged dialogue?

Just offering some thoughts…

By: Kate Thomas

Kate Thomas — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 04:15:39 +0000

Hi Kristen, I have to agree with Genilson’s post. I think it can be a great tool for internal communications within companies, but there is also an element of informality that just may not fly with some. I work in a satellite office and use gchat religiously to stay connected to my co-workers. Most of my co-workers are on gchat, but it is not something that is encouraged (or discouraged) by my employer. I would be curious to know 1) if the bosses in my organization understand the concept of IM in the workplace 2) if they would condone it at work. I think there is still a perception that IM is too informal and favors socialization over productivity?!

By: minikristen

minikristen — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 20:14:51 +0000

Kelly, it sounds like Verizon encourages IM within the workplace. What about international relations? Do you know if Verizon has used IM or videochat platforms to communicate with offices overseas or to seal international business deals?

By: minikristen

minikristen — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 20:08:05 +0000

Genilson, good point. I think the use of IM in the workplace changes the corporate personality of the place. IM language is laden with convenient misspellings for the busybody and smiley or frowning faces that suffice as a response. I wonder how this type of informality changes a workplace environment – whether it breaks down seniority barriers or whether it has the potential to ruin the professional reputation of the company.

By: Genilson

Genilson — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 02:30:38 +0000

Kristen, I was one of the people who responded “Other” on your poll. I think instant messaging depends solely on the culture of the workplace. In principal, I do think IM is a beneficial tool, but there’s an element of informality to it that may not pass muster on some companies.

We have the capability to set up IM on our e-mail platform at work, but my company discourages it. They just see it as another tool that eats up bandwidth . . .

By: Mary Olsen

Mary Olsen — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 09:52:32 +0000

Kristen,
I think this is a great topic to explore. I work in the military and as far as I know this is not an option for us…basically, we have so many IT filters that I don’t know if we’d ever implement something like this. However, I work in an office that deals a lot with international partners and something like this may be helpful because this can be a much more cost-effective tool for communicating with those partners. I’ll be honest though, I’m concerned that something like IM in the workplace would be a serious distraction, and it would be abused as a mostly social tool. I know very few people that have this in the workplace, and I’m not sure how they like it so I’m interested to see what you find!

Mary from Intro to Digital Age

By: kwhyte1

kwhyte1 — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 03:23:24 +0000

Hey Kristen- Yes, at Verizon we use Instant Messaging and our system is called Sametime. I absolutely love it and live by it. It’s a really convenient and fun tool. Sometimes, I don’t want to pick up the phone and call someone. I prefer to communicate using IM/Sametime because you can multitask if you are already on a call, and I always use emoticons to make it an easygoing conversation. In addition, at Verizon, most employees will instant message you before they call you which is considered IM etiquette. Another cool aspect of IM/Sametime is that we can have group meetings or you can send group messages at once.

By: minikristen

minikristen — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:53:14 +0000

Thanks Joan! I think there is a definite digital divide concerning generational use of online tools. You say that you have never IMed anyone, but I think it’s interesting that you know what it is. That’s kind of my point – that instant messaging and text messaging has become so prevalent in our culture that we may be leaning towards a new communication trend in the business sphere. I foresee everyone instant messaging, retired/unretired/young/old as soon as a few years! It would be a great way for us to keep in touch!

Also, you should try Skype. My friends rave about it. Some businesses even use video to hold their conference calls. Imagine how smaller of a world it would be if we all did!

By: Joan Reynolds

Joan Reynolds — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:25:05 +0000

Hi Kristen,

Your question floors me as I have never IMd anyone. Also, I would like to SKPYE my relatives in Europe, but, I have not been able to hook it up, yet…the microphone, that is. See how far behind technologically I am! Well, for those reasons, I answered “other”. However, I do think that there is merit to this question that you are exploring. See, you have TWO blogs, and I have not had an inkling that I should ever have even one. I think I retired because they wanted us to have websites. Well, good luck with your misson!

Love, Joan