Why Smart Companies Invest In Collaboration

A few weeks ago I needed some help with a computer problem and the technician said she would be available later in the day. I asked her when she would arrive and she said she'd solve the problem remotely. Saving her and me time. Technical support is not the only reason to rely on collaboration, but one reason of many.

Other reasons include working on documents simultaneously, demonstrating something to a client, and conducting a remote presentation with a group of people.

“Impact of the Ongoing Economic Crisis on Conferencing Markets,” is a new report from research firm Frost & Sullivan, which confirms that collaboration tools and services have become fundamentally critical to business, offering significant travel-cost savings and other advantages. In particular, the report notes that SMBs—which employ half the entire U.S. workforce—are increasingly conducting business across different geographies, both domestically and internationally, and can benefit significantly from online collaboration technologies.

Collaboration tools have and will always be useful for businesses. However, as your business is looking to save as much money as possible, you want to continuously look for ways to be more productive and save money. Clearly, collaboration tools help in this area.

Meeting face to face is always best and further strengthens relationships. However, "limiting" travel and conducting business remotely enables you to get more work done in less time.

There are so many options and ways to strategically implement a remote collaboration strategy in your business. Citrix Online, Cisco's WebEx, LapLink and so many other companies offer remote computing and collaboration solutions. The most important aspect of this is what solution is best for your business.

Speak with your local technology consultant and review your own business, your clients, how your employees work, what technology you have now and what technology you might need. Should your next notebook computers have built in video cameras? Should you invest in faster and more stable broadband? Do your customers want you to interact with them remotely?