The People Part of Enterprise Collaboration and Virtual Teams

• Celine outlines an approach to implementing online team collaboration tools in the enterprise: (1) show them your research on the benefits, (2) make the transition slowly, (3) don’t choose tools that are too different from what you have, (4) offer team members training resources on the new tools, and (5) tell the team they can go back if they don’t like the new way. “By implementing the tips above, it will be easier for your team to accept online collaboration as part of their working lives. If it’s done right, they’ll probably even wonder how they were able to work without these tools in the past.“

The Technology Trends of Enterprise Collaboration and Virtual Teams

• Liquid Machines released Version 7.0 of Document Control, its enterprise rights management application. “Liquid Machines Document Control 7.0 persistently controls access to and usage of electronic files regardless of where they exist without changing the way users work. Built with support for Microsoft Rights Management Services (RMS), customers use Liquid Machines to secure and control their most critical information, including intellectual property, executive and board communications, customer data, and human resources information, while enabling secure collaboration and strict adherence to regulatory compliance.“
• USA Today announced a new alert and notification service for news stories: by AOL Instant Messaging. “Once logged into the AIM service, users should add “USA TODAY” to their AIM Buddy Lists. AIM users may input key words into their dialogue windows; when stories are published on USATODAY.com containing those words, AIM users will receive an instant message with a headline, article summary and link back to the complete story. Readers may also use the interactive service to browse and search current and archived USATODAY.com headlines.“
• NewsGator is hosting a free webinar on the use of RSS for corporate communications, or April 22. “If you’re responsible for Corporate Communications, Human Resources, or IT then you don’t want to miss this informative webcast. Find out how corporate communications experts at a major insurance provider, a media corporation and a financial services organization all use RSS and Social Computing to more effectively communicate important information to their employees, while saving time and money by improving their communication strategy and delivery mechanisms.“
• Xythos is presenting a free webinar on Xythos Filer, on April 22. “Designed specifically to simplify the classification and records declaration process, Xythos Filer is an easy-to-use solution for those that work from desktop environments. Xythos Filer saves the time required to learn new systems because it is designed to work with existing scanning and productivity applications and support any business processes. Knowledge workers can now complete repetitive document declaration tasks without ever leaving the desktop.“
• Apple iPhone 2.0 will cause problems for RIM (and Palm), says Charlie Wolf of Needham & Co. “The BlackBerry maker in particular faces the greatest impact. Although it remains the definitive leader in business with the largest amount of US marketshare and close competition with Windows Mobile worldwide, the Canadian company could see its growth “slow materially” from the June quarter onwards. Once quality third-party apps are available for the iPhone, there will be less incentive to use BlackBerries for their software.“
• Alfresco released its market numbers for 2007, and the open source vendor is doing very well. “We routinely close six-figure deals with a relatively junior “inside sales” team…in 90 to 120 days (start to finish – that’s the sales cycle). The software sells itself, to a degree.“
• Guy outlines an argument for why Google Apps is becoming more credible as a Microsoft Exchange replacement. “So rather than thinking about Google Apps as a combo Office/SharePoint/collaboration wannabe, adjust your viewpoint and think of it as an e-mail server. With that in mind, Google Apps may make sense for your enterprise.“

Insights on Being Productive and Effective as an Individual

• Life does not equal work. Laura has ideas to enjoy life more: (a) say goodbye to work at the end of each day, (b) leave work on time, (c) keep stress low, (d) play each day, (e) go on a long vacation each year, (f) create memories with your family, (g) make time for a hobby, (h) slow down and stop rushing everywhere, and more. “Some people may perceive playing to be frivolous, but they’re missing the point. You need occasional periods of recreation in order to avoid burn-out and to keep caring about what you’re doing with your life. Slow down and smell the flowers occasionally! Play is more than something “extra” — it’s the ultimate pillar on which your life rests.“

Other Noteworthy Insights

• Great idea from Roger on getting feedback on draft book chapters: prepare and host a teleconference on the material in the chapter. “Present your free teleseminar over a bridge line that permits you to record it. This permits you to replay your market’s questions and comments, rather than trying to take notes as your readers comment on what you’ve written and ask additional questions. You may even want to post a link to your recording encouraging other website and blog visitors to download the chapter and listen to the teleseminar.“