Implementing New Technology in an Organization: The Key to Communications Maturity, Part 4
You've officially made it. You've read parts one through three of this series, and this is the final piece of the communications maturity puzzle. This is about the communications powerbrokers — the best of the breed. If implementing new technology in an organization is a key indicator of communications maturity, these folks are on another level — literally.
Implementing new technology in an organization isn't the be-all and end-all of the modern enterprise, however. Surely there's a greater cause or motivation to reach this elite level? There is, and here's the how and why.
Life is Good at the Top
If you've followed along this far in the series, you're well aware of the dangers poor communications maturity invites. Communications powerbrokers, however, have their eyes set firmly on the prize that awaits those in this upper echelon.
Here's what to expect when your digital transformation is complete, communications have been moved to the public cloud, and automation takes center stage:
- Quicker time to market for new products and services
- Customer service that empowers rather than hinders
- Newfound agility to stay competitive and current
The Business Communications Transformation IDC report noted in the first three parts of this series has been a veritable gold mine of information detailing the unique traits of each maturity level. It shows that when it comes to pushing new products onto the market, time is money. Too slow and your competitors squeeze the market before your efforts have a chance to bear fruit.
There's also that small issue of impatient customers. Thanks to improved workplace communications, those who have reached the powerbroker level experienced a 47.3 percent improvement in time to market for new products and services over the past three years. Compare that with the 16.1 percent improvement of those who fall in the communications-unaware category.
For as much as powerbrokers are able to speed up their product development, they also manage to be highly efficient when it comes to resolving customer service inquiries. In fact, powerbrokers managed to shave an impressive 36.5 percent off the time it takes to resolve customer service events. That's more than three times the improvement experienced by communications-unaware organizations.
That newfound agility mentioned above stems from the inherent mobility provided by the cloud. After all, more than 70 percent of powerbrokers use technology like communications platform-as-a-service (CPaaS). This foundation in cloud-based communication lets these organizations adopt and integrate new technologies at a much quicker rate to stay ahead of the curve.
Using automation, integration with CMS, productivity suites, and vertical-specific software, powerbrokers work smarter, not harder.
Implementing New Technology in an Organization: The Signs of a Star
Organizations that find themselves at the top of the communications maturity mountain have some clear advantages over those with less aptitude. The question is, how did they get there?
If you've been following along through the last three parts of this series, you've undoubtedly noticed a theme. Those hoping to improve their communications maturity standing should focus on these three things:
- Embracing new technologies
- Shifting infrastructure to the public cloud
- Leveraging automation and integration in abundance
Implementing new technology in an organization is a rather broad strategy, but for enabling effective communication, its effect is almost magnified. Time and time again, those identified as communications powerbrokers in IDC's survey also happened to take advantage of more communications technologies than those in the other categories.
Not only were powerbrokers unafraid to embrace a wide range of technologies, they also did so with a focused strategy: newer is often better. These organizations didn't shy away from new media like social media platforms, instant messages, and texts.
Powerbrokers: Powered by the Cloud
In that same vein, powerbrokers made a concerted effort to prop up their communication infrastructure with the power of the public cloud. These cloud-based platforms — like CPaaS — equip powerbrokers with all the right tools in all the right places.
Unlike communications-unaware folks, powerbrokers can take advantage of communication across a much wider range of potential channels. With the help of messaging APIs, these organizations can reach customers where they're most comfortable, be it social media, SMS, or chat.
Additionally, these cloud-based building blocks allow teams to seamlessly collaborate anywhere in the world from just about any mobile device as if they were sitting together at the office. With the help of automation in the form of call logging, time entry, and contact syncing, they're also able to focus on more productive endeavors. Using automation, integration with CMS, productivity suites, and vertical-specific software, powerbrokers work smarter, not harder.
You might worry that these powerbrokers are walking a dangerous road. Embracing numerous cutting-edge technologies, trusting the public cloud, leaning on successful integrations — for many, that's a recipe for communications nightmares, not communications nirvana.
But with great risk comes great reward. If your goals are getting to the market more quickly, working more efficiently, and fostering a more satisfied customer, it just might be time to step out on a limb and become a powerbroker yourself.
