Why isn't all enterprise software like Facebook?
In a guest post on TechCrunch, Marc Benioff of salesforce.com talks about why enterprise software should take its cues from Facebook and become more social.
In it he asks why isn’t all enterprise software like Facebook?
Typically, social networking tools and business have been kept very separate. The fact that many bosses have banned the use of these tools and labelled them unproductive has not helped. But like anything, it’s about how they are put to use. The technology behind sites like Amazon is impressive and is something all enterprise software vendors can learn from. So, the question is – how can we repurpose these tools, based on the kind of technology we are all used to using in our personal lives, to enhance our work lives?
Cross department communication is still a problem in the workplace. We still work in silos at our individual workstations despite in many cases spending our personal lives socialising online. Actions are often delayed if someone is out of the office and not accessing email, which is still the communication tool of choice. Many companies are making good use of tools like Instant Messenger, but what if we could extend those benefits for more advantage? If Chatter and similar enterprise tools can help overcome this and some of the problems related to antiquated software that many companies still rely on, based on the kind of technology we all know and love, that has got to be a good thing. Then if department specific processes can be built in aimed at specific and only relevant groups, it has to be a no-brainer.
At Certinia.com, we are looking at how we deliver extra advantage to our customers using these tools. From the perspective of an online accounting software vendor that speaks salesforce, we believe that as more and more businesses grow their presence on sites like Facebook, there are integration opportunities to enable better collaboration with business for finance related processes. We’ll talk more about this in the coming weeks so watch this space…
