IM’s Place at Work

IM has the immediacy of telephone without the interruption, and the convenience of email without the delay. For years I’ve been an advocate for instant messaging in the work place so I figured I’d take a few minutes and explain why I feel IM should be implemented and how!

How’s it work?

IM is really simple. You log in to your Instant Messaging client (yahoo, aim, google talk, messenger, etc…). A list of your contacts appear allowing you to view who’s online and available for conversation. This also makes you available for conversation. Minimize your IM client and wait for an incoming message.

Oh, a new message!
A small window will appear in your taskbar and flash, notifying you that it’s there (some clients will allow you to set options for notifications like set focus to active window or play a sound). Click on the message to read and/or reply. You can either minimize the window and leave it open or close it (most clients will keep a history of your daily messages so you can close the window to regain taskbar space).

When I get a new message I press the: Alt + Tab keys and tab to the new window, type my message, press the: enter key to send it, and press the: Alt + F4 keys to close the window. Windows will automatically set focus to the program that had focus before setting focus to the IM window.

Why IM?

Before getting into implementation, lets talk about why you should use IM.

• Instant communication
  No waiting for the mail server to forward a message or the phone to ring. It’s called Instant Messaging for a reason!
• Multitasking
  Personally I can easily hold 3 – 4 IM conversations while working on something. Many people would argue that you can easily hold multiple email conversations but they are wrong. The process of sending and receiving involves more steps than typing your message and hitting the send button or enter key. If you’re really savy, you know how to use the Alt + Tab keys to switch between open windows further increasing your IM’n speed.
• Hold Live Meetings
  By adding more contacts to the conversation you can hold live meetings and since most clients log your conversations, you have a record of the conversation which you can review at anytime.
• Web Cam Chat
  Hook up a web cam and a microphone and you can video chat. This is great for satellite offices where you can’t all be in the same place at the same time, but want to have a more personal meeting where you can gauge reactions and expressions.
• Accessibility
  Most IM clients have a web version of their software, making it possible to log into your account from any computer, anywhere in the world without having to download the IM client to the computer.
• File Transfer/Sharing
  Send files to contacts. This is a VERY useful feature when IM’n. You know all those files that are too big to attach via email? No problem with IM!
• Feel More Connected
  IM establishes bonds between co-workers that would otherwise not be there. It’s less intrusive than a phone call and more personal-able than an email. It’s easier to judge the tone of a conversation via IM than over email (the disconnect of the send/receive/read/reply gives too much time in between messages, leaving the sender wondering if what they said was taken out of context.. . the mystery of if you worded something correctly is less prone to happen).
• More productive conversations
  Have you ever sent an email with ten questions in it and only gotten an answer to six? You probably thought to yourself: Hmmm did they not know the answer or did they miss the question? With IM you ask a question and get an answer (even if it maybe “IDK”).

Getting Started

When implementing an IM solution you need to fully think about how you and your organization intends to use it. Learn the features available and figure out how to fit them into a daily routine. Many companies object to IM saying that it is counter productive. But really, it’s no worse than having a phone next to you and calling your friends all day or emailing each other all day.

Pick A Client

There are many free/public IM clients to choose from, but there is also a variety of custom/private solutions that maybe better suited for businesses (like Jabber).

Conclusion

I’m not suggesting that IM is to take the place of Email or Phone when it comes to inter office communications, but it definitely has a place among them.

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