Embrace consumer technologies, says Gartner

IT managers should find ways of using consumer technology, such as instant messaging, which is entering the workplace to increase worker productivity rather than banning them outright, according to research from Gartner.

Technologies that initially targeted and were adopted by consumers have long made an impact in corporate IT - from PCs to today's invasion of the enterprise by consumer-grade instant messaging and desktop search products.

"The flood of consumer-led technologies into the enterprise is not going to subside," said Jackie Fenn, vice-president and Gartner fellow. "To fully realise the benefits, IT must embrace these technologies as an ongoing strategy."

She said that corporate attitudes toward consumer-led technology extending into the enterprise must shift from "unavoidable nuisance" to "opportunity for additional innovation," particularly in areas such as personal productivity tools and communications.

The areas where most benefits will occur will be in small workgroups that require speedy communications and social networking, such as programming and development teams.

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