In Depth

In Depth

Collaboration software and productivity software

• Holding the line in the world of hybrid work

  The role of line managers is evolving and changing as the shift towards hybrid working increases, and it would appear the secret to success in a hybrid context is to treat all staff members as if they were working remotely, even if they are based in...  Continue Reading

• A new design for the new world of work

  Widespread forecasts at the height of the pandemic about the death of the office have largely failed to come to pass, but its role is definitely changing as part of a wider, but as yet still mainly experimental, shift to hybrid working  Continue Reading

• The state of Australia’s national broadband network

  Australia’s national broadband network promises to improve broadband connectivity across the country but has been plagued by pricing issues. Here’s a look at where it is today and what lies ahead  Continue Reading

• Evolution of unified comms services

  Post-pandemic ways of working are forcing organisations to rethink their comms – we look at the growth in cloud-based services to support hybrid working  Continue Reading

• CPaaS – a technology for the future

  There is a received wisdom that as businesses flock towards the cloud, they are looking for a single platform on which to manage all their communication needs, leading to boom times ahead for communications platform as a service  Continue Reading

• Next generation of collaboration and communication services

  Future comms systems may look and feel rather different from what exists today – we look at the journey for communications services  Continue Reading

• Positive benefits in the new experience economy

  While creating a positive employee experience (EX) has been on the agenda of companies for years, the concept – and that of the experience economy in general – has come of age in the Covid-defined working arena  Continue Reading

• Ratcheting down the tension in the hybrid world

  Employers who reject the trend towards adopting more flexible, hybrid ways of working may struggle with staff retention - and CIOs have more to win or lose than most in a hybrid world  Continue Reading

• Retail’s staff engagement and happiness problem – can tech help?

  Keeping staff engaged, motivated, connected and content is no easy task for retailers, but the industry is exploring new tools and techniques to improve the workplace  Continue Reading

• Hybrid working in the metaverse  

  Few topics have attracted more headlines over the past year than hybrid work and the metaverse. How can these realities fit together and become productive in the new normal of work?  Continue Reading

• Finland brings cryostats and other cool things to quantum computing

  Not only is Finland the clear leader in refrigeration technology for quantum computers, but it also leads in fundamental research into the underlying quantum information theory  Continue Reading

• What does 2022 have in store for hybrid working?

  The Omicron coronavirus variant has brought a return of working restrictions. Can we be optimistic about the resilience of organisations as they try to get the best out of their workforce?  Continue Reading

• Avoiding the two-tier workforce in the third workplace

  The new world of hybrid working is sometimes referred to as the third workplace. Yet just as firms are having to deal with the ‘great resignation’, they are in danger of unwittingly creating a two-tier workforce  Continue Reading

• The developing metaverse: Commercial realities of extended realities

  The metaverse is almost certain to become a highly competitive commercial playground, if not battlefield. It will likely not only establish highly profitable markets but also lead to high-profile failures  Continue Reading

• Ensuring hybrid work works in the new normal

  The hybrid business is becoming a reality, but how can firms ensure a positive employee experience and learn how to identify and manage risks?  Continue Reading

• IT’s role in sustainability for a resilient supply chain

  A circular economy is among the long-term measures needed to combat climate change. This requires data transparency across supply chains  Continue Reading

• How companies are rethinking digital customer experience in wake of pandemic

  The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed much digital rhetoric as hollow, as companies are now rethinking the digital customer experience, leveraging instant messaging and other tools  Continue Reading

• First priorities for the third workplace

  Almost 18 months since Covid-19 caused an almost overnight pivot to home working for many firms, hybrid working seems here to stay for knowledge workers. But the role of the 'third workspace' is not yet entirely clear  Continue Reading

• Five ways to ensure remote working security and compliance

  A mix of on-site and remote working has become a fact of life for many organisations. We look at five key things you should consider to ensure compliance and security  Continue Reading

• Revolutionising communication and collaboration for the hybrid world

  As hybrid working looks set to become the norm in the post-Covid world, the lessons learned during lockdown will need to be applied. However, firms will have to overcome the limitations of current communication and collaboration tools  Continue Reading

• Getting ready for the new normal of hybrid working

  Many companies are preparing to return to offices for the first time since the UK’s first lockdown began, but the office environment will look very different to a year ago. With some workers looking forward to returning to the office and others ...  Continue Reading

• The right tech choices for hybrid workers

  Various studies give a mixed reaction to businesses returning to office work, but what is apparent is that support for remote working will continue  Continue Reading

• How to support a hybrid workforce

  As the economy opens up, organisations are rethinking the idea of office-based work – and a more flexible approach is on the cards  Continue Reading

• How AI and automation drive better customer service

  Forrester analysts explore the benefits of combining artificial intelligence with automation  Continue Reading

• Being the brand: Virgin takes SD-WAN to the next level

  Companies are increasingly turning to software-defined wide-area networks to address the needs of remote workforces  Continue Reading

• Trends in collaboration technologies

  Making predictions for anything in these Covid-defined times can leave even the most switched on feeling foolish  Continue Reading

• Three approaches to remote collaboration for home workers

  The coronavirus has led to working from home being the ‘new norm’. We look at how collaboration technologies could work in the long term  Continue Reading

• SD-WAN keeps Darling Ingredients on the table through Covid-19 pandemic

  For some businesses, the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting need to support mass remote working will have accelerated something they began working on some time ago. Darling Ingredients is one such firm, whose SD-WAN roll-out puts it in good stead ...  Continue Reading

• How the supply chain is handling Covid-19

  Cost-cutting habits have left supply chains chasing their tails in the wake of the pandemic. We take a look at how they’re coping  Continue Reading

• Covid crisis shifts supply chain management from efficiency to resilience

  Supply chain management seems to be changing profoundly as the coronavirus pandemic unfolds, possibly shifting from an economy of efficiency to resilience, harnessing trading networks, machine learning and robotic process automation  Continue Reading

• Collaboration technology is breeding burnout – keep it real

  The Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably caused the use of collaboration platforms to spike. But as fatigue sets in, organisations try to keep their use cases focused  Continue Reading

• Constructing the future for engineering – finding the right model where one size does not fit all

  Design and engineering has rapidly evolved to be all about interconnected devices. We see how one of the leading manufacturing software suppliers is meeting the challenge  Continue Reading

• Coronavirus: Retailers reach for tech to keep staff connected in the crisis

  From fast-tracking home-working strategy, to conducting training and board meetings virtually, read about how retailers are keeping staff connected during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis  Continue Reading

• Australian firms soldier on amid Covid-19 outbreak

  From the largest financial institutions to small companies, Aussie firms have been dialling up their use of technology tools to keep their businesses humming during the coronavirus pandemic  Continue Reading

• How APAC firms are coping with the Covid-19 outbreak

  The air of change looms large in companies operating in the Asia-Pacific region, with some doing better than others in keeping the lights on amid the coronavirus pandemic  Continue Reading

• Coronavirus: How app developers large and small are working to help fight Covid-19

  Computer Weekly looks at how a range of actors are using technology to help mitigate the various impacts caused by the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak  Continue Reading

• How to optimise remote workforces while tackling loneliness

  Remote working is very common in tech companies and IT departments. How can it be managed to optimise productivity and keep employees socially connected to their companies?  Continue Reading

• Choose tools to prevent communication overload

  Social media platforms can improve collaboration, but organisations need to be careful not to swamp staff with messages  Continue Reading

• Rise of the machines: How AI is changing unified communications

  Artificial intelligence is now moving into live UC environments at scale. We look at the impact it will have and what lies ahead  Continue Reading

• The changing face of enterprise collaboration

  Enterprises are turning to social platforms to optimise communication among their workforces. Computer Weekly looks at some examples  Continue Reading

• Exploring UCaaS: The main benefits for enterprises

  Getting unified communications-as-a-service right can mean more agility, higher productivity, and cost control  Continue Reading

• Cutting employees some Slack: The rise of messaging apps in retail

  Slack’s 2019 stock market debut raises the profile of enterprise collaboration software, but what options do retailers have in this space and how are they using the technology?  Continue Reading

• Software requirements for international aid go beyond cloud and apps

  Aid workers in extreme situations don’t always have stable access to the software they need over the cloud. Find out how they work around this  Continue Reading

• Chromebooks and G Suite: a good working alternative

  We look at Chromebooks as collaboration clients, both in Google-oriented and mixed-platform environments  Continue Reading

• Focus on content collaboration strategies

  Content collaboration platforms can enable businesses to create an agile and modern digital workplace  Continue Reading

• Has collaboration software wrought perilous communication overload?

  A new generation of collaborative software, such as Slack and Microsoft Teams, could prove a knowledge management boon. But does it have a dark side of communication overload?  Continue Reading

• How Australian enterprises are unifying business communications

  Business leaders and experts in rolling out unified communications tools in Australia stress the importance of change management and employee consultation to avoid digital white elephants  Continue Reading

• ASEAN’s growing appetite for unified communications

  Led by enterprises in Singapore and Malaysia, adoption of unified communications tools is expected to grow with the surge in demand for cloud-based and hosted offerings  Continue Reading

• In the know: how a digital workspace can drive innovation

  In a digital world, engaged employees can support innovation using a new generation of tools that leverage behavioural science and more  Continue Reading

• The death of the mainframe is greatly exaggerated, says CA

  With mainframe software tools forming a key part of its overall growth strategy, CA Technologies remains proud of its mainframe heritage  Continue Reading

• [email protected]: Spreadsheets and ERP – 50 years of software coding business

  Business software has been a rich field for IT professionals over the past five decades, and we are on the cusp of a new era of customers rolling their own for competitive advantage  Continue Reading

• How to free your business and staff with self-service

  Introducing self-service IT can improve efficiency and hand control to the employee – so long as it’s done right  Continue Reading

• Next‑generation CIOs: The changing role of IT leaders

  The position of CIO is changing and there are more people in the role from less technical backgrounds than in the past  Continue Reading

• Case study: Philips takes agile approach to building bridges between business and IT

  Dutch technology giant talks up the success of its attempts to embrace agile IT delivery methods, and how it's shaping future customer engagements  Continue Reading

• Digital customer experience: Beyond the website

  Organisations are faced with the challenge of delivering their customers with an online experience that goes far beyond just a website  Continue Reading

• Benchmarking social business and collaboration tools

  A complete social business strategy requires more than publishing social media guidelines for employees. CIOs need to rethink the enterprise as a social ecosystem  Continue Reading

• Social media for communication inside the enterprise

  Companies have long used social media technology such as Facebook and Twitter to reach more customers – but how are businesses using it internally?  Continue Reading

• Choice and ease of use: key elements of a good app store

  Companies need to focus on individual user requirements and make sure their app store delivers the right tools for the right job  Continue Reading

• No more email? Why companies are turning to collaboration technology

  Collaboration technologies are helping companies improve their employees' work-life balance  Continue Reading

• A guide to WebRTC

  Real-time communications standards aim to help more users speak with ease over the internet. Computer Weekly looks at how the systems work  Continue Reading

• Big data journalism exposes offshore tax dodgers

  How journalists harnessed big data to challenge offshore financial secrecy  Continue Reading

• RightNow: Oracle and next-generation CRM

  In his opening keynote presentation at the RightNow Summit 2011 in Newport, Greg Gianforte, RightNow founder and chief executive officer, presented his view of device-aware CRM.  Continue Reading

• Case study: FA uses Sharepoint 2010 for fast-track dispute resolution

  The Football Association, the governing body for English football, is using Microsoft Sharepoint 2010 to test drive a fast-track system for resolving disputes when players face allegations of misconduct on the pitch.  Continue Reading

• Office 2010: Who needs an upgrade?

  Microsoft Office dominates the business world, but the company still faces tough competition when releasing a new version. What does Office 2010 offer to help it stand out from the crowd?  Continue Reading

• Microsoft loses US Office Open XML vote

  Microsoft has lost a key vote for its Office Open XML (OOXML) to be accepted as an alternative to the OpenDocument format.  Continue Reading

• Microsoft: after Bill Gates

  Microsoft is in a busy period of software updates following the release of Vista, the latest version of the Windows desktop operating system, Office 2007 and the Longhorn server technology  Continue Reading

• Free .docx converter available

  Users can overcome incompatibility between Office 2007 and older versions with a free download of .docx converter.  Continue Reading

• Music firm first with Sharepoint 2007

  Music label Hed Kandi has become the first UK business to use Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server 2007.  Continue Reading

• Council plans early Duet move in SAP consolidation

  Staffordshire County Council is to roll out SAP Duet, the system that enables users to access core SAP functions through Microsoft Office applications. It is one of the first major UK organisation to announce plans to deploy the software.  Continue Reading

• Pitney Bowes puts ERP in field with mobile roll-out

  Office equipment manufacturer Pitney Bowes has reached the half way point of a European roll-out of mobile SAP and Siebel applications to 900 field engineers.  Continue Reading

• What type of e-mail users do you have?

  Book review: Managing in the E-mail Office, by Monica Seeley and Gerard Hargreaves  Continue Reading

• Microsoft SharePoint products and technologies: Unravelling the confusion

  Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server 2003 and Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services have caused a real confusion for...  Continue Reading

• XML forms are key to Office 2003 development platform aspirations

  With the launch of Office 2003 System today (21 October), Microsoft has shifted the focus of the software package from office...  Continue Reading

• Is Open Office a star?

  Could an open source package genuinely be good enough to challenge Microsoft Office?  Continue Reading

• Stand & deliver

  Consignia, the former Post Office, is determined to play a key role in the Internet home shopping revolution.  Continue Reading

• Staroffice 6 will feature MS Office XP compatibility

  The next version of Staroffice, Sun's open source application suite, to be released later this year, will be file-compatible with...  Continue Reading

• Ferris report warns of Sharepoint Server 2001 integration problems

  Users considering implementation of Microsoft's Sharepoint Portal Server 2001 collaboration tools should consider possible...  Continue Reading

• Post Office fights off competition with Internet automation

  The Post Office has signed an agreement to invest in software infrastructure services to automate its entire Internet operations...  Continue Reading

• ASP sector steers clear of MS Office

  The group marketing director of Microsoft UK has admitted that the ASP version of Office has failed to live up to expectations.  Continue Reading

• Home Office cancels key immigration IT system

  Government cancels Immigration and Nationality Directorate's Casework Application programme, which was intended to help clear the 66,000 backlog of asylum seekers in the UK  Continue Reading

• Office on ASP gets dubious response

  
  
  Simon Moores

  Tech talk

  According to one report, Microsoft is encountering resistance among US customers to Office Online, "one of...

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• Microsoft changes features on Offices 10

  Microsoft has dropped two features from its next generation Office suite for Windows, a move which could affect its .Net...  Continue Reading

• SAP to give Post Office global reach

  The Post Office is rolling out a £150m SAP implementation over the next three years to help it become a competitive global...  Continue Reading

• New Post Office director focuses on business goals

  
  
  Robert Dunt

  The Post Office, recently beset by trouble with its doomed benefits payment-card project, has appointed a new technology...

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• Office 10 beta ignores Win 95

  Latest Office suite heralds move towards Internet connectivity but also threatens viability of Windows 95 as an enterprise...  Continue Reading

• Skivers go spreadsheet skiing

  
  
  Office shirkers who prefer to play games on their PC rather than work have been given a new avenue for their skiving, in the form of 9to5cafe.com, writes...  Continue Reading

• Case Study: Rhône-Poulenc Rorer commits to Office 2000

  Rhône-Poulenc Rorer commits to the enterprise-wide adoption of Office 2000 over Office 97 based on Giga Information Group’s Total...  Continue Reading

• Cautionary tale on Office 2000 from airport systems supplier

  The first service pack for Microsoft Office 2000 was released last week. But anyone planning to upgrade to the latest version of...  Continue Reading