Reports suggest that U.S. workers spend more than five hours per day checking their email communications. Internal communications make up a large part of an office workers’ day, with many checking emails as well as other sources of communication. With the enhancement of technology and its utilization while remote working, many businesses are investing in various tools to help them communicate more effectively with their workers. The question is, do they work? Let’s take a deeper look at some of the more common tools for internal communications, and see which are good for business.
Considering Yammer?
Yammer is a type of social media platform used in the workplace to help colleagues connect across a wider platform. It is a little like Facebook, but without the ads and with added corporate responsibility. Colleagues from large organizations can collaborate across offices and can join groups, which are often used in training, projects, or different working groups. There are benefits to using Yammer. For example, employees can be updated on events or activities relevant to them, which allows the business to stay transparent. It has the added benefit of being fun too, with colleagues using it to post jokes and create funny groups. Although it has wider benefits, colleagues may also benefit from a more internalized tool.
Microsoft Teams?
Teams commonly reduce the amount of emails staff receive internally, as it can be utilized to send quick messages using the chat feature. In 2020, the number of Teams users increased from 13 million to 115 million. It is a digital platform that gives workers the capability to video call, make external calls, use a chat feature for messages, and create teams (or groups). The extended features allow projects to collaborate from different areas and allows colleagues to keep in touch via the interactive chat feature. It also has the benefit of file sharing to avoid email comms. When looking at Teams vs Yammer, Teams is more practical for internal team and colleague discussions, whereas Yammer is for wider organizational discussions and interactions. Both can work in tandem to create an effective strategy for information sharing.
What About Trello?
Trello is a type of project management tool, but it is also effective as a noticeboard. It has the function to show what work is ongoing, what needs to be completed, and by what deadline. Dates of events and meetings can also be shared with colleagues who are added to the platform by another user. This is most effective for ongoing events and meetings and does not have a chat option, so is not functional for sharing information this way with colleagues. However, as it is one of the most popular project management tools available, it is still great to use along with other systems.
All three services are worthwhile to have as part of an overall communications strategy. The key is to know which ones work for your business and not to use too many, as this can lead to more work for colleagues checking them daily. A nice combination can lead to effective delivery and exchange of information.
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