Messaging is heating up this week. With Slack’s Atlassian deal, Microsoft Teams updates and Cisco WebEx evolutions, we’ve seen plenty of action in the Messaging Wars this month. Here are some of the biggest stories that have caught our eye between the 25th of July and the 1st of August.
Cisco and Microsoft Named Leaders in The UC Magic Quadrant
The latest version of Gartner’s Unified Communication Magic Quadrant is out. Companies everywhere are buzzing over the results. There are a few changes this year. Notably, Avaya achieving the position of leader even after a rocky 2017. NEC has moved into the niche players slot.
From an enterprise chat perspective, Microsoft and Cisco remain ahead of the curve in the top right of the quadrant. Gartner defines leaders by their ability to offer comprehensive solutions that combine communication strategies across a selection of channels. Microsoft and Cisco certainly met the grade this year. Microsoft Teams and Cisco WebEx Teams are leading the way for exceptional communication and collaboration.
Facebook Acquires Redkix to Improve their Workplace Collaboration App
Facebook recently announced their decision to purchase Redkix. Redkix is a collaboration company focused on delivering more effective and streamlined communication experiences. Before the acquisition, Redkix delivered a tool that made it easier for people to combine collaboration systems like Microsoft Teams, Slack and Facebook Workplace, with their calendaring and email tools.
Facebook hopes that access to the company’s software will help to drive adoption of Workplace. Redkix will help the social network to bridge the gap between traditional and modern collaboration. The focus being a more comprehensive workplace tool.
Workplace by Facebook Introduces New “Profiles” for Users
The latest Redkix acquisition isn’t the only exciting news that Facebook has delivered. Workplace is also introducing a new way to support decision makers who want to build better relationships with their people.
Profiles offers a directory, providing companies with insights into the people they communicate with. Facebook hopes Profiles will make it easier for team members to learn about their coworker, through personalized profile descriptions and bios. According to Facebook, Profiles is a way for people to “visualize and interact with the entire organization.”
As remote working grows more popular, informative profiles will bridge the gap between dispersed employees. Profiles will even remind you if a colleague’s birthday or work anniversary is coming up.
Slack Faces Reaction from Atlassian Partnership
Slack boosted its position in the enterprise chat space when partnering with Atlassian last week. The deal between Slack and Atlassian means that HipChat and Stride users will need to switch to Slack. This comes only a year after Stride entered the market.
The deal has seen some interesting responses in the enterprise chat community. A few unhappy customers have used this as the forum to vent about the acquisition. Comments on the community page reveal clients lamenting the fact that they have invested in a new tool that isn’t appropriate for their communication stack anymore. Some companies are wondering whether a hybrid Slack and Microsoft Teams strategy will be the only way forward — particularly for those staying on-premise.
Skype for Business 2019 Pushes Cloud Adoption
Microsoft announced a preview of Skype for Business 2019 this week. The enterprise messaging and collaboration tool is set to support on-premises UC deployments for at least four years. However, while Microsoft is committed to supporting their on-premise users, they’re also engaging in new strategies to push the cloud.
According to the General Manager of Microsoft Teams and Skype for Business, Lori Wright, Microsoft will be taking steps to drive more on-premises Skype users into Office 365 and Microsoft Teams. For instance, users won’t be able to access persistent messaging and indefinite chat histories on Skype for Business 2019.
Microsoft is showing their customers that, if they want the best enterprise chat experience, they need to be willing to try something new, and make the move to Teams.
New Direct Routing Solutions Emerge for Microsoft Teams
For companies looking to accelerate their path to Microsoft Teams, solutions are emerging from almost every angle. One particularly popular option for modern businesses, is the arrival of direct routing solutions built around Microsoft Teams certified SBC technology.
SBC services from Ribbon and Arkadin allow companies to take advantage of the solutions offered by Microsoft Teams, while outsourcing their telephony management and provisioning needs. Direct Routing was only announced as an option for Microsoft Teams customers in March, but it’s already showing signs of being a popular pathway for today’s enterprise chat customers.
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