- Information and communications are decisive factors of production
- Connected work makes work faster, better and more efficient
- Optimized solutions from Deutsche Telekom for connected work
The circulation of information and its quality are today key factors determining the competitive strength of companies of all sizes and in all industries. Efficient and reliable information and telecommunications technologies enabling fast, seamless and unrestricted exchange of information make a significant contribution to efficient, productive business processes. In short, connected work is better work. Products and solutions from Deutsche Telekom make a crucial contribution to creating an optimum flow of information within and between companies.
Knowledge and information have long-since been elementary production factors. Whether a company produces goods or provides services, highly developed technical knowledge, and the rapid exchange of such knowledge and all kinds of news, play an essential role. Against this background, both small and large companies in all industries can be regarded as information and communications networks which, in turn, form part of many other networks. The main members of these networks are managers and employees at various company locations, customers and business partners, as well as institutions, external consultants, service providers and public authorities. The speed and quality of communications between all the parties involved have a decisive impact on a company's processes - and thus on its productivity, competitiveness and growth prospects. Here is a simple example. If an order for the wholesale products needed for production gets stuck or is accidentally changed at some point in the production chain, in certain circumstances this can bring the entire production line to a standstill. Economic losses caused by unproductive working hours, cancelled orders and reputational damage are almost inevitable. Conversely, a company where smooth communication ensures that the right information reaches the right addressee at the right time has a lot of time and resources to spend on its core business and can therefore produce more efficiently than its competitors. What is more, such a company can be relied on to provide its customers with the services they want on the previously agreed target date. As a result it stands to gain a reputation as an especially service-oriented provider.
So there is no doubt that information processes that usually run smoothly without obvious media discontinuities have a direct impact on a company's productivity. The key intention of connected work is to lay the foundations for this kind of top-quality information gathering and communication. Today, modern information and telecommunications technology makes this kind of connected work possible. A key success factor here is that innovative solutions transcend the borderlines between information and communications technology, between mobile and fixed-line networks, between voice and data communications, and that integrated applications really get information circulating.
Connected work means being accessible for information of all kinds at all times regardless of where you are, being able to communicate and collaborate with others in many different ways, and having access to all the data and applications you need - anytime and almost anywhere. Connected work is already happening today in many degrees and forms - and to this extent it has been established for a long time in many companies. One example is mobile e-mail communications using a smartphone or laptop.
New applications with great practical potential are being added all the time and one example is HD-quality video conferencing over the Internet. The decisive thing is that networking always speeds up information exchange and information access, increasing flexibility at work and raising productivity. Moreover, connected work makes it possible to define workflows from scratch in some cases, therefore not only improving individual work results, but making the company sustainably more powerful.
Connected work
- keeps managers and employees better informed by giving them direct, permanent access to all relevant data and documents and by supporting rapid communications with all people involved in the respective work process.
- simplifies work in the office by integrating all information and communications channels: the computer becomes a universal information center, and the e-mail inbox becomes a control tool for all communications with internal and external partners.
- facilitates and speeds up working on the move by seamlessly integrating mobile staff into the information flow.
- sustainably intensifies cooperation both within the company and with partners outside. This improves work results and speeds up communication between partners.
- reduces the error rate in the exchange of information by avoiding the kind of media discontinuities that arise, for example, if data has to be repeatedly entered manually.
The various functions and effects of connected work can be summarized in five core advantages for businesses:
- Greater flexibility: the faster and easier managers and employees can access information, applications and contacts, the more action options they have. Furthermore, their actions and reactions are more well-founded, more targeted and quicker.
- Faster workflows: unproductive time - such as time wasted searching for information and applications - is eliminated, when staff are on business trips, for example. Time spent waiting can be used for e-mail communications and directly accessing the information employees need in the corporate intranet.
- Increased accessibility: networked people can be reached via different communications channels and can respond via the medium of their choice. For example, a complex issue can often be explained quickly and easily by video conference.
- Better cooperation: teams, different departments, internal and external people can all collaborate and pursue joint projects at any time and as often as necessary via electronic connections. Time-consuming and costintensive face-to-face meetings are no longer needed.
- Enhanced motivation: faster access to information and applications. No more frustrations at having to waste time phoning around to find people, no more organizational slack. Simple collaboration with colleagues and partners all over the world – all this boosts not only efficiency but also personal job satisfaction and thus the motivation of managers and employees.
In a sentence: connected work stands for higher productivity achieved by optimized business processes. It simply stands for "better working".
Deutsche Telekom offers medium-sized customers a broad portfolio of products and services for connected work. The solutions are modular and flexible in structure and can be easily supplemented and extended. These solutions range from conventional telecommunications services using fixed lines and mobile communications (telephony, data communications, IP services) as well as integrated fixed and mobile offerings to IT services such as IT security, hosting, housing, desktop services, LAN services and applications. Of course, we also supply terminal devices such as the powerful Octopus series of PBX systems, plus laptops, the iPhone, BlackBerry® and Windows Mobile smartphones, as well as tailor-made rate plans for access to fixed-line, mobile and Internet services.
Our current top offer for connected work is DeutschlandLAN. A groundbreaking package solution covering the entire telecommunications needs of small to medium-sized companies. DeutschlandLAN (available from April 2010) integrates all communications media from telephony to instant messaging in fixed and mobile networks in a single user interface, the communications center for connected work. The solution is based on a powerful Internet connection for voice and data transmission. All communications applications including PBX functions are available as webbased services. In addition to connectivity and services, the offer also includes office phones and smartphones. The monthly fixed price with flat rates (e.g. for internal telephony) ensures perfect price transparency.
About Deutsche Telekom Deutsche Telekom is one of the leading integrated telecommunications companies worldwide with more than 151 million mobile customers, more than 38 million fixed-network lines and more than 15 million broadband lines (as at: December 31, 2009). Its product brands are called T-Home (fixed-network telephony, broadband Internet), T-Mobile (mobile communication) and T-Systems (ICT solutions). As an international group of companies in around 50 countries throughout the world with almost 260,000 employees (as at: December 31, 2009), Deutsche Telekom generated more than half of its revenues of EUR 64.6 billion outside Germany in 2009.