Presence may indeed be the answer to the age-old question – why didn’t you answer when I called? Or, where have you been all day… I tried calling?  Time is money, so if there was a solution to saving time in the workplace and create better communication efficiency, who wouldn’t jump on it? A survey reported that Presence Technology increased productivity in the workplace in an estimated 47% of respondents. The feature, popular in large part due to the widespread use of Skype for Business, can increase productivity in 3 ways:

1. Expediting the handling of simple questions and issues.  Instant message simply means instant answer.  Don’t spend the time to write a lengthy email when you just have a quick question. With presence showing you the status of your coworkers, you can determine if they are available to answer a quick question, or if you have to send an email instead. The ability of presence technology to speed the resolution of simple issues is especially important for remote workers, who can’t pop their head down the hall or over their cubicle to ask a question.
2. Helps spontaneous collaboration. There are people who prefer to work alone and feel they can get more done as individuals.  However, collaboration and working well with others is part of work, and takes extra effort. Presence aids in this process by identifying who is available to help. The idea of a normal operating hours in many businesses is obsolete, and people work unconventional hours. If you are working on a project after many have gone home but run into a roadblock you need help on, seeing which of your coworkers is still online can be very beneficial to moving forward with your project.
3. Fewer calls and fewer emails. Email and voicemail can quickly become blackholes for communication. Having immediate responses by identifying someone who is available to handle the question based on their availability eliminates large group messages. Employees can easily find someone who is in the right role to resolve an issue. In cases where managerial approval is needed to resolve a customer issue, the speed in finding an available manager will please both the customer and the employee.

The true value of presence is removing delays in company communication, making your business run more efficiently by increasing employee productivity. Learn how AltiGen’s Hosted Skype for Business solution can benefit your business with increased employee productivity HERE.