Groupware concepts and applications

Groupware: Discuss the Present State of Groupware Implementation in Your Organization

Groupware technology is designed to facilitate collaboration within organizations. The most common form of groupware in most organizations is email (Coleman 2005). Within my own organization, despite the plethora of other technologies available, email's advantages are considerable in terms of its compressed format -- it is very easy to send off a quick query to a colleague or cc a memo to the office within minutes. Although it is fast, email is also asynchronous, meaning that the respondent can fire back a comment whenever he or she wishes to do so, at a convenient moment. There is little instantaneous pressure for a response.

Of course, the advantages of email can also be disadvantages. There can be delays in response time, leading to frustration, and if there is a miscommunication the sender may not be immediately available for clarification. For work demanding a continuous flow of responses from the other individual, a synchronous format such as an IM or a web chat is preferred. This is frequently deployed by telecommuters who are working on a project with someone in the home office. They can ask questions and work virtually 'side by side' the person with whom they are collaborating. IMs and web chats are more fluid and organic in nature than email. However, unlike email they do not leave a virtual 'paper trail,' which means they may even be more prone to miscommunication and confusion than email. The reader cannot look over what was written at a later date. Also, there is the problem of legal liability. If there is ever a need to review correspondence for legal reasons, unless one of the persons in the dialogue took a 'screen shot,' IMs and web chats are not preferred.

Email, IMs, and web chats are used in the day-to-day intercourse of business, but for formal and important meetings, video conferencing is often preferred. Video conferencing has been a boon to small organizations that cannot afford to send workers on 'travel' with great frequency. Instead, by using this form of technology, persons across the world can be connected face-to-face. While it is true that we could meet via a group 'chat,' video conferencing allows the ease and subtleties of interpersonal dialogue. People are more easily able to establish warm and heartfelt connections with one another if they can see the person they are talking to, and they can also use body language, language inflections, and other ways to communicate their point. Of course, for people who are socially inhibited, video conferencing can be intimidating. But the advantage of being able to use visual aids such as PowerPoint and mimic the circumstances of a 'real world' meeting outweighs the disadvantages for most users.