Dimension Data: The End of Communications as We Know It

New research released today by Dimension Data shows that e-mail
has overtaken telephony as a communication tool in the workplace.
Other electronic communication tools are also reaching high adoption
levels.

Rob Lopez, Managing Director, Solutions at Dimension Data says,
"In today's corporate environment there is a myriad of communications
tools available including desktop telephony, mobile telephony and
email, among others. However, our research indicates that end-users
prefer to communicate using electronic media rather than voice
services such as telephony."

The research reveals that e-mail and telephony is most widely
offered by organisations, and just as popular among users. 100% of the
end-users surveyed use e-mail, followed by fixed-line telephony (80%),
mobile telephony (76%) and instant messaging (66%).

But, says Lopez the increase in e-mail usage is widening the
personal communication gap. In other words, people would rather e-mail
than speak to each other on the telephone.

"This raises questions about how effective and meaningful e-mail
communication is when dealing with problem resolution and discussing
complex issues. Also, e-mail communication can be considered less
secure. This could have a negative impact on productivity as end-users
struggle to deal with growing volumes of emails."

Interestingly, the research points out, the three most ubiquitous
technologies increase productivity the most. Over 70% of the end-users
surveyed say e-mail impacts positively on their productivity, followed
by conventional fixed-line telephony (53%) and mobile telephony (52%).
From a productivity point-of-view, the research shows that instant
messaging, blogs and softphones are considered most disruptive, and
could negatively impact productivity if not managed properly.

Dimension Data commissioned Datamonitor to study user requirements
and decision-maker plans in the areas of unified communications.
Unified communications ensure richer interaction by integrating most
forms of communication (voice, e-mail, fax, instant messaging, video)
through a single interface. The research surveyed 390 IT managers and
524 enterprise users across 13 countries in the United States, Asia
Pacific and Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Other key findings in the Dimension Data survey include: unified
communications is a vibrant and developing market; security is a
concern rather than an issue; unified communications technologies are
more likely to be outsourced or externally managed than other
technologies; and unified communications mindshares are dominated by
alpha brands within each market.

About Dimension Data

Dimension Data plc (LSE:DDT), a specialist IT services and
solution provider, helps clients plan, build, support and manage their
IT infrastructures. Dimension Data applies its expertise in
networking, security, operating environments, storage and contact
centre technologies and its unique skills in consulting, integration
and managed services to create customised client solutions.

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