Publisher Enhancements: Attaching Links and Documents to Updates

We have made some changes to the way the Publisher Box allows users to attach links, photos, and documents to status updates. There are two new, simplified actions for adding links and uploading files. The new Add Link action works the same way as the previous attach link icon. The new Upload action consolidates the separate photo and document attach icons that existed previously and allows users to share both photos and documents, as well as any other file type.

Selecting the Add Link action from the Publisher Box will open the Link window below and allow users to enter the URL, create a title, and write a description for the Link before sharing.

Selecting the Upload action from the Publisher Box will open the Upload window below and allow users to browse files, create a title, and write a description before sharing. The same Upload action and window are used to share photos, documents or other file types.

Why Enterprise Microblogging Matters

It certainly is easy to dismiss microblogging as "a bunch of people saying they are having coffee or heading out to lunch" and thinking that there isn't much use for it. But, if this is the case, why would Gartner predict that in less than 2 years, 50% of enterprises will be using microblogging as part of their enterprise social network solution? In this post, I would like to share some of my ideas about why enterprise microblogging is a useful and valuable tool.

Microblogging in the enterprise is a way for users to quickly communicate critical information to a broad audience and receive timely responses. You can post a question, share news, ideas, documents, and post status updates, and other people within your organization's network can reply, or comment, or simply indicate they "like" your post. In addition, with a tool like CubeTree, you can add files, photos, links and tasks to your updates.

Because you choose whose messages you'll receive by "following" specific people and groups, microblogging provides a solution to a real business problem many knowledge workers face: email overload - two simple words that describe an uphill battle we fight every day with our inbox. Trying to collaborate on projects in email often generates confusing threads with unclear requests resulting in either missed deadlines or wasted effort. Worse yet, all that effort is not reusable for others in the organization because it is locked in your Inbox. Using a social network like CubeTree for microblogging means the news feed generated stays within the enterprise and becomes a part of the company's data and is searchable and discoverable by all employees. Microblogging is much more compelling, it alleviates the struggle of keeping up with email, and actually makes your email more valuable as a messaging tool.

For example, our CEO, Lars Dalgaard recently micrblogged his pending arrival in the Shanghai office for a visit. While his visit was certainly expected, in a fast paced work environment not everyone in an office may get the notice (email overload!). The local sales rep follows Lars on CubeTree, saw his status update and was able to capitalize on the opportunity and set up a number of visits with local customers.

When employees are on the move, they can use microblogging to keep in regular contact with others. One post from the road communicates status to many and keeps projects moving forward. Microblogging with CubeTree works on many platforms (mobile devices, desktops and email) and keeps people connected regardless of their location, time zone or device.

Just this week I was traveling very early in the morning to make a meeting in California and my flight was delayed. I used CubeTree to update my status from my iPhone to let people know I'd be running a few minutes late. With one simple and short communication I was able to reach everyone in the meeting and they were able to start on time and conference me in on the taxi ride from the airport for the first part of the meeting.

So maybe those "out to lunch" and "I'm headed to SFO" status updates do matter. Posting your current activities lets people know what your availability is. If you're just out to lunch, then maybe it can wait for your return, but if you're out of the office for a few days, then they know to go to your backup. Sound familiar? It should, that's very similar to using the "out of office" assistant on your email.

Finally, it's also much easier to keep information fresh and current using microblogging rather than simply relying on other corporate data sources. While company newsletters tend to be dated, and email blasts tend to get lost or misplaced, microblogging is a quick and easy way for users to post the latest information about relevant activities.

Enterprise microblogging is a real alternative to using email to collaborate. It offers knowledge workers a quick and easy way to get valuable information into the hands of the people who need it, without the risk of losing information in a noisy inbox. It helps build a culture of innovation and collaboration while still moving critical projects forward.

All New - iPhone Update

There's a new update for the CubeTree iPhone application in the iTunes App Store. Here's what's new in the update:

Improved Group Browsing - The My Groups page has an update that includes the ability to switch between browsing groups being followed (My Groups) and any group within an organization (All Groups). Groups are presented in an alphabetical list; clicking on a group name opens the Group within the app.

New Group Action: Follow and Unfollow - When browsing a group on the iPhone app, users can now choose to follow or unfollow the group. Browsing a group on the iPhone shows the group's Title, Description, Group Wall and provides two actions: create a New Group Wall Post and Follow or Unfollow the group.

Profile Page Enhancements - Profile Pages have a new action available that allows users to Follow or Unfollow members. In addition Profile Pages now show if that user is following you or not. Browse user profile pages from the Directory Page in the iPhone app.

New Feature! View Wiki Pages - Wiki pages can now be viewed from within the iPhone app. Clicking on a Wiki page feed item opens the referenced Wiki page. Navigation located at the bottom of the screen allows for navigating back and forth through multiple Wiki pages and links. Use the button at the top left to return to the News Feed after browsing Wiki pages.

New Feature! Browse Links Within iPhone App - Clicking a link to a web page from a Feed item now opens the page from within the CubeTree iPhone app. Buttons located at the bottom of the screen allows for navigating through multiple pages. Tapping the Forward icon in the upper right corner opens the page with the built in browser (Safari) or sends an email with a link to that page. When done browsing the web page use the Done button to return to CubeTree.

Group About Page Enhancements

We have made some enhancements to the way the Group About Pages are presented to group members. About pages help new group members understand the context of the group, come up to speed and engage with other members. This often can include items such as helpful links, who to contact, where to start, the group's objectives, code of conduct, or group policies.

About Page Navigation - To make it easier to access the group wall and other content from the About Page, navigation now appears on the left of the page. Users see all the normal group navigation, including actions and links to group content as well as email subscription status and type of group (public, private or cross-company).

Group Landing Page - We received requests from Group Administrators that they wanted to change the first page that all users see when ever they access a group to the About page (changing the previous behavior of accessing the Group Wall).

Group Administrators can now choose to make the About Page the default landing page when a member enters the Group by checking the "About Page" as landing page option found in the Edit Group page.

Getting the Most out of CubeTree #4: Peer to Peer Support

Getting the most out of CubeTree can be as simple as allowing your users to innovate and use collaboration tools to improve existing job processes.

I've run into two situations where groups of physically separated users are using CubeTree to facilitate peer to peer support during live calls with customers. One at a customer site with a group of support representatives and the other internally with our own lead generation team.

Each uses CubeTree Groups before and after calls as a single, central location to store all of the materials and pertenant information. During calling hours, they use the Group Chat feature to stay connected in real-time which they have found is especially useful since they need to connect across time-zones and geographies.

Product experts from outside the teams are easily added to the conversation through CubeTree. I saw questions being asked by customer facing front-line reps directly to the product experts, while the customer was on the phone! It significantly improves the quality of the conversations and response times in a way that does not disrupt anyone's workday. A product expert can 'lurk' on the chat or the Group Wall and become active when a question is posed, while also working on other projects. It allows groups to create true, cross-functional collaborations, in real-time where results and timeliness matters most.

Using the native Group Chat application also has the advantage that the transcripts generated during the call becomes a part of the social enterprise and doesn't need to be downloaded, imported or otherwise manipulated in another system to be useful. It's simply there, on-line and discoverable when new reps start their shift, follow up reports need to be written or if someone else is interested in the conversation.

By choosing to collaborate in real-time with cross functional team members this way, the two groups are rapidly accelerating information transformation and enhancing existing processes that formerly involved traditional send and respond collaboration tools, like email. The benefits to both groups are higher productivity, increased customer satisfaction, reduced redundancy and improved communications.