Groupware may still be the proverbial new kid on the block, but don’t tell that to either developers or network resellers. Not only is the groupware market accelerating at an unprecedented rate, but new forms of groupware and expanded functionality are pushing even the most conservative midrange shops toward adopting a groupware solution.
Any solutions vendor that isn’t taking groupware seriously should probably close its doors and start a hot dog stand. Consider this: According to International Data Corp. (IDC), in 1996, 10.5 million new users increased the groupware community to 24.3 million users. Experts predict that the groupware market will exceed $1.5 billion by the new millennium, and I think that estimate is conservative.
Why is groupware undergoing such astounding growth, and how can developers and resellers take advantage of this pattern? I think the answer is obvious: cyberadaptation.
Because the very concept of groupware is tightly woven into communications strategies, groupware developers have had to anticipate new cybertechnologies rather than merely react to them. Groupware vendors that are still a market force have had to develop creative new applications to adapt to the rapidly changing technologies and business demands generated by browser-based communications, e-commerce, and the pressure to harness Internet cyberpower.
Lotus, which finally released its much-anticipated Notes/Domino R5 in March, is a good study in adaptive strategies. Lotus has historically been an innovator and a collaborator. The company has consistently used concepts rooted in groupware—such as collaboration and knowledge-sharing—to anticipate its customers’ business needs. Lotus encourages other developers to create new products for Notes/Domino. Lately, Lotus has been looking at Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and system integrators for possible partnering opportunities. Lotus doesn’t hesitate to inquire about collaboration when it sees a good fit with Notes. Using a large and diverse pool of technical experts increases the adaptability of any product, especially groupware, which is designed to produce collaborative solutions to changing conditions.
Lotus is certainly proactive about adaptation. At the same time that it announced the GA version of Notes/Domino R5 (considered “the most important version since Release 1”), Lotus also announced two major additions to the R5 suite of tools. Lotus is obviously
content only when it anticipates the needs of its customers. Actioneer V2.0 for Lotus Notes R5 (www.actioneer.com) is a pop-up window designed to intelligently capture text from a variety of sources and distribute it at any time to the Lotus Notes calendar, to-do list, and journal database. The application is available whether Notes is open or not, and Lotus intends to add voice recognition to this tool. Lotus also entered a joint development agreement with ZOOMIT Corp. (www.zoomit.com) to provide the Domino directory with full metadirectory functionality using ZOOMIT’s Meta Manager for Domino. This new option for Domino customers simplifies directory administration, allowing other directories to be integrated into the Domino directory for a single control point. As part of the ZOOMIT announcement, Lotus is partnering with Entrust Technologies (www.entrust.com) to develop directory extensions that will allow Notes/Domino users the option of employing Entrust/public key infrastructure (Entrust/PKI) software to manage keys, certificates, and authorization lists.
The R5, Actioneer, ZOOMIT, and Entrust announcements all occurred within the span of a week or two, proving that Lotus is certainly taking a proactive approach to the changing face of groupware. Of course, not all collaborations pay off. Lotus, like all companies, has had its share of vaporware and failed projects, but in the world of cyberadaptation, it’s better to be proactive and have one failed project and two successful projects than to be reactive and leverage success at the expense of innovation.
Groupware represents another aspect of cyberadaptation: the constant expansion of the definition and functionality of what was once merely a simple messaging and data sharing system. The teamware market, an offshoot or subcategory of groupware, depending on your viewpoint, started out primarily as a project management solution but is rapidly adding the sort of groupware functionality that is starting to blur the line between groupware and teamware. For instance, Work Management Solutions (www.workmgmt.com) offers Account4, a server-based intranet application that combines project management capabilities with workflow and groupware-type reporting options. Netmosphere Inc. (www.netmosphere.com) is shipping ActionPlan, a Java-based project management system that uses many collaborative groupware techniques to manage projects, schedules, and user interactions.
Teamware and groupware use the same core principles:
• Shared work space
• Email exchange
• Collaborative documents
• Discussion capabilities Although teamware and groupware are based on many of the same concepts, they are not the same animal, and there is no clear consensus on where teamware is headed. Some products seem to meld the teamware and groupware architectures to handle both project management and cooperative group interactions. Others, such as Instinctive Technology Inc.’s eRoom (www.instinctive.com), are focused on the single task of managing projects.
My feeling is that companies should leverage their strengths rather than try to be everything to everybody. Here again, cyberadaptation rears its head: Those vendors that can anticipate technologies and have clearly defined goals will succeed, while those businesses that are unfocused and reactive will fall by the wayside of collaborative software growth.
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