Is your team equipped to adopt the communication innovations that are shaping the future of productivity?

This article explores key workplace communication trends shaping 2025 and the tools transforming how remote teams connect.  Work tracking is an innovation that helps teams navigate this shift with greater efficiency and insight.

Why Email Is Losing Ground

The landscape of remote team communication has evolved remarkably, shaped by the pursuit of swiftness, adaptability, and precision. Leaning exclusively on email risks depriving your team of the vibrancy and cohesion that contemporary platforms effortlessly deliver.

Here are some reasons why email is falling out of favor:

• Slower communication: Emails can go unread for hours or even days, delaying critical 

conversations.

• Overwhelming inboxes: Sorting through endless threads wastes time and distracts from productive tasks.

• Limited collaboration: Email is static and linear, making it hard for teams to work together in real time.

• Lack of integration: Modern workflows require tools that connect seamlessly across platforms, something email struggles to achieve.

Emerging Communication Trends in 2025

Research indicates that email is gradually losing its status as the dominant communication method in workplaces. In a recent survey, only 18% of respondents cited it as their preferred option, with just 25% of remote workers and a scant 10% of on-site staff favoring its use.

In its place, video calls and instant messaging are thriving, reflecting the increasing demand for faster and more engaging communication methods. 

These shifts are driving key communication trends that are transforming how teams connect and collaborate in 2025:

Real-Time Messaging Tools

Platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams are now indispensable in remote workplace communication, but their evolution in 2025 introduces features that redefine how teams collaborate. 

One notable trend is the incorporation of intelligent message triaging, where machine learning algorithms categorize conversations by importance and context, ensuring vital information is never overlooked. These platforms also support embedded task automation, allowing teams to initiate project updates or approvals without leaving the chat environment.

Additionally, threaded messaging and dynamic huddles are becoming increasingly popular, balancing asynchronous and synchronous communication. Slack’s Clips feature, offering bite-sized video or audio updates, has reduced dependence on traditional meetings. Microsoft Teams now supports real-time language translation, ensuring seamless collaboration across global teams. 

Such innovations amplify productivity, making these tools the nerve centers of modern work dynamics.

Asynchronous Communication

Asynchronous communication is becoming an essential part of distributed teams, enabling collaboration across time zones without disrupting workflows. A variety of tools are driving this shift, each offering unique features to enhance productivity.

• Loom allows team members to share recorded video updates, complete with built-in reaction options and timestamps for feedback, making reviews and discussions more efficient.

• Notion supports asynchronous collaboration with real-time document editing, inline comments, and automated notifications to keep everyone aligned.

• Miro provides a platform for collaborative whiteboarding, where team members can contribute ideas asynchronously and track updates with version history.

• Google Workspace continues to advance real-time collaboration with tools like shared documents and integrated notifications, ensuring seamless teamwork.

Together, these tools empower teams to work smarter and stay connected, regardless of location or schedule.

Integrated Collaboration Hubs

Platforms like Notion, ClickUp, and Asana are redefining how teams operate by consolidating essential workflows into unified systems. These tools now offer advanced capabilities that go beyond traditional project management. 

Notion, for example, supports intelligent document structuring, allowing teams to organize data hierarchically for easier navigation. ClickUp’s adaptive dashboards provide a panoramic view of project metrics, enabling leaders to pinpoint inefficiencies and make informed adjustments.

Asana is rolling out predictive workload balancing, which analyzes task allocation and suggests redistributions to prevent burnout. Deeper integrations with tools like Microsoft Teams and Jira ensure a seamless flow of information across platforms. Features like automated task sequencing and universal search further enhance efficiency. 

These hubs centralize communication, planning, and execution, creating a more cohesive remote work environment.

AI-Powered Insights

Artificial intelligence is reshaping workplace communication by introducing tools that simplify and enhance interactions. 

In 2025, platforms like Otter.ai and Fathom are setting trends with real-time transcription and action item detection during meetings. These tools not only create detailed meeting notes but also tag key decisions and follow-ups automatically, ensuring nothing important slips through the cracks.

Another innovation is AI-generated summaries of lengthy conversations or project updates provided by tools like Scribe. These summaries distill essential points, helping teams quickly align without sifting through dense information. Advanced sentiment analysis is also emerging, where AI evaluates the tone of messages or conversations to flag potential miscommunication. 

These features streamline collaboration, making communication sharper, faster, and less prone to errors.

Employee Monitoring Tools

Monitoring tools play a critical role in shaping these trends by providing insights into how communication tools are used. They help you understand what’s working and where improvements can be made. 

Here’s how they support these changes:

• Identify popular tools: Determine your team’s preferred platforms and optimize their usage.

• Track productivity: See how communication methods affect focus and efficiency.

• Analyze workflows: Understand how your team’s communication habits influence project outcomes.

• Foster accountability: Use data to ensure teams remain aligned and focused on goals.

Conclusion 

The communication tools defining 2025 range from real-time messaging and asynchronous methods to integrated collaboration hubs, AI-powered insights, and advanced monitoring platforms. These advancements are transforming teamwork by fostering more efficient and intuitive interactions. 

Embracing these solutions is about adapting to change and equipping your remote team to remain engaged, effective, and prepared to succeed in a rapidly shifting work environment.

Theoretically, it makes sense to believe that the quality of your services or products is what makes you a success. However, in a more practical sense, how people perceive the business is also very important here. 

This is where the services and expertise of a public relations agency come in handy. These agencies are the bridge that helps build relationships between a business and the people it is trying to reach. 

But this is not the only reason to get a PR agency for your business. Want to know more? Then, waste no time and continue reading to the end!   

What Exactly is a Public Relations Agency in the First Place?

Public relations agencies, commonly known as PR agencies, use strategic communication to improve a business’s image. The primary intent is to create a positive image of the business in front of the public. They can do that using different media channels and other opinion makers. 

One thing that is important to clarify here is that a PR agency is not your average advertising agency. Advertisement is quite similar to paid media, but PR is different since they use earned media aspects to their advantage. This includes things like mentions on social media platforms, news, and influencer marketers.    

What Exactly is the Role of a PR Agency?

Before we can understand why your business needs a PR agency, we must first understand their unique role. Since influencing perceptions is not always easy, the roles of these agencies can vary widely. But here are some of the most common roles of these agencies:

1. Media Relations 

One of the most important roles of a PR agency is to manage a business’s relations with the media. This helps secure more positive coverage for the business to boost credibility and visibility for a better perception. 

2. Strategic Planning 

A proper PR agency will make an effort to understand your business’s goals and develop the right strategy accordingly. This makes it easier to ensure all the relevant PR activities align with those specific goals for long-term results.     

3. Content Creation 

Content is a must for communicating a business’s message to its target audience. This is where PR agencies create articles, press releases, and social media updates to keep the audience engaged. Using the right content helps you strengthen your relationship with the target audience and foster long-term loyalty. 

4. Crisis Management 

Another role of a PR agency is to manage the crisis by controlling the narrative and offering transparent communication. This is a very important task that prevents damage to a business’s reputation when things go south. Here, they implement different crisis management strategies to deal with the situation as effectively and swiftly as possible.     

5. Reputation Management 

Public opinion over a business and media coverage is not something you can take for granted. PR agencies monitor these aspects and gauge the business’s reputation to a positive side. They quickly address any negative sentiment and reinforce positive perceptions for good. 

Why Does Your Business Need a PR Agency? 

The simple reason why your business needs a PR agency is because of the benefits that come with it. Here, we will explore some of those to help you make an informed choice:

1. Better Brand Visibility

No matter how good your products and services are, you are not making any money if people don’t know about you. This is where brand visibility comes into the picture to take your offerings to the right people. PR professionals do that with interviews, features in articles, and podcasts to gain more exposure. With connections of PR agents, it becomes easier to ensure your brand stands out in the crowd.     

2. Strong Online Presence 

Every business in the 21st century needs an effective online presence to reach their customers digitally. This is another area where the expertise of a PR agency saves the day by managing every online social channel. These agents will secure online media courage, manage social handles, and build relationships with influencers. Experts in this field will create content that strikes the right chord with your target audience.     

3. Building Trust and Credibility 

Every business knows that people will not buy things from them unless they can trust the brand. PR agencies serve a very important purpose here, which is to help a business manage its credibility and trust. They leverage third-party endorsements and organic mentions that people trust more than conventional advertisements. This is a must in a country like India, where people value authenticity a lot before buying almost anything. 

4. Enhancing Market Reach

The final reason your business needs a PR agency is to enhance its market reach. Every business strives to scale, and you cannot do that without entering new markets. Whether your expansion is local or international, PR agencies will curate the right strategy to achieve maximum results. This can be a game-changer for a business looking to break into new regions with proper communication strategies.

Final Thoughts 

The business landscape is now more competitive than ever, mainly because of rapid digitization around the globe. While there are many things you can do to beat the competition, hiring a PR agency is not an option. 

These agencies will not just protect your business’s reputation but also help you expand and seize better opportunities. You cannot afford to miss out on the potential of a competent PR agency since there is no better alternative to it.       

Some people know early on what career path they want to pursue. They have a singular focus, earn good grades in school, enroll in the right program at a reputable post-secondary institution, and find suitable jobs.

Others might head to college with no clear career focus, bounce around from job to job after graduating, and eventually settle into the right career.

According to one source citing the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, American employees made a median salary of $1,139 weekly in the first quarter of last year. That worked out to $59,228 annually. While money isn’t everything, it does factor into why many people change jobs. 

Another source notes that 45% of American workers planning to switch jobs in 2024 said they required a higher salary. So, while money isn’t the only motivating factor, it’s at least partially about the Benjamins.

Here are five reasons to consider leaving your current career and looking elsewhere.

1. Lack of Passion

It’s hard to go to work day after day if you’re not motivated, challenged, and excited about what you do. If you’re losing the passion you once had for your current job, it might be time to explore greener pastures.

Before doing so, however, ensure you’re moving on for the right reasons. Otherwise, you might find yourself in a similar situation sooner rather than later.

2. Better Work-Life Balance

According to one source, 66% of Americans lack a good work-life balance — and 48% — nearly one in two — acknowledge being workaholics. Unfortunately, many people think burning both ends of the candle and stretching themselves too thin is somehow acceptable.

Around three in four, meanwhile, see work-life balance as a key requirement when looking for a job. And 61% of them — around six in 10 — will reject a job if doing otherwise would jeopardize their work-life balance.

If work-life balance is a problem where you ply your trade, it’s worth considering how to fix things. Speaking to your employer is the first step. But if that doesn’t work, think about career change. That might be what you need to flip the page and write the next chapter in your career.

3. Lack of Growth

Another sign it might be time to explore greener pastures is if you’re no longer growing professionally. Perhaps a promotion at your company will be the right move. If not, you’ll want to explore options elsewhere so you can grow rather than stagnate.

4. Increased Earnings Potential

Sometimes people pack it up and go elsewhere because they’ve maxed out their earning potential. If your salary is as good as it’s going to get and you believe you’re worth more, finding another job elsewhere might be necessary. You can make what you’re worth at another company.

5. Job Security

Yet another reason to change careers is for job security. If you’re walking on pins and needles and fear getting a pink slip, that can make for a stressful situation. You might want to change careers for more long-term stability. Going back to school is one option.

But that route could take years. Another option is to seek out certifications you can earn online to enter a new sector altogether. The time commitment will be shorter, and you’ll have skills that can lead to a new job.

These are some reasons to consider changing careers. Before giving up your current job, however, ensure you have something lined up so you don’t find yourself without an income. As long as you think things through and don’t do things compulsively, you’re more likely to succeed.

But how exactly do you find and train these leaders, and how do you use them to their fullest potential?

The Value of Leaders in Organizational Safety

Safety is primarily a culture issue. If all your employees, managers, and supervisors believe that safety is the highest priority and are genuinely committed to enforcing that idea, your organization will be much safer. Even the best safety policies and procedures aren’t going to do anything if your employees don’t take them seriously or don’t follow them.

Leaders help establish and reinforce a safety culture in your organization, and in a multitude of ways:

•  Create and enforce policies. Strong leaders are responsible for creating and implementing policies in most contexts. They make rules and procedures that employees can follow to increase their safety on the job site. Without good leaders, your policies are going to suffer.
• Set a tone. Leaders also set a tone. This further changes employee actions dramatically based on how leaders direct them and talk to them. If leaders consistently take safety seriously and treat every possible accident as significant, employees will as well.
• Set an example. Leaders are always focused to establish an example that motivates others. If your supervisor is constantly wearing a hard hat and safety goggles, you’ll be more likely to follow suit.
• Guide employees to better habits. Your supervisors, managers, and other leaders will be responsible for guiding employees to better habits, especially if they violate or dance on the line of safety regulations. Oftentimes, a simple conversation is all it takes to help an employee adopt better safety habits.
• Hire better employees. In many organizations, leaders are primarily responsible for recruiting and hiring. They’re the ones conducting interviews and making the final decisions. Good leaders can hire better, more safety-conscious employees who will be much more likely to keep the organization safe.
• Train employees effectively. Employee safety training takes many forms, but it always needs to be handled with care and attention. Good leaders make good safety training programs and prioritize education and experience on their teams.

The Hallmarks of Strong Safety Leadership

You can tell someone is a good leader when it comes to safety based on:

• Prioritization. Does this leader treat safety as the highest, ultimate priority in the organization? If so, take it as a good sign.
•  Consistent enforcement. Strong leaders who make your organization safer also make an effort to consistently enforce safety rules and regulations. They treat everyone the same, and infractions seriously, and they do what it takes to guide both the organization and the people within it to safer habits.
•  Education and development. Excellent safety leaders make efforts to pursue education and development, both for their staff members and for themselves. They’re constantly learning new things, working with their employees, and trying to find ways to improve overall.
• Communication. And, of course, good leaders communicate openly and transparently. Employees feel comfortable approaching them with concerns, and they go out of their way to address employees with direction and feedback.

How to Find and Support Better Leaders?

How do you find and support better leaders within your organization?

Consider culture fit when hiring:

Don’t neglect the importance of cultural fit when hiring. Your organization values safety, and it will be much more likely to achieve its goals if it hires employees who similarly value safety. This is something you can gauge from the very first interview. Consider screening out candidates who seem apathetic or dismissive of safety topics, and prioritizing the higher of candidates who seem serious, professional, and value driven.

Train and promote from within: 

Similarly, you should train and promote from within, based on qualities you observe in the workplace. If you see someone who consistently follows all the safety rules, reports incidents proactively, and guides other employees to follow safety procedures, consider them an excellent leadership candidate. This way, you can select based on the best safety leadership qualities from within.

Pursue ongoing education:

Even the best safety leaders still have new things to learn, so pursue ongoing education for them. Encourage them to sign up for new seminars and workshops, and guide them to new reading materials so they can stay updated.

Reward commitment to safety: 

People respond well to incentives, so make it a point to reward the leaders in your organization who show striking commitments to safety improvement. Issuing bonuses, awards, or extra perks in exchange for maintaining a safer workplace can help already excellent performers do even better.

With better, more safety-conscious leaders in place, your organization will be safer and more consistent. Finding, training, and developing leaders can be a challenge, but it more than pays off in the end.

Microsoft has increasingly been integrating its Copilot AI across its platforms and services. In its latest integration with Teams, Microsoft says it is expanding Copilot’s abilities, specifically when it responds to prompts. The company revealed the news in [a Microsoft 365 Roadmap entry](When Copilot in Teams Meetings responds to a prompt, it will also suggest follow ups to keep the conversation going. These questions will generally be based on the response it gave prior, and could be related to honing in on a particular topic, asking for more details, or asking what a particular person said during the meeting.).

When Copilot in Teams Meetings responds to a prompt, it will also suggest follow ups to keep the conversation going. These questions will generally be based on the response it gave prior, and could be related to honing in on a particular topic, asking for more details, or asking what a particular person said during the meeting.

Microsoft’s revelation may well fall into the category “just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.” For many, Teams, Slack, and Zoom meetings are a necessary evil, so it’s unclear just how welcome it will be when an AI bot intentionally drags a meeting out.

The new feature is powered by Google Meet, but allows Google Chat users to engage in audio-first collaboration.

Powered by Google Meet, huddles let you start an audio-first meeting, making real-time collaboration easier than ever. Once the huddle has started, you can resize or drag the window, add video, or share your screen for a fuller meeting experience while multitasking in Chat.

Huddles provide a seamless collaboration experience across Chat and Meet, and can be useful in a variety of scenarios, such as two colleagues syncing quickly to discuss a project they’ve been messaging about in their Chat stream.

Google says the new feature is designed to help remove meeting fatigue.

Huddles help to reduce meeting fatigue for hybrid workers, and eliminates the need for lengthy discussions over email or in Chat. Instead of jumping out of the conversation and into a meeting, huddles integrates directly and smoothly into the Chat experience. The format of huddles also supports multi-tasking while in Chat as you can easily resize or share your screen.

The Meet button that currently resides on the Chat compose bar will be moved to the Chat headers, streamlining how users interact with it.

The Meet video button that’s currently in the compose bar of Chat is moving to the Chat header, giving you multiple options such as the ability to call, start a huddle, or share a Meet link through a single entry point.

Google has a long and complicated history with its chat platforms, trying and failing at multiple iterations. The company clearly believes its best recourse is to mimic the market leaders, which isn’t a bad idea.

Either way, the new feature should offer a nice improvement for existing users, although it’s likely not enough to poach new users from existing options.

Apple has a long history of being extremely secretive and successful in its attempts to prevent leaks about upcoming products and services. Based on an employee lawsuit, it seems some within the company believe it is going too far, infringing on the “fundemental human right” to privacy that Apple champions.

In a report by Semafor, the lawsuit says that employees must give up their own right to privacy in exchange for working at the company.

“For Apple employees, the Apple ecosystem is not a walled garden. It is a prison yard. A panopticon where employees, both on and off duty, are subject to Apple’s all-seeing eye,” the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit goes on to say that employees are encouraged to mix their home and work life and digital accounts, giving the company the ability to track what they do even when using their personal iCloud accounts and devices.

“For Apple employees, the Apple ecosystem is not a walled garden. It is a prison yard. A panopticon where employees, both on and off duty, are subject to Apple’s all-seeing eye,” the lawsuit says.

Semafor goes on to say that Apple actively discourages employees from using a work-only iCloud account, which would be the easiest way to bypass the company’s surveillance.

Apple critics have long argued that the company’s stance on privacy is more marketing than reality, with the company working hard to cash in on consumers’ growing unease with data-mining services and companies. If Apple loses this lawsuit, it will go a long way toward validating those claims, and paint the company as one that champions privacy while actively undermining it with its own employees.

Undersea cables are a critical component to internet access, linking continents and providing fast data and communications. Unfortunately, geopolitical tensions are one of the biggest threats to undersea cables, and Meta appears to be preparing an insurance policy against existing cables in the Red Sea and South China Sea.

According to Sunil Tagare, Founder and CEO of OpenCables, Meta’s new plans mark a return to the space after a nearly three year absense.

Dubbed “W” — for it’s shape, the 40,000 Km cable costing $2 Billion, will be dedicated principally to India. It will start on the East Coast of the US and go straight to India with a stop in South Africa (for powering and restoration purposes). And it will also go from India straight to the Western Coast of the US with a powering and restoration stop in Darwin, Australia — avoiding the Red Sea, the South China Sea and more importantly Egypt, Marseilles, the Straits of Malacca and Singapore — all of whom are now major single points of failure.

Interestingly, because of its massive length, latency will be an issues with the W cable. Nonetheless, Tagare says Meta believes it is an acceptable tradeoff.

While this is brilliant, what W has to compromise on is latency. But I guess it is more important to have long-term security and peace of mind than worry about despotic countries and their never-ending issues and having to make ransom payments on a regular basis as in Egypt and Yemen.

The cost of the cable will be monumental, not exactly a surprise, given its scope.

So how much money are we talking about? In round figures, I believe this is going to be about a $10 Billion++ investment over the next 5-10 years. Let me break it down. $2 Billion for the bare bones cable, $2 Billion for the equipment to light up 1 Pbps capacity — two sides (East and West) with 500 Tbps capacity each (24 fiber pairs at around 20-25 Tbps each) and this is my assumption — at least $6 Billion++ in leasing or building AI Data Center capacity in India.

Meta’s plans illustrate just how far companies are willing to go to maintain connectivity, and just how much is required to do so in response to the actions of governments that some would argue should be protecting vital technology, not threatening it.

USTelecom, representing major ISPs, submitted comments emphasizing their commitment to “excellent customer service,” citing competition and innovation as the primary drivers of continuous improvement. Unfortunately, the conclusion is probably news to many of the companies’ customers.

ISP Defense: Service Excellence in a Competitive Market

In their response to the FTC, ISPs argued that the competitive broadband landscape incentivizes excellent customer service. Citing a 2020 report, USTelecom highlighted that 90% of consumers value customer service in choosing and remaining loyal to a brand. They also pointed to billions invested in infrastructure—$94.7 billion in 2023 alone—as evidence of their dedication to meeting customer needs.

One member provider reportedly implemented advanced tools to improve the customer experience, including real-time speed testing, technician tracking, and proactive satisfaction assessments. The comments also extolled artificial intelligence (AI) as a game-changing technology that can streamline interactions, reduce wait times, and address simple queries while escalating complex issues to human agents.

ISPs insist that the competitive nature of the broadband market forces them to prioritize customer satisfaction or risk losing customers to rivals. USTelecom argued against additional regulation, saying the above factors mean existing regulatory frameworks provide sufficient consumer protection..

The Consumer Perspective: A Contradictory Reality

Many ISP customers would likely dispute the companies’ claims, as ISPs consistently rank among the least popular industries in the US. Critics argue that ISPs’ monopolistic control in many regions limits meaningful competition, leaving customers with little recourse if they’re dissatisfied with service.

Common complaints include long wait times, poor communication, and unresolved technical issues. While USTelecom asserts that AI and other technological advancements improve service, customers often report frustration with automated systems that fail to resolve their concerns.

Additionally, industry claims of “highly competitive markets” clash with the reality in many rural and underserved areas, where consumers face limited options and often subpar service quality. This lack of competition undermines the assertion that ISPs are driven to improve by market pressures.

FTC Review: A Question of Accountability

The FTC’s review of customer service practices stems from widespread consumer dissatisfaction and concerns over how ISPs manage their interactions with customers. While the industry advocates for minimal regulation, critics argue that stronger oversight is needed to protect consumers and ensure accountability.

Proposals to integrate AI into customer service have sparked mixed reactions. Proponents argue it could enhance efficiency, but detractors warn it could erode personalized service, exacerbating consumer frustration. The FTC’s findings will likely influence whether more stringent rules are implemented.

Conclusion

ISPs’ claims of “excellent customer service” contrast sharply with the industry’s poor reputation among consumers. While companies highlight competition and innovation as driving forces for improvement, customer experiences often tell a different story. As the FTC evaluates the state of customer service in the broadband sector, the gap between industry claims and consumer realities remains a critical issue. Whether regulatory intervention is necessary to bridge this divide will be a focal point in the ongoing debate.

Windows Mail and Calendar are the basic email and scheduling apps on Windows 10 and Windows 11. According to Microsoft, the company is ending support for the apps, effective December 31, 2024. Unfortunately, not only will the apps will no longer be available for download, they will also stop functioning altogether.

Support for Windows Mail, Calendar, and People will end on December 31, 2024. We’re currently in the process of moving existing users to the new Outlook for Windows. After December 31, 2024, users will no longer be able to send and receive email using Windows Mail and Calendar. Any local emails, calendar events, and contacts stored in Mail, Calendar, and People will remain exportable following the steps in Export emails and contacts from Windows Mail or People and import to new Outlook.

The company has positioned Outlook for Windows as an all-in-one successor to Mail and Calendar.

The new Outlook for Windows brings the latest features with a modern and simplified design to your Windows 11 PC. You can tailor it to your style and do more with the new Outlook for Windows! Learn more about the new Outlook for Windows.

Microsoft says Outlook for Windows is free, with no subscription required to use it. The app also includes built-in AI to help users write better emails with less mistakes. The company outlines several additional benefits.

• Streamline accounts. Now everyone can access their emails—in one spot—on every Windows device. That’s Gmail, Yahoo! and even a place for that account you use for shopping.
• Stay on top of things. Organize your appointments, share availability and events with a click, and ensure time for important people and events.
• Feel secure. Trust in Microsoft’s security to help keep your emails and documents safe from phishing and scams.
• Accomplish more. Enjoy Microsoft 365 free on the web and use Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneDrive with the click of a button.
• Stay organized. File your valuable content neatly or find it simply with universal search, make your calendar yours with multiple options and personalization capabilities, and know when your packages will arrive with package tracking.
• Unify your accounts. The new Outlook for Windows brings several advantages when it comes to managing your emails and calendars. For example, you can now view your various emails and calendar events in one place, making it easier to stay organized. This is also great for people who have accounts from multiple providers, as they can access them all from one unified inbox.

Mail and Calendar users should begin the process of exporting their data and moving to another client. Obviously, Outlook for Windows will likely offer the smoothest transition, a transition made even easier by Microsoft’s directions in the link above.

Signal support group calls, but has always required users to create a group for each call, rather than providing a way for individuals to join a call on the fly. Call links are the company’s solution.

In the past, to start a group call in Signal you needed to first create a Signal group chat, then add people, and only then could you start a group call. Not anymore! Now, you can create a quick and easy link that anyone on Signal can use to join a call without having to join a Signal group chat first.

To create a call link, open Signal on your phone or Desktop and navigate to the calls tab. Tap or click to create a call link. You can decide if you want to name your link and whether you want to have control over approving people who want to join or if anyone can join without approval. By default, you’ll have to approve people before they can join a call.

In addition to call links, the company is adding several additional features that improve the app’s videoconferencing features, putting it more on par with Zoom or Teams. The new features include a raise hand button, emoji reactions, dedicated calls tab, more options to view speakers and participants on Signal Desktop, and improved call settings.

Raise Hand Button

To make for a richer calling experience without disrupting the pace of conversation, you can use the new raise hand button or share emoji reactions.

When multiple people raise their hands in a call, anyone in the call will be able to see the list of raised hands so that everyone can keep track of whose turn it is to speak. This way, everyone can weigh in without talking over each other when you ask all your friends for their opinion.

Emoji Reactions

Emoji reactions let you give some quick feedback to whatever is being said – celebrate someone’s good news, send some love, or tell everyone that your mind is blown without having to interrupt the speaker. And if enough people share the same emoji reaction in a short amount of time, you’ll see a fun emoji burst.

Dedicated Calls Tab, Speaker View Options, and Imrpoved Call Settings

You’ll now see a dedicated tab at the bottom of your phone screen or at the left-hand side of your Desktop app screen for all of your calls. You can much more easily see your call history, call people back, and manage your call links.

You now also have more options for how you view call participants when calling via the Desktop app. You can now choose if you want to see them in Grid view, Sidebar view, or Speaker view.

We’ve updated the call control buttons, making it easier to turn your camera and microphone on or off, manage your speaker source, and see who else is in a call.

Signal is already one of the most secure encrypted messaging platforms on the market, in use by the US Senate, EU Commission, and some US military units, thanks to the high level of security it provides. With these latest changes, Signal is clearly taking aim at more traditional videoconferencing platforms, such as Zoom, Teams, or Webex.

Given the benefits Signal already provides, bolstering its videoconferencing features is a good move for the platform and its users.

General Electric CEO Jack Welch famously implemented a broad-based revamp of his sprawling organization when he took its top job in the 1980s, leaving the company much stronger than before.

David Miscavige, leader of the Scientology religion, effected a similar transformation within his organization when he became its leader around the same time.

Each organization is unique, as are the circumstances that demand transformation. However, these and other successful transformations contain helpful ideas for other leaders who see the need for change. Let’s take a closer look at some of the strategies they’ve used in the past — and continue to use today — to make the entities they lead stronger, more productive, and more resilient.

1. Understand the Full Scope of the Problem

Before your turnaround begins, you must have a comprehensive and granular understanding of what’s happening within your organization and thus what actually needs to be addressed.

There are several ways to do this, including SWOT and PACER analyses, say turnaround experts Tunde Lucaks and Chandra Venkat. You may need to use more than one method to gain full view of the problem(s) and likely solutions.

2. Prioritize Fixes According to Need

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning,” Bill Gates once said. 

That’s a rough, if imperfect, guidepost for your turnaround efforts. If you’ve identified significant customer-facing deficiencies, you need to fix those first to avoid further damage to your reputation.

Beyond these, prioritize fixes according to the impact you expect them to have on your operations. Straightforward adjustments likely to result in big operational improvements should get priority over incremental tweaks that probably won’t move the needle.

3. Right-Size Underperforming, Under-Contributing Departments

Underperforming departments (and employees) are easy targets during a turnaround. However, it’s not enough to simply reduce their headcount by an arbitrary percentage. 

Any right-sizing must consider how they contribute to the organization as a whole and what, if anything, can be done to enhance that contribution afterward. Identifying where to make cuts is only the first step, and not the most important one; leaders must ensure those cuts leave the affected departments stronger and more productive.

4. Bring in Experts With Turnaround Experience

Your organization’s ideal leaders during good times are unlikely to be its ideal leaders during difficult times. Some of the most successful turnaround stories, including those of companies like Apple and FedEx, involved “new blood” brought in from outside the organization to effect the necessary changes. 

In Apple’s case, the company’s board brought back one of its founders, reasoning that he was the best person to take it in a new direction more responsive to its customers’ needs.

5. Clearly Communicate With the Rank and File

Change is hard. Dramatic change of the sort we’re discussing here is especially difficult for affected employees and other stakeholders. Transparency is warranted throughout the process, from initial announcement through the endgame.

Clear and forthright communication with affected individuals is especially important, not just for decency’s sake but to minimize misunderstandings. Even if you feel you don’t “owe” stakeholders an explanation for the difficult but necessary decisions you’re making, being transparent means you’ll encounter less pushback and find yourself in a stronger position to overcome any that does occur.

6. Avoid the Blame Game

Recriminations are counterproductive under any circumstances, least of all a high-stakes turnaround effort during which everyone should be rowing in the same direction. What matters is not how you got here in the first place but how you and your team will meet the moment and move forward.

7. Help Employees Feel Like They’re Part of the Effort (And Working Toward a Shared Goal)

Teams composed of engaged employees are 22% more productive than their counterparts, according to an analysis by organizational dynamics expert John Baldoni. By involving each employee in the turnaround effort — a process that begins with transparent and clear initial communication — you may put them (and the effort itself) in a better position to succeed.

8. Plan Beyond the Inflection Point

Turnaround efforts do not always have well-defined ends. However, if they are well-planned, it should be clear when they’ve reached an inflection point where success begins to build on itself. 

This might manifest as the first quarter of sales, revenue or net income growth at or above a predefined goal, or as the week during which a majority of internal teams meet their own more granular metrics, or something else entirely. 

Whatever the case, your turnaround plan should reflect the fact that this is not the time to take your foot off the gas. On the contrary, it’s time to double down on what’s working and lean into the positive results thus far.

Turnarounds Don’t Happen All At Once

Indeed, the larger the organization, the longer it takes to turn around. The marine metaphor is apt here: A speedboat is far more nimble on the water than a cargo ship, all other things held equal.

The duration and complexity of successfully turning around a large corporate entity, nonprofit or government department is no reason not to try, of course. The alternative — doing nothing and hoping against hope that conditions improve on their own — is simply not an option.

As with any major initiative, what’s likely to make the difference in your upcoming turnaround effort is effective planning. These eight strategies should all factor into that plan, but they won’t be enough to get it across the finish line. A more granular gaming-out of the process that breaks it up into hundreds of discrete tasks, each with their own owners, deadlines and in-task milestones, is necessary. Close monitoring of each deliverable, as well as the overarching progression, must be done as well.

This work will take multiple quarters, if not years. Setbacks will inevitably occur. Little will come easily. 

Yet it must be done. And no one is better placed than you to do it.

Yes, some companies will accept hands-on experience in lieu of educational accomplishments. However, your education could set you apart from other candidates in a competitive process to fill a position. There may be multiple candidates who are more or less equal on paper. In such situations, a company might need a tie-breaker and could select the candidate with the more desirable educational background.

Even after earning a degree at a post-secondary institution, you may want to broaden your skill set with professional certifications. Doing so could further set you apart from other skilled candidates. The good news is that pursuing them won’t cost as much or take as long as earning a degree. But professional certifications can be game-changers in various ways.

Continue reading to see seven benefits of earning professional certifications relevant to your job.

1. Increases Credibility

One reason why professional certifications matter is that earning them can increase credibility. A prospective employer will assume that candidates with relevant professional certifications from reputable organizations have certain desirable skills.

Whether you’re applying to be a human resources executive, information security professional, forklift operator, or customer service representative, professional certifications can boost your credibility over other candidates. The right certifications can be a game-changer.

2. Shows Commitment to Career Growth

Another reason professional certifications make sense is they demonstrate commitment to career growth. It shows employers or prospective employers that you take your career or job seriously and want to grow your skill set and advance in your profession. 

Technology is changing every day. You can’t afford to rest on your laurels and remain stagnant since staying put is akin to falling behind. Professional certifications demonstrate a commitment to your career.

3. Improves Job Security

Yet another reason to consider professional certifications is the improved job security. You may be more valuable to your company if you’re one of a handful of employees with professional certifications. That can reduce the odds of getting the dreaded pink slips if downsizing is on the horizon.

4. Expands Job Opportunities

Focusing on your career can open up more advancement opportunities. So, it’s not just about getting or retaining a job. Professional certifications can help you climb the corporate ladder and even branch out if you wish.

5. Boosts Earning Potential

Depending on the company and job description, you could be in line for a higher salary if you earn professional certifications. Some jobs are in higher demand than others. So, if you have skills in high demand in a field with a lack of qualified candidates, demonstrating your range of skills could warrant a higher starting salary, a raise, or a promotion.

6. Enhances Professional Network

Taking advantage of educational opportunities to better yourself and grow in your career can help you expand your professional network. Whether studying in a classroom or online, there’ll be opportunities to connect with like-minded individuals. It’s always a good idea to develop and nurture your professional network. Your next job could come courtesy of a recommendation from someone in your network.

7. Creates Opportunities to Specialize

Yet another benefit of pursuing professional certifications is that they can help you focus and specialize. Sometimes, specialization can be a game-changer and fast-track your career trajectory. Going this route may also increase your value to your employer.

These are some of the benefits of earning professional certifications. You can grow professionally and personally by pursuing more training and education. Depending on your employer, you may not even have to pay out of pocket for training relevant to your job since your employer might foot the bill.

Read AI provides notes, live transcription, reports, and recordings of meetings, such as those conducted via Zoom, Slack, Teams, Google Meet, and more. The company is expanding its offerings, securing $21 million in Series A funding to further its development.

Along with the Series A, Read introduces gen AI summaries, “Readouts”, for email and messaging on Gmail, Outlook, Teams, and Slack. Read’s intelligent agents work quietly in the background, enabling your meetings, emails, and messages to interact with each other. This connected intelligence unifies your communications and empowers you and your team with personalized, actionable briefings, tailored to your needs and priorities.

“Read is about getting to the heart of work – creating value, not sorting emails, expanding threads, and sitting in meetings,” said David Shim, Co-Founder and CEO of Read AI.

“Read AI brings together your meetings, emails, and messages and transforms them into collaborative partners, so that they talk to each other, share information, offer updates, find answers, and organize tasks through connected intelligence. By turning dialogue into action, Read ensures every conversation moves you to value and impact,” said Shim.

AI assistants have become a popular option for companies and organizations that rely heavily on videoconferencing platforms, giving users an easy way to go back through a meeting and pull out key points without having to watch a recording of the entire event. Read AI has capitalized on the trend, establishing itself as a key player in the space.

“Read AI empowers every knowledge worker to spend radically less time on process – meetings, emails, and messaging – and more time on what matters most: creating value,” said Coddy Johnson, Partner at Goodwater, and incoming board member. “Everyone from college students to project managers to oil field supervisors and startup entrepreneurs agree – and they are adopting Read at a historic pace. Based on third-party data analysis, Read AI is not only the fastest-growing meeting note-taker, it is also one of the fastest-growing consumer utility apps of all time.

“David and his team’s vision has already transformed the meeting experience of hundreds of thousands of users. With the launch of connected intelligence, it will soon transform the working experience for millions of consumers and the businesses, schools, institutions, and homes they support,” said Johnson.

As Zoom points out in its press release, regulatory compliance, often relating to cybersecurity, has become a growing challenge for business.

Join our chat on Zoom’s latest advanced enterprise features!

In 2023 alone, over $549 million in non-compliance penalties were issued globally, more than 353 million individuals were impacted by security breaches, and 31 percent of enterprises experienced unstable network or bandwidth constraints. Companies face urgent pressures to manage often complex compliance obligations, avoid hefty fines, safeguard their reputations against security threats, and prevent user dissatisfaction stemming from unreliable connectivity. Zoom’s newest additions to its advanced enterprise offerings are poised to help companies overcome these challenges.

Zoom is adding four features designed to help enterprise companies.

• Zoom Compliance Manager Plus: Launched in March and powered by Theta Lake, Zoom Compliance Manager (ZCM) is an all-in-one offering that provides archiving, eDiscovery, legal hold, and information protection offerings for enterprises. Zoom Compliance Manager Plus enhances ZCM with advanced features such as risk detection, data loss protection, and advanced trends analysis. These enhanced capabilities will further help organizations fulfill regulatory obligations and mitigate organizational communications compliance risks.
• Zoom Meeting Survivability: Introduces a new level of network redundancy and enables business continuity, helping to ensure uninterrupted Zoom meeting service even during internet disruption due to outages from a storm, natural disaster, or carrier failure. Utilizing Zoom Node, a central hub for hosting Zoom workloads on premises, this functionality keeps meetings running smoothly via a failover to data centers where meetings are hosted on your local servers with minimal disruption to the end users.
• Zoom Mesh for Meetings: With Zoom Mesh, companies can optimize bandwidth usage and save up to 60 percent on internet bandwidth and associated costs. Already available for Zoom Webinars and Zoom Events, this capability now extends to Zoom Meetings for an exceptional user experience regardless of bandwidth constraints.
• Zoom Customer Managed Key (CMK) Hybrid: CMK Hybrid enhances Zoom’s current CMK data privacy offering by providing customers with more options to manage the encryption keys used to protect data maintained by Zoom. CMK Hybrid allows customers to control the entire encryption/decryption process on premises. Zoom Team Chat messages, for example, can be encrypted locally by the Zoom Workplace app (some Zoom cloud-based Team Chat functionalities will not be available as a result). Zoom CMK Hybrid will be available for Zoom Workplace starting with the support of Zoom Team Chat in Q4 2024.

“Zoom’s advanced enterprise offerings reflect our commitment to empowering businesses and providing them with offerings that enable them to be more efficient, secure, compliant, and reliable,” said Smita Hashim, chief product officer, Zoom. “Our advanced enterprise products and features are essential tools built for Zoom Workplace and Zoom Business Services like Zoom Events and Zoom Contact Center that work behind the scenes as part of the Zoom network infrastructure to provide exceptional experiences to our customers. Our goal is to make communication and collaboration on Zoom foolproof, future-proof, and fail-proof.”

Zoom has been building out its enterprise offerings, increasingly competing against Microsoft and Google in the office and collaboration space. These latest editions should go a long way toward helping enterprise companies meet the growing security and regulator challenges they face.

Teams is Slack’s primary rival in the business communication and collaboration market, with Team passing Slack’s user base years in no small part as a result of being bundled with the rest of Microsoft’s software ecosystem.

Catch our chat on why Disney ditched Slack for Microsoft Teams!

Following a breach that saw some 44 million messages from Disney’s Slack channels leaked online, the company decided to drop Slack in favor of other tools. What was not immediately known was which option Disney decided to adopt, with reports simply saying the company was rolling out “enterprise-wide collaboration tools.”

According to Business Insider, it appears Microsoft Teams is the winning solution, although many users are not happy with the change. In fact, a number of them have been voicing their discontent on Blind, the anonymous forum for individuals to discuss their jobs.

“Teams is horrible,” wrote one employee.

“So terrible,” added another.

Some employees evidently also voiced concern over losing access to archived content and communications as part of the move.

Disney CFO Hugh Johnston said the transition would target Q1 FY25 for most use cases, with “more complex use cases” transitioning away from slack in Q2 FY25.

Microsoft’s Teams Problem

The comments by Disney employees underscores the issues Microsoft has with Teams. While the software may technically have more users than Slack, Slack remains the favorite option among many users—both current and former. Teams is often criticized for being more cumbersome and less intuitive than Slack.

Despite Slack being the preferred option for many, Teams is more widely deployed thanks to its integration with the rest of Microsoft’s products. As early as 2019, Teams had nearly double Slack’s daily users when it topped 20 million. From that point on, Teams’ usage skyrocketed, with the app boasting 270 million monthly active users in early 2022.

Teams’ unfair advantage became so pronounced that Slack lodged a formal complaint with the EU, prompting Microsoft to stop bundling Teams with Office. Despite Microsoft’s actions, rumors circulated in late 2023 that the EU was preparing to move forward with a formal complaint against the company.

Ultimately, Microsoft needs to improve Teams to the point where people actually want to use it, rather than being forced to use it because it was bundled with their other software, or because corporate leadership is abandoning a Teams competitor in response to a data breach.

Until Microsoft improves Teams to that degree, Slack will continue to be the more popular option among users, even if Teams has the bigger user base.

Disney’s Memo In Full

Below is the full memo that was sent to employees, courtesy of Business Insider:

Fellow Employees and Cast Members,

Collaboration is at the heart of our employee culture. It connects us to each other, our work, and ultimately our guests and consumers — fueling the creativity required to make Disney magic.

How we work and collaborate together is equally important, and where we have opportunities to leverage more integrated tools and platforms we should. As some of you are aware, many teams have already begun their transition to streamlined enterprise-wide collaboration tools.

As part of this work, I would like to share that senior leadership has made the decision to transition away from Slack across the company. Our technology teams are now managing the transition off Slack by the end of Q1 FY25 for most businesses, with DX and more complex use cases following in Q2 FY25. This will help integrate our collaboration tools with some of the new platforms already being put in place. These teams are planning and overseeing key workstreams to support this transition, with a focus on reinforcing current TWDC policies for work-related collaboration.

We are excited about the alignment and productivity that will be unlocked as we streamline our collaboration platforms, and we appreciate your patience as we navigate new ways of working together.

Much more information, training resources, and best practices for optimal work-related collaboration and reinforcement of policies regarding secure handling of sensitive information will be shared over the coming weeks by your respective technology teams.

Thanks,

Hugh

Google launched a series of good-natured ads in mid-2023, comparing the differences between the Android-powered Pixel and the iPhone. The ad series struck a chord with viewers, offering a humorous take on the Android/iOS rivalry.

Catch our chat on Google’s Pixel ad welcoming the iPhone “to a new texting era!”

In the latest ad, Google’s Pixel welcomes the iPhone “to a new era of texting,” thanks to the iPhone now supporting RCS messages.

RCS is the successor to SMS, offering a number of features found in dedicated chat platforms, as well as iMessage. Most notably, RCS offers high-quality media sharing, file sharing, read receipts, group management, and more. Although cross-platform RCS doesn’t yet support end-to-end encryption, Google and Apple are working to implement it.

Apple famously refused to support RCS for years, falling back to the inferior SMS for iPhone > Android communication. After pressure from Google and Samsung, as well as other companies and lawmakers, the iPhone maker finally gave in and began supporting the newer standard in iOS 18. To be clear, iMessage is still used for communication between iPhones, but RCS replaces SMS as the fallback option.

Google is clearly happy about the decision, and its latest video is proof of that.

Disney suffered a massive breach this summer when the Nullbulge hacker group stole and leaked some 1.1 terabytes of information, including personal customer and employee information; financial information; login credentials; and more. Included in the data was some 44 million Slack messages from Disney’s channels.

Tune in to our chat on Disney ditching Slack—”not happy” doesn’t even cover it!

Not only did the breach include Slack data, but Slack was evidently the weak point hackers used to gain access to the data, compromising a single employee’s computer via their Slack cookies.

In the wake of the breach, it appears Disney is done with Slack. Reuters reports that CFO Hugh Johnston, writing in the Status media newsletter, says the company will be transitioning away from Slack. Some teams have evidently already begun the transition to “enterprise-wide collaboration tools.”

The move is a major blow to Slack, especially from the standpoint of reputation and prestige. It’s one thing for a bad actor to infiltrate a company and then steal data that may involve a certain app, but it’s quite another for a bad actor to use that app as part of their attack.

Despite the optics, it seems unlikely Slack is to blame, with a Slack spokesperson reaching out to WPN to confirm the issue was not the result of a vulnerability in the platform.

“At this time, there is no evidence this issue was the result of a vulnerability inherent to Slack,” the spokesperson said.

RCS is the successor to SMS, offering many of the feature found in more advanced messaging platforms, such as iMessage, Signal, and WhatsApp. Unfortunately, prior to iOS 18, iOS would fall back to SMS when communicating with Android, losing out on all the features iMessage normally provides. Starting with iOS 18—after years of pressure from Google, other companies, and lawmakers—Apple has finally added support for RCS as a fallback option.

Listen to a podcast conversation on Apple’s support for RCS. A new chapter for messaging!

The GSMA took the opportunity to tout the importance of the decision, saying it ushers in “a new chapter for mobile messaging.”

Today, we are celebrating a significant milestone in the evolution of messaging with the launch of Rich Communication Services (RCS) support on iPhone with the release of iOS 18. This launch is the culmination of years of collaboration across mobile operators, device manufacturers, and technology providers. It represents a step forward in bringing RCS’s feature-rich messaging to more users across both iOS and Android.

With RCS Universal Profile now available in iOS and on Android, users can take advantage of features like typing indicators, read receipts, high-quality media sharing, and improved group messaging when communicating with contacts on other platforms. Now users across both platforms can benefit from a richer, more reliable and seamless messaging experience than SMS and MMS.

At the same time, the GSMA acknowledges there’s still work to be done, specifically in regard to E2EE.

While this is a major milestone, it is just the beginning. The next major milestone is for the RCS Universal Profile to add important user protections such as interoperable end-to-end encryption. This will be the first deployment of standardized, interoperable messaging encryption between different computing platforms, addressing significant technical challenges such as key federation and cryptographically-enforced group membership. Additionally, users will benefit from stronger protections from scam, fraud, and other security threats.

The addition of interoperable E2EE will be a major boon for both iOS and Android users, ensuring communications between the two platforms remain private and secure. This is especially important for journalists, activists, and other individuals whose livelihood—or even their lives—depend on secure communication.

Traditionally, you can use original methods of creating training resources when trying to bring under-skilled employees to the proper level. This would include broad, general resources or training custom-made for your business, which are much more effective. Regardless of the medium, high quality training usually focuses on a few aspects. It helps to highlight proven market growth opportunities in the past, while also providing exposure to future research, innovation, and business practices. This combination of both past and future mindsets helps a company learn from its mistakes, and more importantly, set a proper plan to guide it in the future. But what exactly does training do for employees?

The Importance of Skills Based Training

Skills based training has several implicit and explicit benefits. On the explicit side, you provide employees with more education on a variety of subject matters. This serves to enhance their skills, expand their broader knowledge base, and improve an employee’s holistic performance. Conversely, more employee training has the main merit of increasing employee satisfaction. This satisfaction, in turn, means a much higher employee retention percentage and attracting top level talent due to the positive work environment. However, despite the benefits that traditional training resources bring, it might not be enough for businesses seeking a rapid pivot.

As many as 62 out of every 100 leaders say they aren’t fully prepared to respond to new technology and talent challenges. However, challenges with technology and talent are not mutually exclusive issues. While overtrained and expert employees can help a business sustain itself, these issues are compounded when a business experiences both simultaneously. Around 42% of C-suite leaders corroborate this sentiment and feel skill shortages are a substantial issue when attempting to pivot a business. With this in mind, novel technology may be the key to helping businesses swiftly adapt to hardships.

Conclusion

Companies like YU Global, have been revolutionizing the way training is made via the power of AI. Beyond the normal benefits, AI-enriched training holds many more merits than traditional training methods. In addition to traditional benefits, these new resources help employees deepen their area of expertise and yield measurable benefits via metrics like return on investment (ROI). Not only that, but these resources come at a cost-effective rate and after only a few weeks of custom course development. Ultimately, whether you’re trying to save your business from trouble or trying to advance it into the future, YU Global can help you efficiently adapt your business.