We’re buried in email — it’s the simple truth. Many organizations and individuals default to email as the primary mode of communication, and it’s seen as the “work” channel. You might use text messages, instant messaging, and social media in your personal life, but “work email” is a familiar phrase and is used to describe how we get things done in the office. But technology has moved far beyond this, and what we should be doing is efficiently utilizing the appropriate modes of communication within our professional lives to reach the desired outcome with the lowest amount of effort, server load, and time. Utilizing your organization’s investment in mobility and collaboration technology can go a long way to solving this issue.

If I’m not watching my inbox like a hawk, I don’t feel like I’m working. If I leave my inbox unsupervised for even a short amount of time during the day, I feel like I’m neglecting my responsibilities. The other day I heard it referred to as “watching your inbox closer than you watch your kids”, and it hit home. The amount of time that we waste (yes, waste) checking, sending, and receiving email is astronomical. This doesn’t just strain your personal efficiency; it can also have implications on your company’s mail servers, particularly if you’re a heavy user of large attachments such as presentations.

Speaking of using attachments, this is a particular aspect of the issue that I see time and time again – individuals and teams mistakenly using email as a tool for workflow: reviewing, approving, and firing attachments of different document versions all over the place. This is not what it was meant to be! There are a ton of fantastic alternatives for managing communications and workflow. Let’s take a look at a few scenarios and solutions that can help to break apart how we communicate so that we can engage effectively.

Use the phone

Particularly with younger generations (of which I am a part), this is often not the go-to method of communication even concerning quick questions. Sending it in an email gives you the feeling that you can strike it off of your to-do list. But really, you can’t – not until you get an answer. All it does is add to the clutter and open up the potential for it to get lost either on your plate or on the plate of the individual you’re reaching out to. Mind you, hitting someone’s voicemail isn’t always the best thing either – and that’s why I love BlackBerry® Mobile Voice System for allowing me to be reached at a single number whether I’m using my desk phone or BlackBerry smartphone.

Enterprise instant messaging

I’ve come to love this over the past few months. Many organizations have enterprise instant messaging implemented internally, and even better, hooked into an employee directory. Even if I’ve never met or spoken with an individual before, I’ll often shoot over a quick IM if it’s something that can be resolved with a “yes”, “no”, or simple response. This way, even if they’re on a call, they can often multitask to give me what I need quickly, without leaving a trail of messages all over the place. These solutions often include file sharing or again, in the case of BlackBerry Unified Communications and Collaboration (UCC) solutions, you can one-click to start a call from an instant messaging conversation. Better yet, you can take your internal IM solution mobile on your BlackBerry smartphone by utilizing these solutions. Quick questions and quick answers follow me wherever I go, without causing pile-up in my inbox.

Centralize document storage and management

Instead of emailing documents as attachments, loading down mail servers, and running the risk of confusing versions, it’s important to centralize document storage and management. Does your organization have a solution for this? Is it mobile-friendly, and feature-rich? Microsoft® SharePoint® is an example of one that fits the bill for many companies. With the BlackBerry Client for Microsoft SharePoint, you’re able to download documents, open and edit them with Documents To Go®, and send them back up into SharePoint with full version control. The BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet browser is also a fantastic vehicle for accessing internal web apps, whether connected via Wi-Fi® or through BlackBerry® Bridge™ on your smartphone for true mobility.

BlackBerry Messenger for business

BlackBerry® Messenger (BBM™) isn’t just for organizing weekend BBQs with friends; it’s also a fantastic tool for mobile communication on work topics. Organizing colleagues and teams into BBM groups can help keep things clean in your contact list, and you can even send files and voice notes up to 6MB. If you don’t have access to mobile enterprise instant messaging, this is a great way to get in touch with your coworkers quickly and efficiently. Knowing when someone has received and read your message allows you to operate and communicate confidently on this platform. We use it constantly here at RIM® (I’d hope so!) and I’ve certainly felt the benefits of having quick and simplified access to everyone on my team.

Third party apps

There are a ton of collaboration and communication apps available in the BlackBerry App World™ storefront, including cross-platform apps. Figure out what works best for your particular style of work, and based on the pain points in your current communication structure, and go wild trying some of these out. Cloud storage solutions are great examples of available apps that can help make your life easier at work, especially for small businesses.

Bonus: Easy scheduling across organizations, and one-click conference calls

Worth mentioning in this type of post are Tungle.me and BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing. Tungle allows you to share your availability, and view the basic availability of others, regardless of what platform you’re using and whether or not you’re in the same organization. This is great for sales teams in particular who are working to set up appointments with external contacts. With BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing, you can save multiple conference profiles on your BlackBerry smartphone and never worry about adding in your conference details to an invite, or having to input them by hand when you’re an attendee. Just hit “Join Now” and you’re off!

The point is that there are so many more modes of communication available outside of email. Email should be used effectively and certainly holds a foundational purpose in our collaboration, but the myriad of available apps, instant messaging solutions, document management, and workflow tools shouldn’t be ignored. I’m willing to bet that you could shave off hours from your workweek by engaging in thoughtful and efficient communication in your workplace.

To find out more about BlackBerry communication and collaboration solutions, head over to www.blackberry.com/collaboration. Specifically, take a peek at the BlackBerry Client for Microsoft SharePoint, BlackBerry Mobile Voice System, and BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing.

How do you manage workflows and collaboration while on the go? What are your favorite tools, apps, or solutions? Share in the comments below.

Editor’s Note: BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing 3.0 is now out of beta and available from BlackBerry® App World™. Get it here!

We’re excited to announce that the third version of BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing is now available in the BlackBerry Beta Zone. For those unaware, BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is an app that makes conference calls using BlackBerry smartphones a breeze. Key features include automatic recognition of conference call details within calendar invitations, a “Join Now” button for calls, conversion from an email to a meeting invitation, one-click reconnection to a lost call, and more. All you need to run BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing 3.0 is a BlackBerry smartphone running BlackBerry® Device Software 5.0 or higher. For all of the details and to watch a video demonstration, check out the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing web site.

What’s new in this version?

• Conference Call Recognition for the UK

We’re excited to roll out support for the United Kingdom, where BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is now available and built to recognize UK calling codes and conference information.

• App Icon on your Home Screen

You’ve asked for it, and now we’ve included it. With BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing 3.0, you’ll see an icon on your home screen that provides easy access to help, demos, and app sharing.

• Feature Demos

New to BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing? Now you’ll be able to access video demonstrations and explore key features right from within the app. This will allow you to get familiar with the app and help to increase your mobile conferencing efficiency.

• App Sharing

Are your colleagues irritable about having to enter conference codes and pin numbers? Use the App Sharing feature to send a BlackBerry® App World™ download link and get all of your friends on board the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing 3.0 train.

We’re committed to improving the everyday life of BlackBerry smartphone users worldwide, and BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing 3.0 has taken a great step forward with the convenience of connecting individuals at the touch of a button.

Join the Beta

BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing 3.0 is currently available in the BlackBerry Beta Zone. Head over, sign up (or login), and grab the app today. Be sure to explore BlackBerry Beta Zone and provide feedback on how you’re using the app! The full launch is expected in early February 2012 on BlackBerry App World.

What new feature are you most looking forward to? Has BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing saved you time? Share in the comments below.

The introduction of the free BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing app in June was a huge hit with BlackBerry® smartphone users, and we received a great amount of positive feedback as well as suggestions for improvement through the BlackBerry® Beta Zone community. Today I’m excited to announce that BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing version 2.0 is available on the BlackBerry® App World™ storefront. IT managers also have the option of downloading the app from our Software Download Site and pushing the app to end-users.

For those who are unfamiliar with the app, BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is designed to make your mobile conferencing experience far simpler and more convenient. The app is designed to automatically pull conference call information out of invitations and appointments on your BlackBerry smartphone. It then takes that information and creates a simple one-click “Join Now” button that pops up at the meeting time or the meeting can be accessed from within the appointment in your calendar. On top of this ease of access, you can reconnect with one click if you drop from a call. The app also allows you to manage your own conference profiles which can be included in appointments and invitations. See the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing website for further details.

The app is still free, and is designed to operate whether you’re on a BlackBerry® Enterprise Server or on the BlackBerry® Internet Service. Mobile Conferencing is currently available in the United States and Canada only, with plans to expand to additional regions in the near future.

Here’s what’s new in version 2.0:

Improved Detection of Conference Call Details
The Mobile Conferencing app is designed to now recognize even more conference information when it is included in invites and calendar appointments, and automatically allow attendees to “Join Now”.

Conference Call ID
Now you can more easily recognize and keep track of past calls. When you join a conference call, the meeting subject will now appear as the caller ID on your smartphone, as well as in your call history. This also means that past conference calls will appear in your Universal Search on BlackBerry® 6 and BlackBerry® 7 OS smartphones, again named by meeting invite subject. Lastly, on BlackBerry 7 OS devices, the voice-enabled Universal Search results can also pull up these past conference calls by subject.

Conference Profiles Increased to 10
Users can instantly add preset conference call details to almost any meeting they schedule by selecting from up to ten stored profiles.

Private Moderator Codes
BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is designed to now manage participant and moderator information to help maintain confidentiality. Invites sent using conference profiles stored on your BlackBerry smartphone will now only contain the participant code when viewed by attendees. If you are the moderator of a conference call, the app will check with your stored conference information and provide you with the moderator code automatically.

Convert an Email Thread into a Conference Call
Help put an end to long email threads by scheduling a conference call with email participants in just a few clicks. The sender and recipients are included as attendees, the subject of the email becomes your meeting subject, and the body is copied into the invite automatically. Just add your conference details from a stored profile, click send, and you’re all set.

To learn more, check out the Mobile Conferencing website as well as the original blog post for version one. To download BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing, head over to BlackBerry App World.

Do you use BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing regularly? What’s your favorite feature? Share in the comments!

The BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing app has been a huge hit with the BlackBerry business community, which comes as no surprise to me considering how often the app is used in my everyday work life. We introduced the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app in June, and today we’re excited to announce an updated version of the app that brings even more functionality.

As a reminder, BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is a free app (available in BlackBerry App World™) that integrates with your BlackBerry® smartphone’s calendar to make joining and scheduling calls easy while on the go. When it’s time to jump on a call, you can simply press the “Join Now” button that appears with the calendar alert. Check out the additional features offered in the new version of Mobile Conferencing below:

Convert an Email to a Conference Invitation

Now you can shift your conversation from email to a conference bridge quickly and simply. Use the “Schedule Conference” menu option on any email to create a calendar invitation with the same individuals on the email thread, subject, and message notes. Check out the screenshot above for an example.

Manage up to 10 Conference Profiles

If you’re like me, you’re constantly hosting conference calls as well as attending them, using a variety of conference bridges. The BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app has been designed not only to provide ease of access and connection to these calls, but also to help you manage the variety of conference bridges that you use by allowing up to 10 conference profiles to be stored on your device.

Improved Conference Call Detection Algorithm

The app has done a great job of detecting conference call information and automating the process, and now the algorithm behind this process is better than ever. Using feedback from users, we’ve increased the “intelligence” of the conference call detection, including more conference description formats and language constructs.

Improved Hidden Moderator Code

When you’re scheduling conference calls from your desktop, you can now send only the participant information and keep your moderator or host code hidden. For meeting invites that only include participant information, the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app will automatically search for matching bridge information in your conference profiles. If it finds a match, it will dial you in with the moderator code from the corresponding profile and connect the conference when you press “Join Now”.

Support for BlackBerry 7 and Liquid Graphics

All of the new BlackBerry® 7 OS smartphones will support the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app, including the BlackBerry® Bold™ 9900 and 9930 smartphones, as well as the BlackBerry® Torch™ 9810, 9850 and 9860 smartphones. If you have yet to upgrade, BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is also supported by BlackBerry® Device Software v5.0 and BlackBerry® 6 OS.

These improvements have all been made as a result of user feedback and dedication to the solution. Most of us use conference bridges every day, and we love a tool that simplifies and automates the process just as much as you do.

Get the new BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app for free from BlackBerry App World, where you can find it in the Business Tools category. Or, to learn more, check out the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing web site.

You may have read our previous post about the BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing app becoming available in BlackBerry Beta Zone. Well, we’re pleased to announce that BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is now featured in the BlackBerry App World™ storefront and is available for download! The app is currently available in North America.

BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing makes your mobile conferencing experience easier. The app is designed to automatically pull conference call information out of invitations and appointments. When your meeting starts, you can simply click a “Join Now” button to get connected.

The best part is that the entire process is automatic and seamless. But that’s just the beginning: In addition, this app is designed to allow you to reconnect your BlackBerry® smartphone with one click if you drop from a conference call. This feature is especially convenient for those on the move.

Now you have a place to save your personal conference bridge details for easy access from your calendar — simply save the information to your conference profile in your calendar options for seamless use when scheduling your next meeting. I’ve been using BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing for some time now, and I can certainly attest to the simplicity that it’s brought to my conference calling on the go.

Try it out, and don’t forget to tell us what you think! We’ll also be happy to answer any questions that you may have. Head over to the BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing website to learn more about the app, and be sure to check out the featured items list in BlackBerry App World for a quick and easy download of BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing.

How often do you participate in conference calls using your BlackBerry smartphone? Share in the comments!

If you’re like me, you probably spend a lot of time on conference calls – and if you’re on the go, a lot of those calls are done on your smartphone. With work days being so hectic, we’re always looking for a solution to make connecting easier – so we’re happy to announce that BlackBerry® Mobile Conferencing is now available (and FREE!) in BlackBerry Beta Zone.

BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing was designed to offer the following features:

• Calendar Integration: The BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing application integrates with the Calendar application on your BlackBerry smartphone for maximum convenience.
• One Click Join: When it’s time for your meeting appointment to begin, you get a pop-up display that can dial into the meeting without you having to remember or dial lengthy phone and access code combinations.
• Reconnecting: If your call accidentally drops from the conference, the application allows you to reconnect with one easy click.
• Smart Number Selection: When there are multiple phone numbers in the invitation for participants in different locations, the application is designed to choose the most appropriate number for you (limited to North American phone numbers only). You can also choose to change the suggested dial-in number manually.
• Easy Conference Scheduling: Turn almost any meeting invite into a conference call with just a single click. You can also store reservationless or recurring conference information to your conference profile on your BlackBerry smartphone so you can include it in conference call meetings you schedule from your device.
• Protect Your Host Codes: When sending conference call meeting invitations using conference profile information, participants see only the information they need to join the call. Moderator codes are kept hidden and only used to join the meeting organizer into conference calls in cases where the code is required to open the conference bridge.

Note: The BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing application requires BlackBerry® Device Software version 5.0 or later, and is only available for US and Canada users at this time.

BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing is designed to make scheduling, joining and rejoining conference calls from your device quick and easy. Plus, because it’s an app, it’s easy to deploy and manage for the IT admin in your life!

Hope you’ll check it out and let us know what you think!