ARMONK, N.Y., April 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM)
today announced that for the fifth consecutive year, IDC ranked the
company number one in worldwide market share for enterprise social
software. According to IDC's analysis of 2013 revenue, the
worldwide market for enterprise social software applications grew
from $968 million in 2012 to
$1,242 million in 2013.
1
Today more organizations aspire to become a Social Business.
Leading organizations – including 75 percent of the Fortune 100 –
are transforming how they connect, collaborate and get work done
using IBM enterprise social software.
"Customers are increasingly assuming that all applications must
be social," said Vanessa Thompson,
Research Manager, IDC Enterprise Social Networks and Collaborative
Technologies. "IBM's focus on a core social networking platform to
support application environments, such as Smarter Commerce and
Smarter Workforce aligns well with this customer
intent."2
IBM's Social Business portfolio, including its industry leading
IBM Connections and Smarter Workforce technologies, allow
organizations to integrate social solutions with critical business
applications and people-centric processes that empower employees,
increase workforce productivity and deliver exceptional customer
service. Deployed on cloud or on premises, these
solutions also enable business leaders like the Chief HR Officer
(CHRO) to attract and retain top talent when combined with social
workforce analytics that ensure the organization has the skills and
expertise to meet emerging market demands.
One such company is RHEINMETALL, a leading provider of
automotive and defense industry technologies with more than 21,000
employees worldwide. Rheinmetall first adopted IBM's Social
Business technologies more than five years ago to help unify
employee communications, drive collaboration and enhance knowledge
sharing across the organization.
"Since adopting the IBM Connections platform in 2008, we've
witnessed a remarkable transformation in how our global teams
connect and collaborate regardless of time zone, nationality or
division," said Markus Bentele,
Chief Information Officer, Rheinmetall AG. "It's been great
to see IBM continue to invest in its Social Business capabilities
over the past few years, which has helped us continue to innovate
in how we empower employees and deliver exceptional experiences to
our clients."
Tens of millions of users today rely on IBM's Social Business
software including SafeGuard World International, Superior Group,
Slumberland and many more. With IBM's leading portfolio,
organizations can apply social capabilities to all aspects of their
business including marketing, research, sales, customer service and
support, human resources, product management and R&D, and other
business functions.
"The transparent nature of today's business environment,
combined with the integration of social, cloud and analytic
capabilities into everyday processes, has fueled the emergence of a
Smarter Workforce." said Craig
Hayman, General Manager, Industry Cloud Solutions,
IBM. "We're thrilled to be recognized by IDC as the market
share leader for the fifth consecutive year as our clients continue
to harness Social Business to accelerate innovation, increase
agility and remove boundaries to collaboration."
As part of its continued investment in Social Business, IBM is
delivering open APIs through its IBM Social Business Toolkit,
making it easier for clients and partners to build an entirely new
class of cloud-based social applications on the Connections
foundation. To date, more than 600 unique Connections-based
applications have been developed by 300 ISVs including AppFusions,
Flow, HootSuite, Kaltura, and Polycom.
For more information, visit www.ibm.com/socialbusiness.
1 Source: IDC Worldwide Semiannual Software
Tracker, 2H 2013
2 Source: IDC: "IBM Connect 2014 — Getting Even
Smarter," Doc#247181, March, 2014
Contact information:
Kristi
Eells
IBM Media Relations
1-617-693-1150
keells@us.ibm.com
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SOURCE IBM