• We have not yet seen organisations make effective use of collaboration software as one entity – seamlessly using email, instant messaging (IM), voice over IP (VoIP) and discussion groups within a single environment, despite leading vendors already offering that. As soon as firms realise what it can do and a small group starts using it, it will spread like wildfire. Take-up is patchy because few people understand what it can do and the software is quite expensive.

Chris Harris-Jones, principal analyst, Ovum

• There is still the perception in some regions, such as the Middle East and Asia, that IM is a distraction for workers and there is still resistance to it, though that is changing. We are focused on the financial sector where IM is seen as a mission-critical application. And customers are not just buying IM – they want secure collaboration solutions that enable them to conduct business transactions in an interactive way.

David Gurlé, executive vice president and global head of collaboration services, Reuters

• Initial caution towards IM among corporates has in most cases been overcome by strong measures within enterprise security frameworks. About 21 per cent of companies are putting VoIP infrastructure in, and if so many people are happy putting IP-based voice in the corporate network, it means potential IM security problems have been solved to a certain extent.

Shomik Banerjee, industry analyst for enterprise communications, Frost & Sullivan

• Manage IM services the way that you would manage any other application. Key features should include archiving, authorisation, compliance, content inspection, integration capabilities, manageability, security and spim – spam over IM – protection. Work with end users to develop best practices and guidelines for effective IM use, and develop policies that align with your overall email, communications and internet-access policies.

Tom Eid, principal analyst, worldwide software applications team, Gartner