57% of the total revenue spent on corporate email software is
being spent on Microsoft Exchange Server (Ferris Research,
2005). Microsoft Exchange Server is an email software package
that resides on a server that enables office workers to
collaborate more effectively. Whether you know it or not, most
small businesses use it. Microsoft Exchange Server gives you
more control over your company email and scheduling.
What are the benefits of Exchange Server? Exchange enables you
to see and edit another user’s email, tasks, and calendar
instantly (if they\’ve granted you permission to do so). Having
the ability to view others\’ calendars means you are able to plan
around meetings people in your office have already scheduled.
You are able to create master contact lists and global calendars
for your company so teams are always on the same page. You can
also set the famous \”Out Of Office Auto-Response\” feature before
you leave town with Exchange Server so those who email you know
you are not in the office without calling. Best of all, you’ll
have the option to view all of your email, tasks, and calendars
by logging into your account over the Internet with a standard
web browser (aka: Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator) while
you are out of the office in the event that you need to access
your email quickly and don’t have your laptop with you. This
feature is great if you need to get to your email in a pinch.
best of all, it comes free with Exchange Server!
Are you ready for Exchange? Microsoft Exchange Server is a
technology that is not unique to the world of business. That
means that if your company is not using Exchange to collaborate,
your competitors probably are. Microsoft Exchange is generally
used for companies with 5 or more employees. Exchange Server is
the most widely used type of email setup on the market today! In
order for companies to get the full benefits of Microsoft
Exchange, they must be running the program, Microsoft Outlook on
their computers. This means if you’re running Outlook to view
your email now, your company may be half way to Microsoft
Exchange Server.
Can you use Microsoft Outlook WITHOUT Exchange Server? It is
possible to use a program called Microsoft Outlook to receive
email on the user’s computer without using Exchange on a server.
This type of setup dramatically limits the functionality to the
Outlook program however. This setup is called POP email. POP
email presents challenges with backing up email messages. It
also becomes a problem if users move from computer to computer
because the messages do not move with them. You are also unable
to share user’s email, tasks, and calendar instantly with others
at your company. Public folders are not available as well for
group calendars without Exchange.
It’s only a matter of time… When companies are ready to go to
the Exchange setup, the employees are already familiar with how
to get around Microsoft Outlook if you\’re running in POP mode
now. This makes the training process a whole lot easier when
companies make the switch. Remember, if you’re a growing company
and are already using Microsoft Outlook for your email, it’s not
a question of if you’ll use Exchange Server…it’s a question of
when.
About the author:
Anthony Licate is the President of Spidernet Technical
Consulting, LLC (http://www.spidernetconsulting.com). Spidernet
Technical Consulting helps companies operate more effectively by
means of reducing their computer support issues and streamlining
how they work. He has worked with multiple types of businesses
to strategize, re-align and implement technology. Anthony can be
reached at aj@spidernetconsulting.com