Melbourne e - b u s i n e s s r e p o r t How Melbourne organisations are using information and communication technologies June 2013
"Too much information can be overwhelming. Making it so people can act on information so they get notified of what s important without being overwhelmed see what s going on and act on it that s where the value is." Bill Gates - 2008 2
Contents Introduction 5 Summary 6 Melbourne next steps 10 Telecommunications 15 Computers and software 18 Computing device used 20 Teleworking 24 Digital camera use 26 Email software 28 Accounting software 31 Database software 33 CRM software 35 Data storage 37 Internet 40 Connection speed 42 Internet security 44 Internet use 45 Customer facing internet use 48 Websites 51 Technology adoption 54 Help and advice 56 Get business advice 59 Prefer business advice 60 3
Future IT objectives 61 IP Telephony 63 Mobility 66 Teleworking 70 New customer relationship toolkit 73 Cloud computing 82 Disaster recovery and security 91 Case studies 96 IP Telephony 97 Blink mobile 101 GBM software 104 Tweed council 108 Vision6 111 Salesforce 116 Joomla 120 Macquarie Telecom 123 IMS 127 UnrealAR 132 Xero 136 Apache 140 Microsoft Dynamics 144 Bridge Point 147 Interactive 151 Background 154 About the survey 156 4
Introduction This report presents the findings from a survey of information and communication technology (ICT) use conducted in later 2012 and early 2013 in Melbourne. There were 1,527 responses to the survey from organisations mainly in Melbourne, but also from other parts of Victoria. Industry sectors all use ICT in different ways. Individual businesses use ICT in different ways. Results from all 40,000 DBi surveys over the last ten years show there is considerable difference in the way individual business categories (canegrowers, lawyers, moteliers, food manufacturers, transport operators, dentists etc) use ICT in their business to improve productivity and performance. There are also big differences in the way organisations of varying sizes use ICT, and differences in how quickly organisations adopt and use ICT. What do all businesses in Australia have in common in their use of ICT? Nothing. All businesses don t even use computers. And all businesses are not connected to the internet. Of the majority of Australian businesses that do use computers and are connected to the internet (which is 95% and 92% according to Sensis, who have been tracking business ICT use for the past 19 years) there are only some things that they have in common. Most businesses use email, internet banking and search. Most use the Microsoft Office software suite and many use the Adobe Creative suite and Adobe PDF. Beyond that, there is no such thing as a complete ICT solution for a business available from a single ICT vendor or solution provider. Which is a challenge for businesses trying to identify the best way forwards. There are a wide range of solutions that vary according to each business s existing IT capabilities, activities, processes, relationships and future plans. This report gives some insights into the differences and similarities across industry sectors. There are differences WITHIN each industry sector as well. Accountants use ICT differently to Lawyers and Advertising Agencies and Consulting Engineers and Software Developers all in the Professional, Scientific and Technical sector. Printers (manufacturers) use ICT differently to Food or Furniture manufacturers. General advice can promote consideration. But specific advice can promote and support action. In an Australian economy that is steadily becoming a digital economy, evidence based advice on digital issues is increasingly important. What are the best of breed ICT solutions for my business category and industry sector? Which customer relationship tools (website, CRM, social media, email newsletter, telephone) are most useful for my business category and industry sector? What consideration should I be giving to cloud services for my business category and industry sector? How do I manage the risks? The answers for each business are different. But the provision of Information resources and workshops customised for each industry sector will help considerably to address these challenges and concerns, and increase understanding of the practical benefits. 5
Summary A survey of 1,527 organisations was undertaken in late 2012 and early 2013. Responses came from all industry sectors (excluding agriculture, utilities and mining) and from all parts of Melbourne and Victoria. Telecommunications Overall, organisations are very well connected, using a wide variety of devices to suit their own business communication choices and customer needs. 71% of respondents use Smart phones. 52% of respondents say they supply smart phones or ipads to their staff. Organisations are increasingly using IP based telephony services (26%) and this will increase as the National Broadband Network is steadily implemented replacing copper wire with fibre optic cable, supported by wireless and satellite in remote and regional Australia. PABX system 24% of respondents use a PABX system, with an increasing number moving to an IP telephony system as their existing system fails or needs upgrading. A wide variety of vendors were named in the survey with no outstanding preference. Computer operating system Most respondents use one or more versions of Windows as the computer operating system, mainly Windows 7 (60%) and Windows XP (44%). 22% of respondents use a MAC operating system, 19% ios and 12% Android. Apple use has increased for two main reasons. The Intel chip allows use across Mac and Windows operating systems, and the adoption of ipads and iphones by the market has introduced new users to the Apple platform. 55% of organisations use Windows as the server operating system. 7% use Linux. Computer device use 80% of respondents use a desktop computer, 84% a laptop and 51% use an ipad or other tablet device for work purposes. 57% of respondents use their computer mainly in the office, 16% at home and 13% use their computer on site, in the car or when travelling. Teleworking 44% of respondents are teleworking, with one or more staff members working from home for some part of the week. Professional, Scientific and Technical services (58%), Information Media and Telecommunications (50%), Public Administration (67%) and Wholesale (51%) organisations are the leaders in this area. The more hands on sectors of Construction (30%), Accommodation & Food (23%) and customer facing sectors of Health Care (32%) and Administrative (34%) and Other services (34%) have the smallest percentages of organisations with staff that telework Digital camera use The majority of respondents (63%) used digital still or video cameras for work purposes. Email Software Microsoft Outlook is still the outright leader among respondents with 71% using Outlook and an additional 12% using Outlook Express. 27% of respondents use web-based email, either as their main email program or to complement another email program. 6
Accounting software 74% of respondents use accounting software. On the whole respondents are still happy with the most popular accounting software packages MYOB and Quickbooks. 3% of respondents use Xero. 1% of smaller organisations use the Tax Office erecord product. 36% of respondents use MYOB, 16% use Quickbooks. 66% of larger organisations with more than 100 employees use Arrow, Attache, MS Dynamics, Sage, Sap, Sun, Technology One and other enterprise systems. Database software 52% of respondents use database software of some kind. Larger organisations (100+ employees) use MS Access (30%), SQL (45%) and a variety of other database programs, including MySQL and Oracle. Customer Relationship Management software Overall, 22% of respondents say they use CRM software. Software is available as shrink wrapped CRM, cloud CRM services such as Salesforce.com and open source CRM products, and a wide variety of email marketing software tools. Even social media collaboration tools such as Facebook and Linkedin should now be included as part of a strategy for managing the relationship with customers, which includes CRM software, website, email marketing and social media. Data storage and backup Most respondents (61%) use an external hard drive for back up. For small organisations and sole operators the simplest back up device is a memory stick (44%). These are cheap and easy to use, especially for home offices. A growing percentage of organisations (15%) are using cloud storage to supplement other backup methods or act as a temporary storage option. It is inevitable that some organisations will begin to use cloud storage as a permanent option as well. 25% of respondents have Network Attached Storage (NAS) and 12% of respondents have a Storage Attached Network (SAN). Magnetic tape storage on cassette (9%) is reliable, affordable and portable, and can be easily stored off site. Data can be backed up to another hard drive, a detachable SCSI drive or an external hard drive purchased for this purpose. Internet connection and security 98% of Melbourne respondents are connected to the internet at work. 97% of respondents are connected by broadband, mainly ADSL (57%). 17% are connected by wireless, 8% by coaxial cable and 8% by fibre optic cable. With the NBN rollout over the next ten years, in whichever form it finally takes, it is expected that nearly all Australian businesses and households will be connected by fibre optic cable, satellite or wireless. Only 39% of respondents overall are happy with their internet connection speed at the moment, but this percentage should rise as the NBN becomes available. 99% of connected organisations use one or often a combination of security measures to protect against attacks of all kinds. 78% use anti virus software. 65% use a spam filter, 64% a software firewall, 46% a hardware firewall. 27% use a content filter, 23% an intrusion detection system and 1% use no measures at all. 7
Internet use Email is the number one use of the internet (97%) and this has not changed for many years. Second to email is banking (83%) and research (75%), followed by buying (65%) and ordering products and services (64%), then recruiting staff (34%) and the integration of voice and data services VoIP (27%). Organisations are now using the internet to improve relationships with customers through a wide range of communication, conferencing and collaboration tools. 48% of respondents use Facebook, 39% use a regular email newsletter, 37% use Linkedin, 28% videoconference mainly using Skype, 25% publish blogs, 24% use Twitter for news and events, 23% publish videos on YouTube and 7% Podcast. Technology adoption Respondents were asked to rate their technology adoption from a choice of leading edge, fast follower, average, lags behind and in trouble. 8% rated themselves as leading edge, 25% fast followers, 45% average and 18% lagging behind. 3% rated themselves in trouble. Websites Most respondents (85%) have a website and increasingly web-tools are being used for a variety of business reasons beyond publishing an online brochure of capability. Organisations are now understanding that their website should and can be included in a broader customer relationship strategy that involves CRM, email marketing, and both traditional and social media. 51% can gather data and update their dynamic website, 38% use their website for sales transactions online, 27% have an internal website (intranet) to share information and 11% have extended that capability to selected customers or suppliers (extranet). Trusted IT advice Trusted advice on information and communication technology (ICT) comes from three main sources: a) Friends (12%), family (9%) and colleagues (9%), b) IT suppliers (5%), IT services (13%) and consultants (15%) c) For larger organisations with IT staff, advice comes from internal staff, systems integrators (13%), the internet (13%) and IT staff networks. Get advice and information Most organisations (90%) get advice on new technology and best practice from other businesses, newspaper articles (85%) or from workshops and seminars (84%). Government portals, whether State Government or Federal are invariably and consistently rated lowest of all options and the department of Broadband, Communication and the Digital Economy portal has been rated lowest in all surveys over the past five years. Prefer advice and information Businesses are practical in the selection of channels and sources for information on new technology and best practice for their industry sector. Most organisations (88%) would prefer the opportunity to experience new technology hands on, get information via a regular email newsletter and/or through specialist workshops and seminars (87%). These options have been consistently rated highest in all surveys over the past six years. 8
Future IT objectives Most respondents (77%) want to protect and recover their most critical data, rating this objective 7.0 out of ten. 75% want to be able to detect threats to the IT system (7.5 out of 10). Security and disaster recovery (7.0 out of ten) are important to all businesses when IT is the primary business platform. Getting more from the existing IT system is important to 76% of respondents. Being able to better analyse data to manage and inform the business leadership is also important, rating 7.4 out of ten. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is steadily growing in importance for respondents with every survey, along with mobility. Interest in the cloud is now not far behind and is moving onto the radar for 64% of respondents, but still rated lowest in importance across all objectives, along with voice and data integration. 9
Melbourne next steps Most businesses and non-profit organisations are now ready, willing and able to participate in the digital economy to a greater or lesser extent. This needs stating because it is only just a short time ago that the majority of organisations in Australia were still using dial up connections or ISDN, there were no smart phones or tablets, web sites were very expensive, social media was embryonic and clouds were in the sky. Now most organisations are well connected, using a wide variety of devices to suit their needs. There is a comfort level with technology in those organisations at least with the basics mobile phones, word processing, accounting, spreadsheets, email, online banking, buying and ordering goods and services online and websites. This critical mass of organisations willing to communicate, share, collaborate and transact online provides the new marketplace, communication and collaboration platform for the digital economy. Quite simply, organisations have to be ready, willing and able to participate. And now most of them are. Overall, organisations are now ready to engage, and the main task now is to optimise that engagement and ensure that nobody is left behind that doesn t want to be (5% of businesses don t use computers by choice). Organisations also need a clear understanding of the wide variety of opportunities, options and digital tools available, to help them become more informed, agile, productive and successful. You can t start a game until all the players are in position on the field and in many ways it seems that we are only now ready for the new game, and willing and able to engage effectively with the digital economy. Opportunities From the survey results, there are obvious places to focus in helping organisations move forwards IP Telephony, Mobility, Telework, Software options and choice (including cloud), Customer Relationship Management through email, websites, social media and other tools, and backup, storage and disaster recovery. Organisations want to know more and need to know more to be successful and at the local level they need to be able to find the right IT services to help. Also, on the plus side nearly half of respondents are teleworking and this has implications in other ways for developers of commercial property, transport operators and planners, peak hour travel densities, decentralisation, carbon and pollution reduction and so on. The value of technology to inform and improve future health, social and education outcomes is dependent on the willingness, ability and readiness of individuals to use technology. 1% of Australians now have an electronic health record, so there is still a long way to go. But this is a digital journey and Melbourne is well placed to capitalise on the benefits and opportunities available immediately as well as further ahead. The active collaboration of 30 councils and 4 RDAs across a region focused on building digital capability is unprecedented in Australia and reflects the collaborative opportunity offered by digital technology. Ultimately, the digital economy is not about the technology it is about people. And the online connection, communication and shared value options have to be reflected in the offline, real world collaboration among all participants SMEs, not-for-profits, industry associations, councils, RDAs, vendors and state government if success is to be the outcome. 10
Melbourne has taken that opportunity. Main issues The issues of concern highlighted in the survey are mainly in the areas of software expense, internet connection speed and the perceived slow roll out of the NBN, comfort with technology, access to training and advice, lack of support, problems with specific software applications and integration businesses wanting their software applications to talk to each other. If we look at these more closely, most of them overlap to some extent. And some we can do little about. Software expense The cost of the most popular software products (MS Office, Adobe Creative Suite etc) used by Australian businesses is largely controlled elsewhere in the world. Government has initiated a number of enquiries into why software in Australia is more expensive than elsewhere, with little positive outcome to date. Internet connection speed Most respondents have a broadband connection to the internet but 60% of respondents are unhappy with their current broadband connection speed. Speed of connection impacts other things. Not happy with internet speed and connectivity. All my software is in the cloud. If the internet goes down, my business goes down. Professional services. It can take hours to download even a days worth of emails. Retail Tried off-site storage via the web but it is way too slow. Professional services As the quotes illustrate, the roll-out of NBN (fast broadband) is essential for the delivery of reliable cloud services and other managed IT services delivered across the internet for the region and beyond. Businesses and other organisations in Melbourne need faster and more reliable connection to move forwards comfortably. Whether it is for access to a cloud based software application such as Xero or for the more popular web based email or for storage applications such as Dropbox, sooner or later speed of connection becomes an issue. Whichever government wins the election, fast, affordable and ubiquitous broadband access is the platform on which the digital economy will be built. Comfort with technology With any new ICT product or service there is a standard pattern of adoption as firstly individuals hear about, take up and use the new product or service. Next they become familiar and comfortable with the product or service and finally the number of comfortable adopters grows large enough to create a sustainable market or platform from which other new opportunities arise. One fax machine is only useful for copying. Multiple fax machines in multiple business locations enable the easy sharing of text and image based documents. Now fax machines have largely been replaced with other technologies and shipped off to recycling dumps. 11
The degree of comfort with change (most don t enjoy it) affects the adoption and use of technologies. Only 8% of organisations were early adopters or leading edge users of ICT. Technology adoption takes time. Even though most organisations now rely on the basic tools of the digital revolution information and communication technologies (ICT), it has taken a long time (20 years) for the majority of businesses and non-profit organisations to become familiar and then finally comfortable with ICT use. But, once somebody gets over the strangeness of adopting a new tool and begins to use it regularly, familiarity breeds innovation, not contempt. What if? is the question that CEOs then begin to ask, once they are comfortable with the way things are running. Training and education A third of respondents are very comfortable with technology. And 45% are comfortable. But over 20% defined themselves as lagging behind or in trouble. And 10% of respondents to the survey expanded on their concerns about ICT, giving examples. Not happy when software, it keeps changing and upgrades are rarely as good as the original and take time to learn and constantly cause problems. Agricultural business I need more education on how to maximise performance. Professional services I find it all a bit too overwhelming to forge ahead with confidence. Education & Training Technology is not core business for most organisations and many current business owners, senior decision makers and CEOs didn t learn about IT at school. This will change over time of course as generations X, Y and Z move into higher management, but the issues of comfort and confidence can and should be addressed through workshops and by providing access to relevant training. The key to success here is relevance and this can be addressed through matching the workshop and training content to real needs, illustrated by the survey results. Software support, applications and integration We can t do anything to stop the large software vendors updating their products regularly, often for marketing and sales reasons not always for functional improvement, but we can help businesses gain a clear picture of the options, and provide them with a roadmap for the journey ahead. Not every business has IT staff or can afford to pay for consultants and systems integrators. So providing access to research and evidence based options supported by workshops and seminars will level the playing field. Organisations also need to be able to identify and find reliable, proven local IT services and support if required. The survey results highlight highly rated Melbourne ICT vendors who will be invited into the workshop program at the second stage. I am currently trying to set up a network with RAID and backup - finding it difficult to find someone to do this for me. Professional services Struggling to get all software to integrate and have flow of data. Manufacturing Help and Advice Most organisations get advice on new technology from other businesses, newspaper articles and workshops and seminars. Workshops are the preferred method of gaining hands on experience 12
of new technology and innovation. Nearly 90% of respondents voted for workshops and seminars, so the planned workshop program for Melbourne fulfils this demand. The opportunity also exists to tailor advice and workshop content to match local economic development objectives and strategies, and align with the aims of the new Industry Precincts based in Melbourne. We are now ready to build on the foundation of connection across Melbourne organisations and address most of the issues raised through the workshop program. Other issues Beyond the main issues identified by the survey respondents are some other broader issues, which also need to be addressed if we are to successfully build capability in the region. Barriers and inhibiters Australians as individuals are early adopters of computers, mobile phones, smart phones and tablet devices. But Australian businesses and non-profit organisations are somewhat behind other OECD countries in applying these and other technologies effectively in their day-to-day operations. So our individuals are leaders, but our organisations are followers. The reason for this is the direct influence of key decision makers, CEOs and management teams in what happens within their organisations. Vision, commitment and leadership starts and ends at the top. CEOs and other stakeholders have to understand the value of the digital economy personally to invest, and lead transformation and digital change. But there are also barriers to adoption created by third party brokers and influencers, such as industry associations and even government. Rather than encourage and inspire their members and constituents to adopt and use ICT, some see technology as not immediately relevant to their industry, some don t fully understand the potential value, and some see ICT as a threat (which it can be), rather than an opportunity. And the digital revolution can be personally intimidating to older CEOs, Chairs and Boards who may be uncomfortable with technology themselves. So they don t lead the way, they hesitate. They then postpone bringing the issue onto the agenda. Many associations always have more important things to do, responding to the day-to-day crises that crop up in every industry sector. Meanwhile, the digital world continues to change their industry around them. These third parties cannot be ignored and it is important to include them in specific master classes outlining the bigger picture and strategic issues that affect industry sectors and regions. Master classes Grasping the wide reaching and subversive aspects of the digital economy is an issue in itself for associations, economic development officers and other policy officers, and there is a need for master classes to spell out the digital opportunities, but more importantly to clearly state the underlying drivers of digital change and the associated threats. The threats are real. Whole industries are being disrupted and industry associations do their members a disservice by not taking the issues seriously. The same thing applies to all other brokers, gatekeepers and stakeholders councils, economic development officers, and policy officers in government. Understanding the impacts of the digital revolution and responding appropriately is critical to future control of destiny and continued success for a business, an industry sector, a region and a country. 13
So what are the next steps? For councils and RDAs, the project provides a change management platform for improving ICT capacity across the region, for single businesses and non-profits, for local ICT vendors, industry associations and economic development officers and other stakeholders. The planned second stage workshop program will allow targeted and relevant single workshops and courses to be run to support regional development strategy. The current Federal Government Digital Enterprise activities can be incorporated into the overall framework, allowing the workshop program to complement that activity and not compete with it. Resources created for the workshop program have potential application not just in Melbourne but other parts of Victoria. The proposal for the second stage also includes skills transfer to localise the project and ensure sustainability. For businesses and non-profits, the main opportunities can be found in the better understanding of four broad areas of technology IP telephony, mobility, the new customer (CRM software, email marketing, website and social media) and the value of a reliable IT Platform (storage, hosting, cloud services, disaster recovery and IT support). Specific industry sectors will benefit from the provision of industry sector workshops focused on unique sectoral ICT issues. There is a clear requirement for fast broadband to be easily available across the whole region not just to fulfil local business expectation and government promises, but also to support potential non-metro regional workshops in the future. The digital economy relies on a strong foundation of local, knowledgeable and reliable ICT product and service providers. This strong local ICT Hub is the foundation for the second stage workshop program. Building digital capability for Melbourne and any region has to happen in three dimensions at the same time, SME and non-profit, ICT vendors, and stakeholders and industry brokers. The first stage of the project is complete. We are now ready to focus on the issues raised in the survey and actively increase digital capability across the region. 14
Telecommunication services Telecommunication services provide the fundamental platform for communication and information sharing, and are indispensable to all business and non-profit categories. Overall, organisations are very well connected, using a wide variety of devices to suit their own business communication choices and customer needs. Organisations are increasingly using IP based telephony services and this will increase as the National Broadband Network is steadily implemented replacing copper wire with fibre optic cable, supported by wireless and satellite in remote and regional Australia. 52% of respondents say they supply smart phones or ipads to their staff. This raises the issue of the best way to manage mobile device use within an organisation, especially where data is being shared across a wide range of different devices. PABX system 24% of respondents use a PABX system, with an increasing number moving to an IP telephony system as their existing system fails or needs upgrading. A wide variety of vendors were named in the survey with no outstanding preference. 15
Telecommunications use - organisations Sector Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms Health Care & Social 93% 89% 84% 63% 67% 19% 6% 295 Professional Services 95% 78% 81% 82% 44% 34% 4% 283 Other Services 90% 84% 69% 62% 49% 18% 4% 188 Manufacturing 95% 91% 84% 84% 74% 33% 5% 147 Education & Training 93% 86% 80% 56% 49% 35% 5% 124 Retail 95% 82% 85% 72% 44% 14% 3% 87 Information Media 96% 75% 79% 72% 37% 37% 7% 68 Administrative & Support 94% 81% 85% 74% 43% 34% 6% 47 Construction 91% 83% 81% 89% 55% 15% 6% 47 Wholesale 97% 87% 95% 85% 67% 38% 8% 39 Transport & Warehousing 89% 84% 92% 63% 76% 13% 16% 38 Arts & Recreation 89% 86% 76% 51% 49% 8% 0% 37 Accommodation & Food 84% 97% 74% 42% 42% 16% 0% 31 Public Administration 100% 100% 87% 80% 63% 43% 13% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 84% 80% 88% 76% 60% 32% 8% 25 Finance & Insurance 100% 87% 91% 74% 83% 48% 9% 23 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,509 Telecommunications use - size Employees Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms 1-2 92% 75% 77% 65% 34% 22% 2% 653 3-4 93% 91% 82% 61% 55% 20% 3% 169 5-9 94% 93% 81% 72% 71% 22% 4% 188 10-19 93% 94% 82% 74% 71% 28% 7% 123 20-49 95% 95% 87% 74% 86% 21% 10% 147 50-99 93% 92% 85% 85% 79% 27% 9% 86 100-499 98% 93% 88% 89% 76% 49% 13% 122 500+ 97% 92% 90% 90% 62% 87% 26% 39 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,527 * shaded area indicates small sample Telecommunications use adoption rating Rating Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms Leading edge 94% 76% 81% 85% 44% 50% 14% 123 Fast Follower 95% 83% 84% 85% 58% 39% 8% 376 Average 93% 88% 81% 68% 56% 20% 4% 693 Lags behind 93% 86% 81% 59% 56% 18% 2% 276 In trouble 90% 87% 82% 49% 61% 5% 0% 39 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,507 * red indicates above average, blue below 16
Telecommunications use - age Years Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms Less than 2 90% 61% 77% 81% 21% 30% 3% 158 2-5 95% 75% 82% 72% 33% 27% 4% 203 5-10 93% 80% 82% 75% 50% 23% 5% 206 10-15 94% 87% 81% 71% 61% 26% 2% 201 More than 15 94% 94% 82% 67% 69% 26% 7% 756 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,524 * red indicates above average, blue below Telecommunications use - export Status Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms Export 98% 87% 85% 88% 60% 46% 9% 178 Could Export 96% 75% 79% 77% 44% 31% 4% 202 Non-Exporter 92% 83% 85% 74% 52% 24% 4% 556 (blank) 591 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,527 Telecommunications use - location Region Internet Phone Mobile Smart phone Fax VoIP Unified Comms Melbourne North 94% 83% 84% 74% 52% 28% 5% 588 Melbourne East 94% 81% 79% 69% 54% 32% 4% 315 Melbourne West 93% 89% 82% 72% 64% 28% 9% 232 Melbourne South 93% 88% 83% 68% 55% 20% 5% 218 Other Victoria 91% 89% 72% 63% 59% 18% 5% 160 Other 100% 86% 93% 86% 71% 36% 0% 14 Total Average 93% 85% 81% 71% 55% 26% 5% 1,527 17
Computers and software Computers and software applications offer organisations an information platform for business. Technology provides the information storage, analysis and networking resource necessary for management, reporting, transaction, strategy and collaboration. Business software packages such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, Adobe PDF and so on offer a suite of tools that address the basic business operational needs of most small organisations word processing, financial management, idea presentation, database and communication. Operating system Most respondents use one or more versions of Windows as the computer operating system, mainly Windows 7 (60%) and Windows XP (44%). 22% of respondents use a MAC operating system, 19% ios and 12% Android. Apple use has increased for two main reasons. The Intel chip allows use across Mac and Windows operating systems, and the adoption of ipads and iphones by the market has introduced new users to the Apple platform. 55% of organisations use Windows as the server operating system. 7% use Linux. Operating system - organisations Sector Win 7 Win Vista Win 8 MAC ios Android Other Total XP Health Care & Social 59% 48% 8% 8% 15% 11% 9% 1% 295 Professional Services 57% 36% 12% 5% 35% 24% 21% 2% 283 Other Services 66% 39% 11% 12% 20% 13% 7% 3% 188 Manufacturing 67% 53% 8% 2% 16% 18% 11% 2% 147 Education & Training 63% 39% 15% 6% 22% 19% 11% 1% 124 Retail 43% 46% 20% 0% 23% 20% 9% 0% 87 Information Media 69% 37% 4% 3% 37% 41% 24% 6% 68 Administrative & Support 64% 45% 0% 6% 17% 15% 15% 0% 47 Construction 55% 36% 19% 4% 17% 21% 9% 0% 47 Wholesale 54% 44% 15% 3% 41% 26% 10% 5% 39 Transport & Warehousing 53% 61% 8% 8% 3% 11% 5% 0% 38 Arts & Recreation 59% 46% 14% 0% 32% 11% 8% 0% 37 Accommodation & Food 35% 58% 10% 3% 10% 13% 10% 3% 31 Public Administration 67% 53% 7% 10% 10% 40% 13% 0% 30 Rental & Real Estate 60% 36% 4% 4% 12% 16% 4% 0% 25 Finance & Insurance 74% 43% 0% 9% 9% 26% 17% 0% 23 Average 60% 44% 11% 6% 22% 19% 12% 2% 1,509 18
Operating system - size Employees Win 7 Win Vista Win 8 MAC ios Android Other Total XP 1-2 50% 38% 13% 6% 28% 17% 12% 1% 653 3-4 65% 43% 10% 4% 18% 14% 15% 2% 169 5-9 64% 44% 10% 8% 19% 21% 14% 1% 188 10-19 71% 42% 7% 7% 20% 19% 10% 2% 123 20-49 57% 59% 10% 5% 15% 10% 7% 3% 147 50-99 71% 51% 7% 5% 19% 26% 10% 5% 86 100-499 75% 54% 6% 9% 15% 30% 15% 2% 122 500+ 87% 36% 5% 3% 18% 36% 13% 0% 39 Average 60% 44% 11% 6% 22% 19% 12% 2% 1,527 Operating system adoption rating Rating Win 7 Win Vista Win 8 MAC ios Android Other Total XP Leading edge 66% 29% 10% 10% 37% 47% 28% 8% 123 Fast Follower 64% 40% 10% 6% 30% 27% 19% 2% 376 Average 61% 46% 11% 5% 18% 14% 10% 1% 693 Lags behind 49% 49% 11% 5% 16% 9% 5% 0% 276 In trouble 59% 41% 10% 5% 13% 8% 3% 0% 39 Average 60% 44% 11% 6% 22% 19% 12% 2% 1,507 * shaded area indicates small sample Operating system - age Years Win 7 Win XP Vista Win 8 MAC ios Android Other Total Less than 2 56% 25% 9% 5% 41% 24% 17% 1% 158 2-5 49% 37% 15% 7% 28% 22% 13% 1% 203 5-10 54% 40% 11% 3% 20% 17% 12% 1% 206 10-15 58% 43% 10% 6% 21% 15% 12% 1% 201 More than 15 65% 50% 10% 7% 17% 18% 11% 2% 756 Average 60% 44% 11% 6% 22% 19% 12% 2% 1,524 Operating system - export Status Win 7 Win Vista Win 8 MAC ios Android Other Total XP Export 58% 49% 9% 4% 26% 27% 17% 3% 178 Could Export 56% 44% 10% 2% 26% 20% 16% 1% 202 Non-Exporter 58% 43% 11% 3% 22% 22% 12% 2% 556 (blank) 591 Average 60% 44% 11% 6% 22% 19% 12% 2% 1,527 19
Computer device use 80% of respondents use a desktop computer, 84% a laptop and 51% use an ipad or other tablet device for work purposes. Businesses use multiple devices to suit their business practice. Device used - organisations Sector PC Laptop Tablet Total ipad etc Health Care & Social 86% 86% 54% 295 Professional Services 75% 86% 54% 283 Other Services 84% 86% 49% 188 Manufacturing 80% 77% 42% 147 Education & Training 85% 90% 55% 124 Retail 71% 77% 48% 87 Information Media 81% 88% 68% 68 Administrative & Support 70% 91% 47% 47 Construction 64% 77% 57% 47 Wholesale 77% 90% 56% 39 Transport & Warehousing 87% 63% 34% 38 Arts & Recreation 86% 89% 43% 37 Accommodation & Food 81% 61% 26% 31 Public Administration 77% 87% 67% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 76% 80% 44% 25 Finance & Insurance 74% 78% 43% 23 Average 80% 84% 51% 1,509 Device used - size Employees PC Laptop Tablet Total ipad etc 1-2 68% 81% 44% 653 3-4 90% 82% 50% 169 5-9 94% 83% 55% 188 10-19 87% 87% 56% 123 20-49 91% 82% 46% 147 50-99 87% 95% 66% 86 100-499 82% 89% 72% 122 500+ 85% 92% 72% 39 Average 80% 84% 51% 1,527 Device used adoption rating Rating PC Laptop Tablet Total ipad etc Leading edge 74% 90% 73% 123 Fast Follower 82% 87% 68% 376 Average 80% 83% 46% 693 Lags behind 78% 80% 36% 276 In trouble 85% 77% 31% 39 Average 80% 84% 51% 1,507 20
Device used - age Years PC Laptop Tablet Total ipad etc Less than 2 53% 86% 50% 158 2-5 69% 82% 53% 203 5-10 75% 79% 46% 206 10-15 83% 87% 50% 201 More than 15 89% 84% 53% 756 Average 80% 84% 51% 1,524 Device used - export Status PC Laptop Tablet Total ipad etc Export 78% 89% 54% 178 Could Export 77% 85% 52% 202 Non-Exporter 75% 79% 48% 556 (blank) 591 Average 80% 84% 51% 1,527 21
Place device most used 57% of respondents use their computer mainly in the office, 16% at home and 13% use their computer on site, in the car or when travelling. A significant percentage of smaller businesses use their main business computing device at home, suggesting a real business benefit in delivering fibre optic cable to the home. While Retail and Accommodation & Food businesses primarily use their computers to support their main business activity conducted in a Shop, Restaurant, Motel or Café, the home office is often the primary place of work for Information Media and Telecommunications, Professional services and Administrative services organisations, as well as for teleworking individuals within all industry sectors. Location used - organisations Sector Office Home Travelling, Total car etc Health Care & Social 20% 4% 4% 295 Professional Services 81% 21% 25% 283 Other Services 18% 13% 4% 188 Manufacturing 94% 14% 16% 147 Education & Training 50% 16% 12% 124 Retail 71% 38% 14% 87 Information Media 62% 22% 16% 68 Administrative & Support 55% 26% 21% 47 Construction 89% 13% 15% 47 Wholesale 92% 18% 23% 39 Transport & Warehousing 92% 8% 5% 38 Arts & Recreation 19% 14% 3% 37 Accommodation & Food 74% 26% 10% 31 Public Administration 73% 7% 0% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 88% 16% 12% 25 Finance & Insurance 87% 13% 26% 23 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,509 Location used - size Employees Office Home Travelling, Total car etc 1-2 51% 28% 15% 653 3-4 63% 11% 12% 169 5-9 62% 6% 12% 188 10-19 60% 7% 8% 123 20-49 66% 6% 9% 147 50-99 52% 6% 13% 86 100-499 54% 2% 13% 122 500+ 82% 10% 26% 39 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,527 22
Location used adoption rating Rating Office Home Travelling, Total car etc Leading edge 79% 22% 24% 123 Fast Follower 71% 14% 21% 376 Average 56% 17% 10% 693 Lags behind 37% 14% 7% 276 In trouble 26% 13% 3% 39 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,507 Device used - age Years Office Home Travelling, Total car etc Less than 2 59% 34% 23% 158 2-5 60% 31% 17% 203 5-10 63% 21% 12% 206 10-15 70% 11% 12% 201 More than 15 51% 8% 10% 756 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,524 Device used - export Status Office Home Travelling, car etc Total Export 90% 19% 25% 386 Could Export 77% 23% 17% 125 Non-Exporter 82% 26% 18% 126 (blank) 591 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,527 Device used - location Region Office Home Travelling, Total car etc Melbourne North 72% 22% 15% 588 Melbourne East 59% 17% 15% 315 Melbourne West 47% 11% 13% 232 Melbourne South 51% 8% 13% 218 Other Victoria 18% 6% 4% 160 Other 64% 29% 21% 14 Average 57% 16% 13% 1,527 23
Teleworking 44% of respondents telework, with one or more staff members working from home for some part of the week. Professional, Scientific and Technical services, Information Media and Telecommunications, Public Administration and Wholesale organisations are the leaders in this area. The more hands on sectors of Construction, Accommodation & Food and customer facing sectors of Health Care and Administrative and Other services have the smallest percentages of organisations with staff that telework. Teleworking - organisations Sector Teleworking Total Health Care & Social 32% 295 Professional Services 58% 283 Other Services 34% 188 Manufacturing 48% 147 Education & Training 46% 124 Retail 43% 87 Information Media 50% 68 Administrative & Support 34% 47 Construction 30% 47 Wholesale 51% 39 Transport & Warehousing 37% 38 Arts & Recreation 35% 37 Accommodation & Food 23% 31 Public Administration 67% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 72% 25 Finance & Insurance 65% 23 Average 44% 1,509 Teleworking - size Employees Teleworking Total 1-2 38% 653 3-4 36% 169 5-9 49% 188 10-19 48% 123 20-49 48% 147 50-99 49% 86 100-499 55% 122 500+ 72% 39 Average 44% 1,527 24
Teleworking adoption rating Rating Teleworking Total Leading edge 59% 123 Fast Follower 57% 376 Average 38% 693 Lags behind 36% 276 In trouble 26% 39 Average 44% 1,507 Teleworking - age Years Teleworking Total Less than 2 50% 158 2-5 39% 203 5-10 40% 206 10-15 48% 201 More than 15 43% 756 Average 44% 1,524 Teleworking - export Status Teleworking Total Export 69% 386 Could Export 59% 125 Non-Exporter 48% 126 (blank) 591 Average 44% 1,527 Teleworking - location Region Teleworking Total Melbourne North 48% 588 Melbourne East 41% 315 Melbourne West 46% 232 Melbourne South 44% 218 Other Victoria 28% 160 Other 43% 14 Average 44% 1,527 25
Digital camera use The majority of respondents (63%) used digital still or video cameras for work purposes. Cameras were used for recording events, training, property damage, assets and maintenance, record keeping, work progress and proof of job completion, health & safety issues, security, staff ID, website, professional development and advertising and promotion. Cameras were used externally for recording client activities, assessment, product evaluation, proof, business intelligence, insurance, therapy progress, YouTube channel, Facebook, Blogs and other social media, field days, concerts, performance, coaching, short films, recording spontaneous ideas, presentations and seminars. Digital camera use - organisations Sector Still or video digital camera Total Health Care & Social 57% 295 Professional Services 59% 283 Other Services 65% 188 Manufacturing 68% 147 Education & Training 64% 124 Retail 66% 87 Information Media 57% 68 Administrative & Support 53% 47 Construction 77% 47 Wholesale 77% 39 Transport & Warehousing 71% 38 Arts & Recreation 81% 37 Accommodation & Food 61% 31 Public Administration 57% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 60% 25 Finance & Insurance 48% 23 Average 63% 1,509 * shaded area indicates small sample Digital camera use - size Employees Still or video digital camera Total 1-2 60% 653 3-4 59% 169 5-9 69% 188 10-19 67% 123 20-49 63% 147 50-99 74% 86 100-499 57% 122 500+ 67% 39 Average 63% 1,527 * shaded area indicates small sample 26
Digital camera use - age Age Still or video digital camera Total Less than 2 56% 158 2-5 60% 203 5-10 62% 206 10-15 62% 201 More than 15 65% 756 Average 63% 1,524 Digital camera use adoption rating Rating Still or video digital camera Total Leading edge 67% 123 Fast Follower 66% 376 Average 64% 693 Lags behind 56% 276 In trouble 51% 39 Average 63% 1,507 Digital camera use export Status Still or video digital camera Total Export 76% 386 Could Export 76% 125 Non-Exporter 62% 126 (blank) 591 Average 63% 1,527 Digital camera use location Region Still or video digital camera Total Melbourne North 63% 588 Melbourne East 59% 315 Melbourne West 63% 232 Melbourne South 63% 218 Other Victoria 66% 160 Other 71% 14 Average 63% 1,527 27
Email Software Microsoft Outlook is still the outright leader among respondents with 71% using Outlook and an additional 12% using Outlook Express. 27% of respondents use web-based email, either as their main email program or to complement another email program. The rise in the use of web-based email is significant and services like Hotmail, Gmail, and Yahoo Mail etc have added flexibility to email communication whilst on the move, that wasn t easily available before. But anything free comes at a price. The price in this case, is support should anything go wrong. Who are you going to call? What leverage do you have if there are problems with your free service? There have been a number of well-publicised cases in 2011 and 2012 of disappearing web-based email accounts (hundreds of thousands) and accounts that have been highjacked. Most web-based email services are based in the USA and subject to the Patriot Act. This may not be an issue for the average individual in most industry sectors, but could have implications for the board of a public company or non-profit organisation from a privacy and governance perspective. Your web-based emails are not private. So don t rely 100% on free services for the communication needs of your organisation. Webbased email is a very valuable supplementary service, but be aware of the potential problems and issues. Research them and use these services with due diligence and consideration. 28
Email software - organisations Sector MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total Health Care & Social 79% 25% 14% 1% 8% 295 Professional Services 70% 30% 6% 2% 22% 283 Other Services 71% 35% 11% 1% 13% 188 Manufacturing 83% 11% 16% 3% 7% 147 Education & Training 69% 40% 12% 1% 15% 124 Retail 57% 39% 17% 1% 17% 87 Information Media 50% 34% 10% 1% 38% 68 Administrative & Support 79% 17% 11% 2% 9% 47 Construction 62% 26% 15% 0% 13% 47 Wholesale 74% 18% 15% 10% 21% 39 Transport & Warehousing 66% 13% 34% 0% 3% 38 Arts & Recreation 51% 38% 14% 0% 30% 37 Accommodation & Food 61% 23% 16% 3% 6% 31 Public Administration 70% 23% 10% 10% 10% 30 Rental & Real Estate 88% 4% 8% 0% 4% 25 Finance & Insurance 83% 13% 4% 4% 13% 23 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,509 Email software - size Employees MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total 1-2 58% 38% 14% 1% 22% 653 3-4 70% 28% 12% 1% 12% 169 5-9 80% 25% 11% 1% 12% 188 10-19 76% 19% 13% 2% 13% 123 20-49 88% 12% 11% 1% 5% 147 50-99 80% 13% 14% 7% 8% 86 100-499 90% 11% 9% 7% 2% 122 500+ 92% 10% 3% 0% 5% 39 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,527 Email software adoption rating Rating MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total Leading edge 65% 38% 11% 2% 29% 123 Fast Follower 73% 28% 8% 2% 18% 376 Average 72% 25% 15% 2% 12% 693 Lags behind 72% 25% 13% 2% 11% 276 In trouble 67% 33% 18% 0% 13% 39 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,507 29
Email software - age Years MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total Less than 2 59% 45% 8% 1% 24% 158 2-5 60% 33% 12% 1% 21% 203 5-10 69% 31% 12% 0% 15% 206 10-15 76% 23% 10% 1% 16% 201 More than 15 76% 22% 14% 3% 10% 756 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,524 Email software - export Status MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total Export 75% 24% 11% 4% 20% 386 Could Export 64% 37% 13% 0% 16% 125 Non-Exporter 68% 23% 13% 2% 14% 126 (blank) 591 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,527 Email software - location Region MS Outlook Web based Outlook Express Lotus Notes Other Total Melbourne North 66% 29% 14% 1% 18% 588 Melbourne East 74% 28% 11% 1% 11% 315 Melbourne West 74% 24% 15% 3% 13% 232 Melbourne South 76% 24% 9% 3% 14% 218 Other Victoria 77% 29% 9% 1% 11% 160 Other 64% 7% 14% 0% 14% 14 Average 71% 27% 12% 2% 15% 1,527 30
Accounting Software 74% of respondents use accounting software. On the whole respondents are still happy with the most popular accounting software packages MYOB and Quickbooks. 3% of respondents use Xero. 1% of smaller organisations use the Tax Office erecord product. 36% of respondents use MYOB, 16% use Quickbooks. 66% of larger organisations with more than 100 employees use Arrow, Attache, MS Dynamics, Sage, Sap, Sun, Technology One and other enterprise systems. Accounting software - organisations Sector MYOB Quick Other Total books Health Care & Social 32% 18% 27% 295 Professional Services 33% 17% 22% 283 Other Services 41% 22% 14% 188 Manufacturing 37% 10% 40% 147 Education & Training 42% 10% 22% 124 Retail 37% 17% 13% 87 Information Media 37% 9% 28% 68 Administrative & Support 55% 19% 23% 47 Construction 36% 15% 23% 47 Wholesale 33% 15% 38% 39 Transport & Warehousing 32% 13% 34% 38 Arts & Recreation 38% 22% 5% 37 Accommodation & Food 42% 13% 16% 31 Public Administration 10% 7% 60% 30 Rental Hiring & Real Estate 32% 16% 24% 25 Finance & Insurance 35% 13% 35% 23 Average 36% 16% 25% 1,509 31
Accounting software - size Employees MYOB Quick Other Total books 1-2 30% 14% 14% 653 3-4 51% 23% 16% 169 5-9 51% 24% 18% 188 10-19 53% 20% 16% 123 20-49 48% 15% 33% 147 50-99 23% 6% 57% 86 100-499 16% 8% 66% 122 500+ 0% 3% 79% 39 Average 36% 16% 25% 1,527 Accounting software adoption rating Rating MYOB Quick books Other Total Leading edge 37% 15% 31% 123 Fast Follower 36% 16% 33% 376 Average 36% 16% 23% 693 Lags behind 36% 14% 20% 276 In trouble 36% 15% 15% 39 Average 36% 16% 25% 1,507 Accounting software - age Years MYOB Quick Other Total books Less than 2 21% 10% 16% 158 2-5 27% 15% 19% 203 5-10 43% 13% 15% 206 10-15 48% 21% 18% 201 More than 15 37% 16% 33% 756 Average 36% 16% 25% 1,524 32
Database Software 52% of respondents use database software of some kind. Larger organisations (100+ employees) use MS Access (30%), SQL (45%) and a variety of other database programs, including MySQL and Oracle. Database software - organisations Sector Database Excel Access SQL File Other Total software maker Health Care & Social 60% 42% 24% 17% 2% 13% 295 Professional Services 43% 24% 14% 16% 2% 11% 283 Other Services 55% 34% 24% 9% 2% 12% 188 Manufacturing 59% 27% 18% 25% 1% 10% 147 Education & Training 65% 37% 16% 25% 5% 13% 124 Retail 34% 16% 5% 6% 0% 9% 87 Information Media 53% 28% 19% 22% 3% 13% 68 Administrative & Support 49% 26% 21% 13% 4% 11% 47 Construction 32% 28% 6% 4% 2% 6% 47 Wholesale 49% 18% 10% 21% 0% 21% 39 Transport & Warehousing 50% 21% 11% 26% 0% 18% 38 Arts & Recreation 57% 41% 22% 3% 11% 3% 37 Accommodation & Food 42% 13% 16% 3% 0% 16% 31 Public Administration 70% 37% 37% 43% 0% 17% 30 Rental & Real Estate 52% 28% 8% 12% 0% 16% 25 Finance & Insurance 57% 17% 0% 22% 0% 35% 23 Average 52% 30% 17% 16% 2% 12% 1,509 33