“Columbia Sportswear Company is a global leader in the design, production, marketing and distribution of outdoor apparel and footwear” (Microsoft.com). As an international company, Columbia’s employees always spread across the nation and always on the move, making efficient communication a necessity for good business.
Gertrude Boyle, chairman of Columbia Sportswear, says, “fast access to up-to-date information is key to the company’s success” (Microsoft.com).
Columbia Sportswear employs more than 2,700 people in 76 countries, and works with more than 13,000 retailers internationally. Approximately 25 percent of Portland’s 700 employees are traveling at any given time.
Barbara Cason says, “Columbia Sportswear is a quintessential Northwest kind of company. Those of us who work here are really drawn to the active lifestyle, to products that allow us to enjoy skiing, hiking, fishing, and all of the things that the Northwest has to offer. But at the same time, my foreign legal associates often need my help with urgent issues outside of our normal business hours. I need to be available to them in a very timely fashion, no matter where I am” (Microsoft.com).
To increase communication efficiency, Columbia Sportswear began using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 in July of 2006. This technology is the newest enterprise software. In addition to Microsoft Exchange 2007, Columbia Sportswear also uses Exchange Unified Messaging, which affords employees the convenience of receiving e-mail , voice mail, calendar items and faxes from a single inbox. Employees can now access their messages through either a Web browser or a telephone, rather than memorizing multiple passwords for multiple inboxes. (Microsoft.com).
Gertrude Boyle, chairman of Columbia Sportswear, says, “fast access to up-to-date information is key to the company’s success” (Microsoft.com).
Columbia Sportswear employs more than 2,700 people in 76 countries, and works with more than 13,000 retailers internationally. Approximately 25 percent of Portland’s 700 employees are traveling at any given time.
Barbara Cason says, “Columbia Sportswear is a quintessential Northwest kind of company. Those of us who work here are really drawn to the active lifestyle, to products that allow us to enjoy skiing, hiking, fishing, and all of the things that the Northwest has to offer. But at the same time, my foreign legal associates often need my help with urgent issues outside of our normal business hours. I need to be available to them in a very timely fashion, no matter where I am” (Microsoft.com).
To increase communication efficiency, Columbia Sportswear began using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 in July of 2006. This technology is the newest enterprise software. In addition to Microsoft Exchange 2007, Columbia Sportswear also uses Exchange Unified Messaging, which affords employees the convenience of receiving e-mail , voice mail, calendar items and faxes from a single inbox. Employees can now access their messages through either a Web browser or a telephone, rather than memorizing multiple passwords for multiple inboxes. (Microsoft.com).
These new technologies allow employees to enjoy an active lifestyle while maintaining constant, efficient communication. They have also reduced phone costs, the costs of business delays and missed opportunities.
“Bill Tung, vice president of international sales and operations at Columbia Sportswear, spends about 40 percent of his time traveling around the world. ‘Being responsible for a global business, it’s absolutely vital for me to have instant access to e-mail, voice mail, faxes, financial data, and company reports,’ he says. ‘Having all these capabilities consolidated on a single device that fits in my pocket saves me a great deal of time.”” (Microsoft.com).
View this entire case study and a one-minute video here.
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