Javier Soltero, vice president and general manager of Google Workspace, points out the new understanding that, for many, “work is no longer a physical place we go to”.
“Office workers no longer have impromptu discussions at the coffee machine or while walking to meetings together, and instead have turned their homes into workspaces,” he says. “Frontline workers, from builders on a construction site to delivery specialists keeping critical supply chains moving, are turning to their phones to help get their jobs done. While doctors treating patients and local government agencies engaging with their communities are accelerating how they can use technology to deliver their services.”
The result of this transformation, he says, is that “time is more fragmented—split between work and personal responsibilities—and human connections are more difficult than ever to establish and maintain”.
He suggests that Google Workspace is “everything you need to get anything done, now in one place”, but shares the common misconception of most tech giants: that these are “the productivity apps you know and love”. Few people really love productivity applications – the better it helps them do their jobs, the more they appreciate then. But love? Not so much.
That is reserved for the likes of social sharing and entertainment applications. Here, too, Google would love a bigger slice of the action. Its Meet application was powerfully poised to cash in on the social distancing and remote working revolution, but lost out in a massive way to Zoom.
“Google Workspace is the best way to create, communicate, and collaborate”? Not according to the market. Or, at least, not yet. Soltero would like to make it so with major new selling points.
So, for example, in Docs, Sheets, and Slides, users can now preview a linked file without having to open a new tab, meaning less time spent moving between apps. Borrowing from, of all things, Microsoft Teams, when one “@mentions” someone in a document, “a smart chip will show contact details, including for those outside your organization, provide context and even suggest actions like adding that person to Contacts or reaching out via email, chat or video”.
Perhaps unintentionally ironically, Soltero says this is about “reinforcing human connections”, as it is “what keeps teams together”.
Even if they are playing catch-up in some areas, the updates all make sense. For example, Workspace brings Meet picture-in-picture to Gmail and Chat, so that one can see and hear people one is working with, while collaborating.
Read more on the next page about the features and options for Workspace.
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