Digital communication is increasingly being used in companies

Three out of five companies already use the smartphone for external or internal communication and one in five companies already communicates via social media.

The digital association Bitkom, the client of the representative survey, is convinced that digital communication is on the fast lane.
But the figures also show that smaller companies still rely on tried and tested means of communication: 70 percent still use a fax machine!

58 percent already use smartphones, but only 5 percent use internal appsAlways

more German companies communicate digitally. 58 percent of companies use smartphones for external and internal communication. Last year, the figure was 51 percent. The figures also show that many companies are also increasingly using the other digital communication channels. One in two companies - around 52 percent - uses video conferences and online meetings; in 2016, this figure was just 40 percent of the companies surveyed. Customer or employee portals are provided by around a third - 34 percent. In 2016, this figure was 28 percent. Today, many companies also communicate via social networks - i.e. Facebook, Xing or Twitter. To be more precise: 22 percent, or one in five companies, already use social networks. In 2016, social networks were used by only 15 percent of companies. However, there is still a backlog demand for internal apps - just 5 percent of companies use such possibilities  

The fax machine is still not extinct

"Digital communication ensures that work paths become even more flexible and easier," says Jürgen Biffar, the Chairman of the Board of the Enterprise Content Management Competence Center at Bitkom. "The smartphone is increasingly becoming a mobile communication center, also in the professional environment. Today, we can answer our e-mails or be connected to video conferences while on the move". But the figures also show that 70 percent of companies still use a fax machine when communicating with business partners, colleagues and customers. Last year, the figure was 79 percent. It is mainly the smaller companies (20 to 49 employees) that still use a fax machine  

504 companies were surveyed

The Digital Association surveyed 504 companies that had at least 20 employees. The figures show, especially in comparison to the previous year, that digital communication is on the fast lane. Smartphones have already become an established feature; social media are also becoming increasingly important. Even though internal apps are used by just 5 percent of companies, it can be assumed that this figure will also rise. Further information can be found on the website https://www.bitkom.org/ecm/.