There was a time in the not-so-distant past when the sales team had more tools than a night out in Wrigleyville (hey-ooo).
We had a tool to ask and answer questions.
We had a tool to store documents.
We had a tool that acted as an intranet site.
We had a tool to manage customer information.
We had a tool to track new business development.
We had a tool to communicate with our video production company.
We had a tool to send large files.
And none of this is even counting basic business tools like instant messenger, email, and the server…
Our toolbox had become so crowded that we could no longer identify the right tool, let alone access it, when we needed it (with all the digging we had to do, we may as well have thrown a shovel in there). These well-intentioned tools that were designed to increase productivity ended up having the opposite effect.
We went merrily along for years tripping over tools because, hey, too many tools is better than no tools, right?
Finally, when Captain Reman decided that we needed a tool for collaboration and project management, we decided a change was in order. As manager of a good number of these tools, I had to take a hard look at what we really needed out of our tools and prepare myself for the task of cleaning out the toolbox.
Eventually, we settled on Yammer, a social enterprise network by Microsoft. Now, this isn’t an endorsement of the platform or Microsoft, but, quite frankly, Yammer does what we needed it to do: be an organized repository for information, communication, and collaboration. That alone allowed us to consolidate six of those tools into one.
So take a look at your toolbox. Is it overfilling with under- or misused tools? Maybe it’s time to clean house before an overabundance of tools throws a real wrench in your productivity.
 

Aimee may use heels for hammers and butter knives for screwdrivers, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t know her communication tools. In fact, her philosophy may be best summarized by the immortal words of the poet/philosopher Vanilla Ice, “Stop. Collaborate. And listen.”
Like what Aimee has to say? Comment below or email her directly!