Business
From switchboard operators to Zoom: The evolution of workplace communications
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed how people communicate at work: Nearly half of people videoconference more, 43% email more, 42% call more, and 41% text more than before the pandemic, according to a data analysis from Grammarly.
To track the evolution of business communications from switchboards and fax machines to email and VoIP systems, Top10.com compiled a list of nine milestones that transformed how we collaborate in the workplace, using research from technology publications, newspaper archives, the International Association for Computer Information Systems, and other sources.
Workplaces have often set industry standards in adopting new or more efficient technology to improve day-to-day business. Before we had our own telephone at our desks—and well before we had them in our pockets—switchboard operators made it possible for a client or coworker to reach you directly to talk business in real time.
When it came to sending files, documents, and forms, businesses ditched hand couriers and the post office in favor of the fax machine, which became an office staple in the ’80s. It wasn’t long after that when email, though initially used for personal communication, became a large part of office life and has led to an “always-on” email culture. Videoconferencing, first presented in 1968 as a commercial solution, has undergone many iterations and remains a steady presence in workplaces to this day, allowing for remote work.
Read on to learn how cellphones, instant messaging, Zoom, and other tech have influenced workplace communication.
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Switchboard operators
The telephone transformed communications in the office, allowing white-collar offices to separate from warehouses and factories. This ultimately, and perhaps ironically, made American offices more centralized.
In the early days of the telephone, switchboard operators were essential intermediaries who relayed calls manually through a central switchboard connected to subscriber wires.
George W. Coy, who had experience in the telegraph business, came up with the idea for switchboards after attending a lecture by telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell: Together, they started the first American telephone exchange. This technology, which began as one exchange with 21 clients, revolutionized the telephone and made it available to the masses.
Women dominated the switchboard operator field in the early 20th century, growing from 88,000 in the U.S. in 1910 to 235,500 by 1930. Soon telephone users could call each other directly, leading to widespread job cuts. By the ’40s, there were fewer than 200,000 switchboard operators.
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Pagers
The pager was invented in 1949 by Al Gross, a man whose attempts to interest hospitals and telephone companies in his newfound technology were mostly unsuccessful—except for New York’s Jewish Hospital, which implemented pager use in 1950.
Pagers peaked in the ’90s after Gross’ patents had expired, with pagers worldwide reaching 61 million in 1994.
Pagers were and still are most frequently used in hospitals, where the devices were praised for improving and accelerating urgent communications. They’re still useful today, with signals that can penetrate buildings, making them more reliable than cell phones.
As of 2017, nearly 80% of U.S. hospitals still rely on pagers for their communications, according to a study in the Journal of Hospital Medicine. Other companies still using pagers as of 2017 include infrastructure companies like EDF Energy in the U.K., lifeboat crews using pagers with GPS trackers, and emergency responders or medics.
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Videoconferencing
Videoconferencing technology was first introduced at the World’s Fair in New York as “the Picturephone,” a commercial solution with which users could communicate over video in 10-minute intervals. The initial adoption was slow because it was a clunky, expensive device that required a challenging setup.
Videoconferencing didn’t become popular until the ’80s when the price for such a system dropped from at least $250,000 to $80,000. The computer revolution in the same decade led to the combination of computers being used in the workplace and the use of an integrated services digital network and broadband services, which helped videoconferencing become more viable.
These early efforts were still expensive and complex, discouraging many companies from using this technology.
Tech advancements in the ’90s including major Internet Protocol technology, video compression, and internet advancements helped nudge the price down for IBM’s videoconferencing systems to $20,000. In the same decade, webcams allowed videoconferencing technology to reach consumers. However, as in the ’80s, videoconference solutions did not always offer the best user experience because there was a tradeoff between motion-handling capacity and picture resolution.
By the early aughts, Skype provided a software technology solution for video transmission that significantly improved that technology; by the mid-’00s, the webcam became a standard desktop and laptop component. At that point, companies also started seeing the financial rewards that came with videoconferencing: increased employee productivity, reduced travel expenses, and savings on real estate and other office-related costs companies still get to this day. And, of course, there are the significant changes videoconferencing technologies brought to workplace communications during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing people working from home to attend Zoom meetings.
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Fax machines
Fax machines send graphic or text messages through a phone line from a scanner to a printer, which prints the message on paper. Because phone lines can only pick up audio, the original message is converted into frequencies and tones that the machine interprets as either white or black, which results in the printed page’s overall composition.
This first version of the fax machine was invented by Xerox in 1964, though the technology itself—the electric printing telegraph—was created in 1843 by Alexander Baine. In the late ’70s, mostly Fortune 500 companies used them to get and send urgent documents. The devices were widespread by the ’80s and used across government, medical, legal, and small-business offices. Ubiquitous use drove prices down: Fax machines cost $18,000 in their heydey, dropping to as low as $500 by 1991.
Fax machine technology was the fastest-growing business communication and office automation area at the time, as fax machines could transmit documents between rooms in the same building or over thousands of miles. Until cellphones started replacing landlines late in the ’90s, fax machines facilitated all kinds of office communications.
As home landlines became less common, the number of consumers using fax machines declined. However, some industries—such as tech, finance, insurance, and health care—still use fax machines to send secure communications that follow strict privacy policies, such as the federal law restricting the release of medical information.
The Washington Post // Getty Images
Ray Tomlinson created the first electronic mail, or email, system in 1971—though it wasn’t until the World Wide Web’s inception that email became popular. By the ’90s, email was an essential communication tool worldwide. 1993 brought a new milestone: Users could attach files to emails.
While many people used email personally in the ’90s, sending speedy replies wasn’t the norm, and people even considered faxes to be still more effective. Email became all-pervasive in the office in the 2000s, and the way professionals worked quickly transformed. Suddenly, people became obsessed with checking their inboxes, spending hours sending and receiving messages, and worrying about email etiquette’s undefined rules.
Now, email culture is “always-on,” with employees receiving emails during their off-work hours, like in the evening or over the weekend.
Ron Watts // Getty Images
Cellphones
The first call made from a cellphone was by Motorola executive Martin Cooper in 1973—and the device was pretty different from the cellphones we use today, weighing around 2.4 pounds, resembling a brick, and only being able to put a call through for 30 minutes after charging for 10 hours.
It wasn’t until 1983 that the first commercial phone came out, Motorola’s DynaTAC, a heavy, bulky device that cost around $4,000. These cell phones became smaller throughout the ’80s, culminating in 1989 when the release of Motorola MicroTac, a flip phone that could fit inside a user’s shirt pocket. Around the beginning of the 21st century, many affordable cellphones came out with various features: web browsing, a function similar to today’s touchscreen feature, full physical keyboards, a camera, a color screen, and fashion features like a variety of colors and sleek design.
In addition, there was the car phone, invented in 1920. The device—only available in luxury cars and to the rich and famous—was considered an eccentric invention until the ’40s and ’50s when cellphone towers were erected in the U.S. In the ’70s, car phones finally reached the masses, but they soon fell out of fashion when cellphones became popularized in the ’80s and ’90s.
In 1990, a Canadian program called Venture interviewed car phone users—an owner of a small business, a professional in the travel industry, a sales agent, and a building contractor—and they all cited business as the main reason for using a car phone. One user reported that it was never possible to “get away” and that they could be reached “all the time,” though others used the tech for personal calls.
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Instant messaging
Instant messaging dates back to 1961, when the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Compatible Time-Sharing System allowed 30 people to log in and send each other messages.
The rise of the internet in the ’90s caused instant messaging to take off, and major IM platforms, including Yahoo, MSN, AIM, and ICQ, began competing in the market. IMs flourished in the ’00s as playing games, making video calls, and sharing photos became common IM features of new IM platforms like Apple’s iChat, Skype, Google Talk, MySpaceIM, WhatsApp, and Facebook Chat (now Messenger).
Another major transformation occurred in the 2010s when such apps as WhatsApp, WeChat, Snapchat, Discord, and Slack offered many new features, including making payments, shopping, sending pictures that disappeared after a specific time, and facilitating workplace communication and collaboration.
When the pandemic required many workers to start working remotely, IM communication platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams helped workers collaborate with their colleagues and continue working efficiently. Slack co-founder Cal Henderson said in an August 2020 Wired UK interview that many major companies would embrace remote working permanently, mainly because of its tools.
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Smartphones
The first smartphone, the Simon Personal Communicator, was unveiled by IBM in 1992; two years later, it was available on the market for $1,100. While it wasn’t sleek or compact, it had many features that persist in smartphones today, such as a touchscreen, standard and predictive text keyboards, a native appointment scheduler, a calendar, an address book, and email. It could even send and receive faxes.
The first smartphone connected to a 3G network became available in the early 2000s, but given that it cost between $300 and $700, it was a bit pricey for most people. But when the iPhone debuted at Macworld in 2007, the public was presented with a phone that had a sleek design and internet access similar to a desktop computer. Since then, many new versions of the iPhone have been released, the Android has come out, apps have been on the rise, and the number of smartphone users worldwide has gone up significantly to 83.3% of the global population as of October 2022.
Smartphone use has impacted work-life balance, with employees dealing with personal affairs at work while completing work tasks during their free time. These devices have facilitated faster information flow; face-to-face meetings through messages, email, or video conferences; flexibility in work location; and higher employee satisfaction. On the other hand, they have led to declining productivity, ongoing stress, and the loss of privacy.
Smartphones also centralize many tasks, enabling people at work to look at their invoices, talk to coworkers, and send emails in one place without going to the office. This meant many of the tasks covered on this list could now be done on a smartphone.
Girts Ragelis // Shutterstock
Zoom
Eric Yuan founded Saasbee Inc. in 2011, renamed it Zoom the following year, and unveiled Zoom 1.0 worldwide in 2013. But the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic seven years later is what truly put Zoom on the map.
After COVID-19 reached the U.S. early in 2020, schools throughout the country closed, provided their students with tablets and laptops, and quickly had educators pivot to teaching via apps such as Zoom. People used Zoom to socialize online when restrictions were in place: celebrating birthdays, hosting trivia nights, and even attending virtual happy hours. And, of course, businesses used Zoom as lockdowns worldwide led to closed offices, making working from home obligatory for many.
While there are other players in the enterprise videoconferencing space—BlueJeans, GoToMeeting, Skype, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams—it was Zoom, eventually, that would become the most popular. Zoom became so popular that its brand was turned into a verb, as in, “Sure, let’s just Zoom next Monday and talk about it then.”
With Zoom, businesses could communicate in various ways using the videoconferencing solution. They can host one-on-one meetings or town halls with a maximum of 100 participants and multiple communications through the platform, such as group chats, cloud phone calls, webinars, and video meetings. Additionally, the app can be accessed through mobile devices, conference rooms, browsers, and desktop clients, making it accessible to everyone on the team. It’s important to note issues such as “Zoom fatigue” and how the app is not a complete replacement for in-person communication.
More than 7 in 10 executives said hybrid/remote work hasn’t hurt building connections with their employees; they were considering a remote-flexible working model after the success of remote collaboration during the pandemic, according to a July 2022 Morning Consult survey for Zoom. This report also found that videoconferencing technology was one of the most significant factors that contributed to a positive view of remote working. Given the success of remote work during the pandemic, the trend will likely become commonplace in the world of office work.
This story originally appeared on Top10.com and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
You walk into a fast-food restaurant on your lunch break. You don’t see a cashier but instead a self-service kiosk, a technology that is becoming the new norm in eateries across the country. The kiosks usually offer customers a menu to scroll through and pictures of meals and specials with prompts to select their food and submit their payment in one place.
Self-service kiosks are big business. In fact, the market for self-service products is expected to grow from a $40.3 billion market value in 2022 to $63 billion by 2027, according to a report from BCC Research. Consumers do have mixed opinions about the kiosks, but about 3 out of 5 surveyed consumers reported that they were likely to use self-service kiosks, according to the National Restaurant Association. The technology, while expensive, can boost businesses’ bottom lines in the long run.
Task Group summarized the rise in digital ordering over the past couple of years, its acceptance among customers, and a cost analysis of adopting the technology.
Self-service kiosks—digital machines or display booths—are generally placed in high-traffic areas. They can be used for different reasons, including navigating a store or promoting a product. Interactive self-service kiosks in particular are meant for consumers to place orders with little to no assistance from employees.
The idea of kiosks isn’t new. The concept of self-service was first introduced in the 1880s when the first types of kiosks appeared as vending machines selling items like gum and postcards. In the present age of technology, the trend of self-service has only grown. Restaurants such as McDonald’s and Starbucks have already tried out cashierless technology.
From a business perspective, the kiosks offer a huge upside. While many employers are looking for workers, they’re having a hard time finding staff. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers struggled with a severe employee shortage. Since then, the problem has continued. In 2022, the National Restaurant Association reported that 65% of restaurant operators didn’t have enough workers on staff to meet consumer demand. With labor shortages running rampant, cashierless technology could help restaurants fill in for the lack of human employees.
The initial investment for the kiosks can be high. The general cost per kiosk is difficult to quantify, with one manufacturer estimating a range of $1,500 to $20,000 per station. However, with the use of kiosks, restaurants may not need as many cashiers or front-end employees, instead reallocating workers’ time to other tasks.
In May 2022, the hourly mean wage for cashiers who worked in restaurants and other eating establishments was $12.99, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Kiosks could cost less money than a cashier in the long run.
But how do the customers themselves feel about the growing trend? According to a Deloitte survey, 62% of respondents report that they were “somewhat likely” to order from a cashierless restaurant if given the chance to do so. The same survey reported that only 19% of respondents had experience with a cashierless restaurant.
What would it mean for society if restaurants did decide to go completely cashierless? Well, millions of positions would likely no longer be necessary. One report suggests 82% of restaurant positions could be replaced by robots, a prospect making automation appealing to owners who can’t find staff to hire.
Due to the ongoing labor shortage, employers have tried raising employee wages. Papa John’s, Texas Roadhouse, and Chipotle were among the restaurant companies that increased employee pay or offered bonuses in an attempt to hire and retain more workers. Meanwhile, some companies have decided to use technology to perform those jobs instead, so that they wouldn’t have to put effort into hiring or focus their existing staff on other roles.
Story editing by Ashleigh Graf and Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Tim Bruns.
It’s well-documented that the surest, and often best, return on investments comes from playing the long game. But between stocks and real estate, which is the stronger bet?
To find out, financial planning firm Wealth Enhancement Group analyzed data from academic research, Standard and Poor’s, and Nareit to see how real estate compares to stocks as an investment.
Data going back to 1870 shows the well-established power of real estate as a powerful “long-run investment.” From 1870-2015, and after adjusting for inflation, real estate produced an average annual return of 7.05%, compared to 6.89% for equities. These findings, published in the 2019 issue of The Quarterly Journal of Economics, illustrate that stocks can deviate as much as 22% from their average, while housing only spreads out 10%. That’s because despite having comparable returns, stocks are inherently more volatile due to following the whims of the business cycle.
Real estate has inherent benefits, from unlocking cash flow and offering tax breaks to building equity and protecting investors from inflation. Investments here also help to diversify a portfolio, whether via physical properties or a real estate investment trust. Investors can track markets with standard resources that include the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, which tracks residential real estate prices; the Nareit U.S. Real Estate Index, which gathers data on the real estate investment trust, or REIT, industry; and the S&P 500, which tracks the stocks of 500 of the largest companies in the U.S.
High interest rates and a competitive market dampened the flurry of real-estate investments made in the last four years. The rise in interest rates equates to a bigger borrowing cost for investors, which can spell big reductions in profit margins. That, combined with the risk of high vacancies, difficult tenants, or hidden structural problems, can make real estate investing a less attractive option—especially for first-time investors.
Keep reading to learn more about whether real estate is a good investment today and how it stacks up against the stock market.
Wealth Enhancement Group
Stocks and housing have both done well
REITs can offer investors the stability of real estate returns without bidding wars or hefty down payments. A hybrid model of stocks and real estate, REITs allow the average person to invest in businesses that finance or own income-generating properties.
REITs delivered slightly better returns than the S&P 500 over the past 20-, 25-, and 50-year blocks. However, in the short term—the last 10 years, for instance—stocks outperformed REITs with a 12% return versus 9.5%, according to data compiled by The Motley Fool investor publication.
Whether a new normal is emerging that stocks will continue to offer higher REITs remains to be seen.
This year, the S&P 500 reached an all-time high, courtesy of investor enthusiasm in speculative tech such as artificial intelligence. However, just seven tech companies, dubbed “The Magnificent 7,” are responsible for an outsized amount of the S&P’s returns last year, creating worry that there may be a tech bubble.
While indexes keep a pulse on investment performance, they don’t always tell the whole story. The Case-Shiller Index only measures housing prices, for example, which leaves out rental income (profit) or maintenance costs (loss) when calculating the return on residential real estate investment.
Wealth Enhancement Group
Housing returns have been strong globally too
Like its American peers, the global real estate market in industrialized nations offers comparable returns to the international stock market.
Over the long term, returns on stocks in industrialized nations is 7%, including dividends, and 7.2% in global real estate, including rental income some investors receive from properties. Investing internationally may have more risk for American buyers, who are less likely to know local rules and regulations in foreign countries; however, global markets may offer opportunities for a higher return. For instance, Portugal’s real estate market is booming due to international visitors deciding to move there for a better quality of life. Portugal’s housing offers a 6.3% return in the long term, versus only 4.3% for its stock market.
For those with deep enough pockets to stay in, investing in housing will almost always bear out as long as the buyer has enough equity to manage unforeseen expenses and wait out vacancies or slumps in the market. Real estate promises to appreciate over the long term, offers an opportunity to collect rent for income, and allows investors to leverage borrowed capital to increase additional returns on investment.
Above all, though, the diversification of assets is the surest way to guarantee a strong return on investments. Spreading investments across different assets increases potential returns and mitigates risk.
Story editing by Nicole Caldwell. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick.
This story originally appeared on Wealth Enhancement Group and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
In today’s digital climate, consuming sports has never been easier. Thanks to a plethora of streaming sites, alternative broadcasts, and advancements to home entertainment systems, the average fan has myriad options to watch and learn about their favorite teams at the touch of a button—all without ever having to leave the couch.
As a result, more and more sports venues have committed to improving and modernizing their facilities and fan experiences to compete with at-home audiences. Consider using mobile ticketing and parking passes, self-service kiosks for entry and ordering food, enhanced video boards, and jumbotrons that supply data analytics and high-definition replays. These innovations and upgrades are meant to draw more revenue and attract various sponsored partners. They also deliver unique and convenient in-person experiences that rival and outmatch traditional ways of enjoying games.
In Los Angeles, the Rams and Chargers’ SoFi Stadium has become the gold standard for football venues. It’s an architectural wonder with closer views, enhanced hospitality, and a translucent roof that cools the stadium’s internal temperature.
The Texas Rangers’ ballpark, Globe Life Field, added field-level suites and lounges that resemble the look and feel of a sports bar. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Clippers are building a new arena (in addition to retail space, team offices, and an outdoor public plaza) that will seat 18,000 people and feature a fan section called The Wall, which will regulate attire and rooting interest.
It’s no longer acceptable to operate with old-school facilities and technology. Just look at Commanders Field (formerly FedExField), home of the Washington Commanders, which has faced criticism for its faulty barriers, leaking ceilings, poor food options, and long lines. Understandably, the team has been attempting to find a new location to build a state-of-the-art stadium and keep up with the demand for high-end amenities.
As more organizations audit their stadiums and arenas and keep up with technological innovations, Uniqode compiled a list of the latest tech advancements to coax—and keep—fans inside venues.
Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register // Getty Images
Just Walk Out technology
After successfully installing its first cashierless grocery store in 2020, Amazon has continued to put its tracking technology into practice.
In 2023, the Seahawks incorporated Just Walk Out technology at various merchandise stores throughout Lumen Field, allowing fans to purchase items with a swipe and scan of their palms.
The radio-frequency identification system, which involves overhead cameras and computer vision, is a substitute for cashiers and eliminates long lines.
RFID is now found in a handful of stadiums and arenas nationwide. These stores have already curbed checkout wait times, eliminated theft, and freed up workers to assist shoppers, according to Jon Jenkins, vice president of Just Walk Out tech.
Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox // Getty Images
Self-serve kiosks
In the same vein as Amazon’s self-scanning technology, self-serve kiosks have become a more integrated part of professional stadiums and arenas over the last few years. Some of these function as top-tier vending machines with canned beers and nonalcoholic drinks, shuffling lines quicker with virtual bartenders capable of spinning cocktails and mixed drinks.
The kiosks extend past beverages, as many college and professional venues have started using them to scan printed and digital tickets for more efficient entrance. It’s an effort to cut down lines and limit the more tedious aspects of in-person attendance, and it’s led various competing kiosk brands to provide their specific conveniences.
Kyle Rivas // Getty Images
Mobile ordering
Is there anything worse than navigating the concourse for food and alcohol and subsequently missing a go-ahead home run, clutch double play, or diving catch?
Within the last few years, more stadiums have eliminated those worries thanks to contactless mobile ordering. Fans can select food and drink items online on their phones to be delivered right to their seats. Nearly half of consumers said mobile app ordering would influence them to make more restaurant purchases, according to a 2020 study at PYMNTS. Another study showed a 22% increase in order size.
Many venues, including Yankee Stadium, have taken notice and now offer personalized deliveries in certain sections and established mobile order pick-up zones throughout the ballpark.
Darrian Traynor // Getty Images
QR codes at seats
Need to remember a player’s name? Want to look up an opponent’s statistics at halftime? The team at Digital Seat Media has you covered.
Thus far, the company has added seat tags to more than 50 venues—including two NFL stadiums—with QR codes to promote more engagement with the product on the field. After scanning the code, fans can access augmented reality features, look up rosters and scores, participate in sponsorship integrations, and answer fan polls on the mobile platform.
Boris Streubel/Getty Images for DFL // Getty Images
Real-time data analytics and generative AI
As more venues look to reinvigorate the in-stadium experience, some have started using generative artificial intelligence and real-time data analytics. Though not used widely yet, generative AI tools can create new content—text, imagery, or music—in conjunction with the game, providing updates, instant replays, and location-based dining suggestions
Last year, the Masters golf tournament even began including AI score projections in its mobile app. Real-time data is streamlining various stadium pitfalls, allowing operation managers to monitor staffing issues at busy food spots, adjust parking flows, and alert custodians to dirty or damaged bathrooms. The data also helps with security measures. Open up an app at a venue like the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, and report safety issues or belligerent fans to help better target disruptions and preserve an enjoyable experience.
Story editing by Nicole Caldwell. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick.
This story originally appeared on Uniqode and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
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