Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications

    Surprise: Facebook Has Over 2 Million Paid Enterprise Workspace Users

    By
    David Needle
    -
    February 28, 2019
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin
      Facebook Workplace

      SAN FRANCISCO—Despite privacy concerns and other controversies related to its consumer social network, Facebook has gained a significant toehold in the enterprise for Workplace, a secure collaboration and messaging platform that operates separately from the consumer version.

      Facebook only started charging for Workplace 16 months ago, following its formal launch in 2016. In the past 12 months, it says companies such as Nestlé, Vodafone, GSK, Telefonica, AstraZeneca, Delta Air Lines, Kering and National Australia Bank have signed on. There are now 150 companies with more than 10,000 paid users of Workplace and several with over 150,000 users.

      Bucking the conventional approach, Facebook said it isn’t taking an early adopter, piloting approach; rather, it pitches big companies on mass adoption.

      “We go to these companies, and we want them to go wall-to-wall and get everyone using Workplace,” said Karandeep Anand, the head of Workplace at Facebook, during a media event here Feb. 27. “That’s what’s different in what we’re doing because Workplace is really designed for everyone throughout the organization, not just special teams or groups.”

      In an interview with eWEEK, Anand said one new customer had planned to make a staggered rollout of Workplace to different parts of the company. “Then they decided to see what would happen if they just flipped the switch and made it available to 100,000 employees all at once. What happened was that everyone started using it without any training or setup.” Anand is also quick to note that Facebook only counts active users as paid users. “You have to use Workplace at least once a month; otherwise, we don’t charge you.”

      While there are plenty of other messaging and collaboration platforms out there, Facebook insists it’s not out to beat competitors and says its value is generally additive rather than alternative to what companies are already using such as the popular messaging platform Slack. “We love Slack,” said Anand.

      Lesley Young, global director of enterprise sales for Workplace at Facebook, said Facebook has already partnered with many would-be competitors, including her former employer Box, to ensure compatibility.

      “We also have a great opportunity as we move forward, connecting businesses to their partners and other businesses, which is something we did at Box,” said Young.

      In addition to its low learning curve, Workplace is competitively priced at $3 per user per month. Young said there is lower per-user pricing for big volume customers.

      Workplace in Action

      The appeal of Workplace is that most users are familiar with using Facebook and Workplace offers a similar environment. Workplace won’t shoot you “Workplace Memories” like consumer Facebook, though it will alert you to things like your “Workversary.”

      There are other familiar Facebook features, like the ability to broadcast live video. “When the whole company is connected, you can have things like the CEO delivering a weekly video update to the entire company from anywhere,” Anand said.

      Young points to Workplace customers like Valet Living as an example of new use cases. Valet Living is an amenity services company that operates across more than 40 states in the United States. Ninety percent of its staff are part-time workers. “With Workplace, these people were able to connect with each other online for the first time,” said Young.  

      Valet Living’s sales team is also using Workplace to share tips and manage collegial sales competitions. The company said a one-year analysis showed a 20 percent increase in employee retention since Valet Living started using Workplace.

      Analyst Tim Bajarin said crossing the 2 million paid user mark is an important milestone for Facebook and Workplace as the company looks to branch out beyond its core consumer offerings.

      “With these numbers, it’s clear that competitors should be taking note of what’s happening because Facebook itself is a huge force to be reckoned with,” Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, told eWEEK. “They have to maintain the isolation from consumer Facebook and keep it highly secure. There can’t be any security questions for Workplace to succeed going forward.”

      There is plenty of room for growth. Workplace was created from a Facebook project in the UK, and that’s where the core development team is. Anand, who is in the process of moving to London, said Europe is currently the region with the most Workplace customers, but he expects adoption to pick up in the U.S. as well as elsewhere.

      “We’d love to be the first enterprise software to connect a billion users,” said Anand.  

      David Needle
      Based in Silicon Valley, veteran technology reporter David Needle covers mobile, bi g data, and social media among other topics. He was formerly News Editor at Infoworld, Editor of Computer Currents and TabTimes and West Coast Bureau Chief for both InformationWeek and Internet.com.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×