Cisco CEO Predicts Social Networking Technology will Lead to New Era of Productivity

Cisco CEO, John Chambers announced Tuesday that he believed online collaboration technology will lead to a boom in productivity, much like the productivity jump in the 1990’s, where computers began to facilitate productivity. Speaking at the World Business Forum in New York City, he outlined his vision for the next stage of business development, arguing that the implementation of social networking technology will amount to a new business model for corporations.

Chambers remarked that the social networking culture driving by the younger generation, will lead the way to the next stage of business technology. While his remarks shouldn’t be considered as an actual forecast of his company’s performance, Chambers predicted that U.S. productivity will rise 3 to 5 percent in the next decade, returning to the boom of the 1990s.

Technologies such as Cisco’s telepresence and video conferencing services will allow businesses to perform tasks much more quickly at a reduced cost. Chambers said telepresence has allowed him to meet with twice as many customers while spending half the time on the road - a process that for Cisco as a whole saved $150 million last year and $100 million this year.

With a general “leadership” theme at the WBF in NY, Chambers argued that improved technology led to a different management model. He said the old style of “command and control,” where he and other top management dictated the process of a new project to others in the company, was at one time the more efficient way to move forward. With collaboration and communication technology making instant online meetings more efficient and affordable, that’s all about to change.