No collaboration option showing in roles?

[Adrian Simpkins]

Hi All

The last couple of weeks I noticed a lot of users had lost their collaboration licence so on a couple of occassions I reset this via the back end to grant collaboration to all users. However when checking again today I can not see this role anymore in the Roles listed in the system? Has something changed around collaboration licencing that I have missed perhaps? We have a large number of authorisers who just have the collaboration role to allow them to authorise requests but when checking a sample of these users they do not have any collaboration role, but no one has reported any issues and I can see authorisations being processed.

Many thanks

Adrian

[TrevorHarris]

the Collaboration Role has been changed to User Role in a recent update, all users who had the Collaboration Role will now have the User Role instead, this should have no effect on their access to the system and they will still have the same rights now as previously

Thanks

Trevor Harris 

[Adrian Simpkins]

Thanks Trevor we did suspect that was what happened but I wanted to double check. I presume this change does not affect costings for collaboration licences versus full user licencing?

Many thanks as always

[Gerry]

@Adrian Simpkins

Thank you for your inquiry. Let me provide an overview of the strategic adjustments we're making at Hornbill regarding our platform's collaboration and user feature sets.

In 2015, we launched the Hornbill ESP Platform with a primary focus on collaboration capabilities, during a time when Slack was just emerging and Microsoft Teams was yet to be introduced. Historically, our clientele has predominantly utilized Hornbill for its robust service management, workflow, and automation solutions. Over time, this has led to the Hornbill ESP platform being the backbone for our Service Manager application, which is tailored to support these specific use cases.

Our internal teams at Hornbill actively use our collaboration capabilities, but we've observed a shift in our customers' preferences towards mainstream solutions like Microsoft Teams for their collaboration needs. This has highlighted a lesser demand for our proprietary collaboration features, prompting us to reassess their integration within our platform as a you-get-it-weather-you-want-it-or-not non-option. Despite this, the core of our collaboration technology—centered around an innovative "Activity Streams" implementation—remains integral to both the Service Manager application and other Hornbill applications on our platform. It's this core functionality we're preserving, while opting to decouple general collaboration features (such as workspaces, conversations, and integrations with expressive features like Giphy integration) from the platform. These features are being remodeled into a dedicated application, aptly named "Hornbill Collaboration."

The rationale behind this change stems from several insights:

• Our recognition that while collaboration features are valued by some, they are not the primary reason organizations choose Hornbill. By separating these features into a standalone application, we aim to streamline the platform for users focused on service management, workflow, and automation.
• Feedback has consistently shown a preference among our users for adopting corporate standards like Microsoft Teams for collaboration. This decision enables us to align our offerings more closely with our users' preferences and reduces potential friction in adopting Hornbill alongside other established collaboration tools.
• Our internal use of Hornbill Collaboration has revealed varied adoption rates across different teams. By evolving our collaboration features to better meet the needs of development and product-focused teams, we aim to enhance productivity and user satisfaction.
• For both current and prospective customers who find the collaboration features unnecessary or distracting, this move simplifies their experience with Hornbill, presenting a more focused and efficient toolset.

This strategic realignment allows us to offer our collaboration tool as an optional application within our app store, rather than a default component of the platform. This approach reflects a broader trend towards modular, customizable software solutions, enabling customers to tailor their Hornbill experience to their specific needs without compromising on functionality or usability.

Regarding the implications for existing customers, rest assured that this transition will not affect your current use of Hornbill's collaboration features. If you're currently utilizing these capabilities and wish to continue doing so, the process will be as seamless as installing the new "Hornbill Collaboration" application from our App Store, this will replace the platform deployed features, and eventually the platform features will be removed.  This ensures continuity and support for your existing workflows. Looking ahead, we're exploring the possibility of transitioning the collaboration application to a paid model. This decision is driven by our commitment to delivering value and ensuring that the features we offer are both impactful and actively utilized by our customers. However, I want to emphasize that this change will not affect our current users of the collaboration features, ensuring a smooth and uninterrupted experience for those that are currently using the collaboration features of the platform.

Our goal with these changes is to enhance the overall value and effectiveness of the Hornbill platform for our users, aligning our offerings more closely with our customers evolving needs and preferences. 

Gerry

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Adrian Simpkins]

Thanks for the update Gerry, I apprecaite the confirmation of no impact on current setup / costsings etc

Many thanks as always