G Suite is now Google Workspace. So what do you need to know?

Formerly known as G Suite, Google Workspace is an online productivity and collaboration tool for businesses that includes Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides and Meet. It allows users to access files, calendars, emails, video calls and instant messaging, all integrated in one collaborative working environment.

Commenting on the recent change in name, our Google Workspace Specialist and Trainer, Allegra Monico, has said:

“G Suite sounds like a suite of separate products, whereas workspace sounds like one place, so it’s the integration of all of their products under one umbrella.”

The re-brand provides more synergy for a better, overall product experience. Google believes “their new set of offerings will better equip our customers for the future of work”* and with a huge surge of businesses moving to the digital workplace it has never been more important for colleagues to feel connected, regardless of where they may be working from.

Whilst the term ‘this is the new normal’ might feel a bit tiresome for us all to hear, it has definitely inspired a change for Google. They have claimed “office workers no longer have impromptu discussion at the coffee machine or while walking to meetings together, and instead have turned their homes in workspaces.”*

So, with an evolving need for remote team collaboration it appears that Google’s rebrand of G Suite to Google Workspace has launched at the perfect time to challenge Microsoft’s already fully integrated and well established Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams platform.

CloudM’s Managing Director, Gary Bennion believes “that it’s an exciting re-brand and seems to be Google's play to take on Microsoft Teams” and he has even predicted that this change “will help Google get back to disrupting the Digital Workplace” - an exciting prospect giving more and more businesses the chance to bring innovation to the way they work.

The once individual products allowed customers to choose apps depending on the single solutions they were looking for. Many businesses have used Google Docs for collaborative working between teams or Meet for group discussions, but over time it was clear that integrating the platforms would allow for more seamless ways of working across every touch point. The new Google Workspace icons provide a better visual identity where all of the apps now feel like they are part of the same family.

With the current uncertainty in the world today, their main focus is to make sure their customers feel in control of their work, no matter what the future may look like.

“Google Workspace embodies our vision for a future where work is more flexible, time is more precious, and enabling stronger human connections becomes even more important. It’s a vision we’ve been building toward for more than a decade, and one we’re excited to bring to life together with you.”

Read the full article about their updates.

Our passion for innovation means we are excited about the changes Google have made, and with the rapid growth in digital transformation it’s great to see that any business of any size can move toward a more flexible way of working.As the digital workplace continues to develop, with Google and Microsoft at the cornerstone of productivity applications, users can also be reassured that they don’t have to decide between them in an either / or scenario. Both have been working hard to include added interoperability between the two suites. You can open a Microsoft Word or Excel file in their Google counterpart and work on it seamlessly. Microsoft files can also be saved in Google Drive.

There are limitations of course, but the fact that both platforms have started working on better interoperability can only be good news for users.

Our MD Gary predicts “it will result in us seeing more organizations going for a multi-cloud approach to productivity” ensuring they are getting the best from their workforce and customers and overall improving productivity by distributing workloads across multiple environments to best suit business needs. What does this mean for CloudM?

With this approach in mind, our the CloudM platform hasn’t changed. In fact, it is intuitive enough to work seamlessly with both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365. Our agile way of working means we are prepared, and here on the front-line to help businesses future proof their processes for years to come. We take the pressure away from users being locked into one environment, allowing them to seamlessly migrate and manage their data between platforms, avoiding vendor lock-in. Find out more about the CloudM platform.

Sources *Google Cloud, Product News