The Evolution of the Office Phone

Communication in office culture has changed considerably over the last few years. Our love of instant messaging platforms like Teams, Slack and WhatsApp has meant that we rely less and less on the standard office landline to communicate.  While these platforms offer undeniable convenience and speed, the necessity for direct conversation in the business sphere remains irreplaceable. Therefore, the traditional office phone will endure, albeit in an evolved form. 

The first office phones 

The telephone began primarily as a business tool, and it took a while before people came to own them as personal devices. Telephones would connect businesses via direct lines, enabling companies to communicate more efficiently and in greater detail than with the preceding telegraphs.

In 1977, AT&T lost its monopoly on telephone design and manufacturers began to develop different models on a much wider scale. Before long, the landline telephone was present not only in every office, but at every desk. Today, this is still the case in many offices, even as we advance into yet another new era of global connectivity. 

Hung up on landlines 

The evolving landscape of the workplace, now characterized by open-plan offices and streamlined technology, has significantly reduced the need for physical equipment. Coupled with ongoing advancements in mobile technology, the traditional landline is increasingly outdated in this context. In fact, a recent survey by Deloitte found that fifty-nine per cent of US consumers used their own personal smartphone for work purposes “very or fairly often.” 

But despite their bulk and being overshadowed by messaging platforms, there are still elements of traditional office landlines that professionals prefer. For one, many people tend to enjoy a degree of separation between our work and personal lives. We don’t want everything on one device, but it can be complicated to manage two separate mobile phones. But does that mean we will continue to rely on landlines in offices? Not exactly. 

The future work phone 

New technologies like eSIM are making mobiles a more work-friendly tool. eSIMs give you the convenience of having multiple connectivity solutions on a single phone, meaning you can have separate providers for personal and business. 

At 1GLOBAL, we know the future of the work phone is mobile. In our own offices we've done away with landline completely, and with customers all over the world using our eSIM plans, a shift towards the purely mobile work phone is a trend that is set to grow.