In the interview with Miguel Rodriguez, Chief Revenue Officer and member of the executive board at Swiss Threema GmbH.

Instant messaging or IM has become increasingly important in the business environment in recent years, as it offers a fast and effective way to exchange information across departments in real time. Employees are already familiar with the benefits from their private lives, making them immediately recognizable, implementable, and an important part of the digitalization strategy to improve internal communication and better connect employees. The benefits are clear: faster communication, reduced emails, improved collaboration, and increased productivity.

Swiss company Threema GmbH was founded in 2014 and is a pioneer in secure instant messaging solutions for organizations and individuals. The Swiss company, which operates its own servers in Switzerland, focuses on consistent data protection and data minimization. The Threema app is open source and now has over eleven million users in Europe and beyond. The business application Threema Work has become the market leader in the German-speaking world and is used by over 7,500 companies, authorities, schools, and associations. Well-known corporations such as Mercedes-Benz Group, Edeka, and TK Aufzüge use Threema Work as their internal messenger, as do small and medium-sized enterprises as well as public institutions (e.g., ADAC, the Swiss Federal Administration, and the City of Frankfurt am Main).

In an interview with Miguel Rodriguez, Chief Revenue Officer for Business Solutions, we discuss the importance of instant messenger services, IT security, secure business messaging, privacy protection, data minimization, and business continuity. Miguel Rodriguez is responsible for customer support and customer success management at Threema and is in charge of expanding and internationalizing sales activities in the segment of commercial customers.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Especially in the SME sector, the ever-increasing and faster-spreading importance of instant messenger services is underestimated. What do you think is the reason for this?

Miguel Rodriguez: The importance of instant messenger services is often underestimated due to a lack of understanding, fear of change, and existing communication habits. The potential for efficiency gains and process optimization is also overlooked due to a lack of product knowledge. I also believe that many people associate instant messaging with solutions for private use and are not yet aware that there are specific business messaging apps for companies that offer many advantages, allowing you to protect information and communicate in compliance with data protection regulations.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Let’s talk a little more about the application itself. Where exactly can an instant messenger be used particularly well?