Let it no longer be said that Microsoft (News - Alert) is antisocial, as it has launched a new campaign with a focus on social tools and how they can improve productivity. This follows the company’s acquisition of Yammer (News - Alert) and its integration of Skype with Outlook and Lync, indicating a clear focus on using social tools and increasing awareness of them.

Microsoft commissioned a study from Ipsos, in which it spoke to thousands of workers in 32 countries. Around half of the employees said that social tools help improve work productivity, but in spite of that, many companies are hesitant to start using them. IT departments seem cautious to adopt social tools, as they are concerned about losing productivity when employees start to chat about irrelevant subjects. There’s also a concern about not having full control over it.

As such, an average of 17 percent of employees ignore the company’s IT policy and use social tools for work, while even more know someone who has done as much. With free trials and cloud-based software readily available, employees are starting to use social tools before the IT departments even start thinking about it. Many feel that management does not fully understand the benefits of social tools, with even more stating that they could perform better if the company’s management was more supportive of it.

“Just as e-mail accelerated the pace of business in the ‘90s, enterprise social will be the driver of greater agility and transformation in the 21st century workplace,” stated Kurt DelBene (News - Alert), president of Microsoft’s Office Division. “As we look ahead at how collaboration and communications continue to evolve, we believe the tools people use today — e-mail, instant messaging, voice, videoconferencing, social — will come together and be deeply integrated into apps in ways that will speed collaboration and truly transform the way people work.”

It can be difficult to keep employees actively engaged in their work. In fact, you’re probably reading this right now when you should probably be doing something productive. Don’t worry, though, I won’t tell anyone. If you have social tools, though, it’s so much easier to keep connected with colleagues, helping workers remain engaged in their work and active.

Of course, there is an ulterior motive in Microsoft’s attempts to spread the word of social. After all, it has invested quite a bit into social tools such as Yammer and Skype (News - Alert), so it wants people to use them. Improving productivity and helping keep employees engaged is a nice draw for companies, so they can try using social tools to see what all the fuss is about. If they do, though, those companies are sure to see just how proper social tools can improve performances and efficiency across the board.