Benefits of UC

The unified communications sector is tipped for top growth spot in the global IT market.  Garry Sheriff, Managing Director of Gateshead-based business solutions experts ITPS (www.it-ps.com), dispels some of the myths holding businesses back.

Most businesses operate in a complex communications landscape, balancing the needs of staff - many of whom are mobile workers and expected to be able to work anytime, anywhere - plus multiple IT infrastructures and telephone systems.   

A piecemeal approach to deploying various communications channels over the years, and using different technologies and vendors, often results in expensive communications silos, containing duplicate or similar functionalities.

Unified Communications (UC) breaks down the barriers between media and communications channels, giving people instant access to integrated voice, images, and data streams all converged on a shared, IP-based infrastructure.  Users can opt simply for integrated phone, calendar and call handling; or take advantage of features such as built in instant messaging, video calling and call agent logging in and out of workgroups.

One central information store means staff have seamless access via any device, from anywhere.  And by using WAN (wide area network) technology the business only pays local call charges.  Presence management tools allow users to dictate how information and messages are handled, with UC intelligently tracking them and  providing access to all the information they need, where and when it’s needed.

Clients don’t need to know whether you are at your desk or on the golf course – they only need to know you are available.  And with your information mirrored across smart devices such as ipads, mobiles, deskphones and laptops, it puts an end to islands of information and frustrating games of telephone tag. 

Around a third of businesses are thought to have adopted or be planning to adopt UC, and the market is set to see annual growth of 23% over the next five years.

The big advantage is better collaboration and productivity, with anecdotal evidence showing a boost of over 20% in some cases.  Add to that the immediate and very visible benefit of slashed operational costs such as travel and telephone, and UC becomes a very attractive proposition.

So what’s holding businesses back from implementing UC?

Read full BDaily report here