Putting Some Numbers Behind the Unified Communications Value Proposition

Last week, I wrote a bit about the Unified Communications value proposition and the panel I was on at IT Expo. When preparing for that panel, I went back to a report we commissioned over a year ago to try and quantify the UC gains. And I also saw this blog I wrote about a year ago on the topic. This got a decent amount of traffic, and many found the information useful. So I decided to repost it for those who may not have seen this last year. And at the bottom, you’ll see a link to the report.

Unified Communications Value Proposition

Businesses buy new phone systems for a variety of reasons. There could be a new location. The old phone system might have been outgrown or may just be too old and about to fall over dead. The business could be looking for new features beyond just voice or may be replacing a plain old phone system that ended up costing too much (because of PSTN trunks for high maintenance fees). These are all good reasons. Today, most new phone systems are of the Unified Communications (UC) type – offering features beyond just basic voice. The drivers for buying UC phone systems that you typically hear are:

• Efficiency Improvement
• Productivity Gains

These are typical since, with UC, there can be other forms of communication, such as instant messaging, that can be utilized while occupied with some other communication activity, such as during a conference call. Or you remain connected with your smartphone outside of the actual business environment so you can “expand” your office hours.  Or because all the calls are on IP, the business can save mobile phone and PSTN trunks charges. Add this all up, and the business scores efficiency and productivity gains.

But can these gains really be quantified? Yes, they can.

Sangoma partnered with the Eastern Management Group to undertake a wide-ranging survey aimed at providing some quantified data on value improvements in different areas to help explain the Unified Communications value proposition. The report can be obtained here.