The move to Unified Communications as a Service is one that requires substantial planning and close examination of the needs of multiple “constituents within your organization.
There are the department leads, key managers, and the finance people who must attend to the conversion from a budgetary point of view. There are the technology people who must manage the migration and provide the necessary user support. Then, of course, there are the users, themselves. These are the people who will usually be the most directly impacted by the selection, at least from an operational point-of-view. The needs of each of these constituencies must be fully taken into consideration before the go/no-go decision is made.
AVANT Research & Analytics will be releasing in the coming weeks a 6-12 Report providing extensive UCaaS market research and best practices. Here is a sneak peek at some of the interesting points you’ll find in the upcoming report.
Don’t be too attached to outdated legacy gear.
Very often, this stems from a fear of “upsetting the applecart.” If the system is working, why replace it? But issues such as expiration of the contract, end of product life and the sheer age of the platform frequently come into play. In addition, your legacy system is likely to be missing features that are growing in importance to the modern workplace. Meanwhile, parts and service for the legacy system might be getting scarce. While swapping out a communications system can be a bit scary under the best of circumstances, bear in mind that the legacy system can suffer an unexpected death – leaving your team high and dry.
Compare the UCaaS feature set to your current system.
The degree to which modern UCaaS systems can support and interoperate with various platforms and applications is truly impressive. You might be surprised by the features and benefits that the right UCaaS system can offer.
Carefully choose your key criteria.
Consider differentiators, TCO, compatibility with your existing applications, contract terms, the availability of POPs in your desired locations, reliability, and user-facing simplicity.
Make sure that security is “baked in” to your preferred solution.
Security needs to be baked into everything these days. UCaaS is no exception.
Conduct multiple POCs.
A comprehensive and methodical proof-of-concept series can go a long way towards helping your management team make the right selection. Check out our series of UCaaS podcasts at www.goavant.co.uk/podcast for more details.
Rally support from your users.
Your chosen solution will likely have a number of internal “champions” and enthusiasts. Encourage them to articulate the benefits of the new platform to their peers and give them ample opportunity to do so.
For more information, be on the lookout for the “AVANT 6-12 Report: UCaaS,” and consult your Trusted Advisor for detailed information on whether Unified Communications as a Service is the right solution for your company.