The business industry is buzzing. The convergence of technology and social demands has spawned “Unified Communications”, a trend in business to simplify and integrate all forms of communication seamlessly. This new communication platform enables the user to send or receive a message on one medium and receive it on another, orchestrating communication and collaboration across locations, time, and medium in order to accelerate business results. This is achieved through the convergence of business communication applications, including: calling, conferencing, messaging, e-mail, calendaring and video. Businesses will save time, increase output, and become more efficient in the most complex and flexible work environments.  However, it is critical to evaluate the communication patterns of a business before successfully implementing Unified Communications.

The goal of the business evaluation is to find communication “hot spots” where delays and errors occur, and then to eliminate or reduce the negative effects. Unified Communications provides specific software and tools that will enable the users to change how they work by providing more efficient and effective personal communications capabilities. These communications tools will improve how individuals interact with their clients, customers, team members, department heads, and management. The functionality of these new communications will redefine how business steps and methods so that processes are more productive. Once the evaluation is complete, a solution is implemented through a series of initiatives that will enable effective change based on a single vision unique to the business needs.

The first initiative of Unified Communications enables mobile workers to be effective from any location, increasing availability, productivity, and responsiveness. The second initiative deploys soft phone technology to complement the desk phone. This allows easy access to many features that increases customer service, collaboration, security, administrative and managerial interactions. Employees will have remote access anytime anywhere – with use of a mobile phone to listen to email messages, check voicemail, and receive calls from their work number. The third initiative brings computer applications to the telephone and allows a business access to additional information and communication applications. Once these changes have been made, a business will be ready to establish unified messaging, instant messaging, conferencing, and video communications as collaboration tools throughout the company. It will simplify interaction internally and improve customer service significantly.

Unified Communications orchestrates communication and collaboration across locations, time, and medium to accelerate business results. It will improve customer service, increase responsiveness, maximize productivity, improve decision making, and leverage the social network on a daily basis. It’s implementation allows users to integrate telephony, voice messaging, and audio conferencing to maximize efficiency and effectiveness across an entire communications platform. Unified Communications is a journey of continuous improvements for any business ready to solve their problems with a progressive approach. The key to moving forward with Unified Communications is to conduct a business assessment. Cross Telecom will listen to business needs and design Unified Communications to fit those unique needs using Avaya telecommunications platforms. Through expertise and experience Cross Telecom can implement Unified Communications on either IBM/Lotus or Microsoft platforms for the most efficient Avaya communications platform any business will need.