Enterprise Communications Featured Article

If you didn’t know the World Cup was taking place, you likely live under a rock and wouldn’t be reading this article anyway. The global community at large has been taken in by the international competition—even in the U.S., where soccer isn’t the national pastime. Still, fans throughout the world wanted a front row seat and, whether or not they were aware of it, those who couldn’t make the trip in person relied on enterprise communications to make it happen.

Brazil is this year’s host, and while loyal fans would love to be on-site for every game, not everyone can take a month off to follow the sport in person. For those who can, there are still days void of any games simply because of the schedule, allowing these professionals to catch up on work, even if they’re still in South America.

Whatever the case, the rise in unified communications and enterprise communications makes this all possible. It’s no longer an absolute requirement that every professional be in his or her physical office every hour of the day. Let’s face it, the typical workday is no longer the 9-5 grind and business is done at all hours and in all locations. Professionals take their devices with them and can even close deals in between goals scored.

The unified platform allows for the combination of video, voice, email, instant messaging and more onto a single, user-friendly interface that streamlines activities, reduces cost and allows for remote use. Employees can now split their time in the office and their time in the field to better accommodate the demands of both work and play. As long as they have access to the Internet, they have access to the things they need to get the job done, or enjoy the game.

As such, it really doesn’t matter if the loyal fan is on site for the game or watching from the other side of the world. Real-time video communications supported by robust infrastructures and solid bandwidth availability ensure they are a part of the action from anywhere. The same applies for those who are in Brazil and need to attend the next sales meeting. Video conferencing and cloud computing allow users to take advantage of the solutions they enjoy at the office while they’re working thousands of miles away.

While not every business owner or manager wants to support the sports habits of their team, the professionals able to create a healthy balance between work and play will still produce in between games. And, providing the technology they need to do so is a big part of employee motivation and satisfaction.

Whether the World Cup is an attraction or not, what are you doing with enterprise communications to support the passions of your team?