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There’s no disputing the explosive growth of unified communications (UC) for business. Just consider the fact that worldwide revenue in the UC segment grew 27 percent from Q1 2013 to Q1 2014, according to Infonetics Research (News - Alert). UC has also been a hot topic among keynote speakers during ITEXPO 2015, happening now throughout January 30 in Miami, Florida. From Digium CEO Danny Windham to Mitel CEO Rich McBee, UC has been on the tip of the tongue of some of the industry’s biggest and most influential players.

So, it should come as no surprise that today’s breakout session titled, “What is Real Unified Communications (News - Alert), Really?” sparked intrigue among show attendees. The panel boasted an impressive lineup of expert panelists as well, including: Joshua Haslett, VP of Sales Engineering at Mitel (News - Alert); Pat Herron, VP, Product Management at ANPI; and Asif Rehman, Director of Product Marketing, Small and Medium Business at Broadsoft.

This session presents UC in an interesting new light. While we are all aware of the benefits of UC in terms of business proficiency, cost savings and enterprise collaboration, the question that remains is: What exactly is unified communications? For many—vendors, service providers, and users—the definition of UC can be wildly different. Across the board, however, many perceive UC as a set list of features that are useful for business communications and collaboration. When you set those features aside, though, what are you left with? In other words, what can businesses really do with UC, and how can it shape the future of their business?

“I see the true driver of UC coming from customer desire,” said Haslett, who cited the contact center as a prime example. “Capabilities can be enabled to offer customers channels (i.e. callback, video, live chat) of their choice to interact over so that they can serve themselves. Customer adoption is driving UC to the next level,” he said.

Rehman agreed, citing Broadsoft as an example. “We are spread all over the world,” he explained, “I work at a home office in Canada, and I have colleagues in Dallas, Washington D.C. and California. Out of a 10 person team only two of us work in-office, and I can’t remember the last time I left a voicemail on a phone. We have a mentality of working wherever we need to—that’s where our office is. I believe we are going to be seeing more of this to enable a truly seamless experience.”

Herron agreed with his fellow panelists, “Twenty to 30 minutes a day goes a long way toward increasing the productivity of the average worker,” he said. “It’s not just a trend, it’s worth the money.”