A recent industry article posits the idea that VoIP can be a great alternative to legacy phone systems. The communications market has taken enough time to grow, and with that time it has created both a cost-effective and change-inducing system with VoIP.
It is the elements of low cost, looking toward the future, and increased productivity that businesses should embrace, the TechTarget post points out. Legacy systems may operate with an underlying framework of time division multiplexing (TDM) that has been reliable but has also proven expensive. This is where VoIP makes its first big breakthrough. It gets away from TDM and offers businesses a low-cost alternative that offers reliable service businesses have come to expect.
Switching to VoIP can provide instant savings because the monthly enterprise-wide phone bill should be much less. Long distance calls may be free and international calls should come at a much lower rate than what TDM-based systems could offer. It should not take long for those instant savings to make up for the initial cost of switching to a different style of voice infrastructure. IT departments may also appreciate the changes since managing the security of VoIP networks can be done with cloud-based software.
This leads to embracing other modern technology. Although TDM is incapable of interacting with many other modes of communication such as email and video, VoIP can. With software applications such as Skype (News - Alert) for Business, it can allow employees to be more productive and make connections through any device. Software can facilitate the switch from desk phone to computer desktop to mobile device, so employees can stay connected to their working teams from any location.
Again, it is worth a mention that businesses can look to the cloud. Instead of hosting a new VoIP system on-premise, they can use cloud providers for the necessary infrastructure. This will also lead to lower entrance costs and easier management through Web-based portals.
Finally, productivity for all individuals involved should increase as a result of these advanced capabilities. For IT, there will be fewer headaches with managing servers. For employees, there are greater opportunities to connect with various departments through voice, video, email, and all other manner of communications. VoIP becomes the backbone of those possibilities and can create a culture of improved connections and better workflows.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson