Organizations are waiting for the “killer app” that will help their employees to embrace VoIP — much the same way that the spreadsheet drove the business adoption of the PC. IP-based collaboration tools just may be that killer application, leveraging the familiar environments of Web, voice, data, and video conferencing while bringing companies the huge cost-savings associated with VoIP. This session will cover examples of how companies are pulling together their ongoing converged network initiatives with the savings opportunities available in IP-based conferencing and collaboration to drive the adoption of VoIP.

IP-based conferencing is certainly not your father’s conferencing solution. It converges real-time voice, Web, and collaboration tools over a single packet-based network, creating a new, productivity-enhancing user experience. IP is turning conferencing into a one-click, on-demand, desktop-centric paradigm. Users will be able to tap into a rich new range of conferencing services, such as presence- and location-based information about conferences, click-to-call scheduling, instant messaging, and document sharing. This session will discuss the experiential differences between traditional PSTN conferencing and the new world of unified IP conferencing. Discussion will focus on recommendations for better preparing users to take full advantage of the technology’s workplace productivity gains.

The culture of anywhere, anytime connectivity is driving the future of conferencing and collaboration making IP a very powerful tool. Integrated seamlessly into the work environment and linked with business processes and enterprise applications, IP conferencing yields tremendous value to an enterprise. This session covers the issues of choosing proper IP conferencing tool for large and medium sized enterprises.

Blended learning is a program designed with the objective of optimizing the learning outcome and cost savings. It is truly a continuous process, and blending Web Conferencing into the mix has various benefits over using traditional learning methods alone including extended reach, optimizing business results, decreasing development cost and time. What tools and media are available to aid this virtual learning? How many companies and institutions are adopting this type of strategy to reduce travel budgets while increasing efficiency and effectiveness? Learn how to achieve strategic learning objectives as they relate to workforce development, sales channel, technical and educational training initiatives. Web conferencing, video conferencing and teleconferencing are among the technologies and solutions that will be discussed.

Communications is critical for the success of any organization, but for government agencies attempting to coordinate national security initiatives, secure borders, or adhere to telework initiatives, it’s imperative. Fortunately, government entities that need to share critical information, increase productivity, or reduce the need for travel and overhead, have technologies available that can help them be more effective and efficient, while still protecting the confidentiality of information shared through Internet communications. This presentation would highlight why real-time, IP collaboration tools are needed, how they can be used to improve local, state, regional, or federal environments, and provide tips on how various technologies can best be used across related applications.

Presence has the potential to be the unifying thread between different modes of communication including enterprise telephony, IM, video, and mobile telephony. Presence is the essential element in the migration from device centric to user centric systems, as it integrates user’s availability across all their devices and applications. But Presence also has a dark side which may impede its broad acceptance, namely concerns about privacy, time management, enterprise policy and security. Each of these aspects is explored during this session, and solutions in development, standards bodies, and emerging products are discussed.