Microsoft Office System

Customer Solution Case Study

IT Services Provider Customizes Unified Communications to Improve Processes

Overview

Country or Region: Korea

Industry: IT services

Customer Profile

Located in Seoul, South Korea, Dongkuk Ubiquitous Network Connections (DK UNC) provides ICT services for business areas including steel production, logistics, electronics, and technology. The company employs more than 2,000 employees.

Business Situation

DK UNC wanted to consolidate its multiple private branch exchange telephony systems to reduce costs and ease management, while also providing more communication capabilities for employees.

Solution

DK UNC deployed a Microsoft Unified Communications solution that helped it centralize its voice solution and also provided instant messaging, voice mail, and conferencing capabilities for workers.

Benefits

Reduced costs

Improved productivity

“With the solutions we created, such as Offline Message and Alerts, we created additional communication channels to help us shorten our working time and increase our efficiency.”

Byeongil Ye, Director of ESA Team, ITO, DK UNC

Located in Seoul, South Korea, Dongkuk Ubiquitous Network Connections (DK UNC) provides information communications technology (ICT) services for businesses throughout South Korea. DK UNC wanted to reduce telephony costs for itself and for the associated companies of the Dongkuk Steel Mill Group. The company also wanted to improve business processes through unified communications. In February 2010, DK UNC began deploying a communications-enabled business process solution using Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 that would provide communications capabilities, such as voice over IP, presence, instant messaging, and conferencing, to help employees communicate more effectively with vendors, partners, customers, and each other. The deployment was completed in June 2010, and DK UNC expects to see reduced telephony costs, reduced travel expenses, and improved productivity.

Situation

Founded in 2005 as the information communications technology (ICT) services affiliate of Dongkuk Steel Mill Group, DK UNC—“Ubiquitous Network Communications”—is dedicated to providing technology solutions to all of the corporate affiliates under the direction of its parent company. In industries as varied as steel production, electronics, and logistics, DK UNC implements technology solutions that help secure future growth and customer satisfaction.

A primary goal for DK UNC was to integrate the IT infrastructure to create a more powerful employee network by deploying a software-based telephony system for the majority of employees. It also wanted to provide a better solution for instant messaging than its current solution: some employees had been subject to phishing attacks through the instant messenger, causing management to rethink its approach to how it wanted to handle enterprise information management. Providing a unified solution would increase business efficiency and help affiliates control and enforce security across the organization.

By unifying the communications infrastructure, DK UNC also hoped to centralize management and reduce costs across the board. One area in particular where it wanted to address costs was travel. For its employees who travel frequently, it wanted to provide the capability for employees to place voice over IP (VoIP) calls from their computers instead of using their mobile phones or long-distance lines at hotels. Because traveling employees may not always have access to network connections, DK UNC also wanted a solution that would work offline so that employees could compose messages that would be sent automatically when they reconnected to a network.

DK UNC also wanted all employees to have access to video or web conferencing to hold remote meetings with customers and branch offices, lessening the need for travel overall. To help improve collaboration and further reduce costs, the company required a file or desktop sharing program that employees could use during remote meetings to create, share, or edit important documents in real time.

For messaging across all the affiliates, DK UNC had deployed Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 email messaging and collaboration software. It had also deployed the Active Directory service for accounts and rights management across the network. The company wanted to integrate its current messaging infrastructure with its communications network, providing more possibilities for communication between employees, partners, and customers. Presence information in particular was a key requirement. It also needed the ability to archive messages, according to corporate requirements.

Another important requirement for DK UNC was that the solution it chose to deploy would be customizable so that it could develop additional functionality to enhance business processes. For example, it wanted the ability to create a custom organization chart, and also to broadcast messages in real time to employees as necessary. The company also wanted to integrate presence information into some of its line-of-business (LOB) applications and offer employees more custom presence status messages.

(“When we were considering a unified communications solution, integration with our existing Microsoft IT infrastructure and with Microsoft Office was a key factor.”NoTae Park, Director of ITO, DK UNC)Solution

With the help of Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Covision, DK UNC deployed a Microsoft Unified Communications solution that would provide the voice, instant messaging, presence, and conferencing capabilities that it required. “When we were considering a unified communications solution, integration with our existing Microsoft IT infrastructure and with Microsoft Office was a key factor,” explains NoTae Park, Director of ITO at DK UNC. Other factors for choosing the Microsoft solution were ease of use and easy management, but probably the most important factor was that DK UNC could customize the Microsoft solution to meet its business needs.

DK UNC originally worked with Covision to deploy a pilot of Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 in the second half of 2008. The pilot was a success, so the companies worked together to plan and implement the deployment of Office Communications Server 2007 R2, now known as Microsoft Lync Server 2010. Planning began in February 2010, with implementation for a test pilot completed in April 2010. The pilot for the full deployment ran for two weeks in May, and the full solution was deployed to 2,070 employees by the end of June 2010.

Employees have access to the full suite of standard Office Communications Server capabilities, including instant messaging, presence, desktop sharing, web conferencing, and voice. All employees were able to keep their main phone numbers, meaning that they can share only one contact number with coworkers and colleagues. When employees receive calls through this number, all enabled phones—softphones or mobile phones—will ring when the incoming call arrives.

Employees are also using audio and web conferencing for collaborating with remote colleagues, or for holding regular team or department meetings without requiring employees to be present in the office. The ability to record web conferences means that employees can replay conferences at any time, if they missed a conference or want to use the session for training. With desktop sharing, employees can easily allow the IT help desk access to their computers if they are having a problem, or they can share important documents and collaborate with colleagues during remote meetings.

For voice mail, DK UNC deployed Exchange Unified Messaging. With Unified Messaging, employees can receive and manage both voice mail and email messages through the Microsoft Office Outlook messaging and collaboration client. They can also check messages through their phone or through their computer, which means they can easily access messages when they are traveling.

DK UNC also deployed Microsoft Office Communicator Web Access and Microsoft Outlook Web App. Employees can be anywhere, as long as they have access to a computer with an Internet connection and a browser, and access Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 (now known as Microsoft Lync) and Office Outlook. This means they can send instant messages or check voice mail through the web.

Most importantly, DK UNC, working together with Covision, developed a communications-enabled business process (CEBP) solution to complement its deployment of Office Communications Server. This solution consists of several applications available through a customized Microsoft Office (“Desktop sharing and conferencing capabilities in Office Communications Server mean that employees can also spend less time traveling between branches for meetings. They can collaborate instantly, which also means they have more productive time in the office.”GeonHo Yu, System Manager of ESA Team, ITO, DK UNC)Communicator interface. DK UNC employees see an application list across the bottom of the Office Communicator window. From this list, they can scroll right or left through a series of tabs to select any of the applications available to them. Employees can customize the window through a Preferences application that lets them select options such as color or what tabs to display in the application list. Below the application list, they also see an Announcement Ticker that shows important company information.

One of the custom applications that DK UNC developed was a searchable organization chart. Employees can search for contacts by name, department, or phone number, and search results display each person’s company information and presence status. They can also search the organization chart through a tree structure. When employees have located a desired contact through a search, they can initiate communication immediately through the Search window, just as they would through the standard Communicator window: they can send an instant message, or click to place a phone call or start a video conference. They can even select multiple actions, such as sending an email and instant message at the same time. To send messages to several people at once, employees can use the Broadcast Message application. Through the Alert system, employees also receive alerts from LOB applications that let them know if action is required—such as a signature on an important document—for a project to move forward.

DK UNC also developed an application to customize presence states so that employees can create individualized presence activities and messages. These presence states are saved to a database, so they are always available for employees to choose from a list.

Another useful application DK UNC developed is the Offline Message application, which employees can use to compose messages even when they are not connected to the network. Employees can search the Organization Chart or their contact list, add contacts, and compose a message—even adding attachments—to send when they reconnect to a network. Employees can also access and read messages from coworkers when they are offline. They can manage all their messages through the Offline Message application.

DK UNC employees can also create post-it type messages and lists. Employees can attach or convert these easily to messages, or turn messages into post-its to create to-do lists and help manage tasks. Employees can also set preferences for post-it appearance, including font, color, transparency, and position.

Going forward, DK UNC plans to implement Microsoft System Center to help further unify and simplify management of its unified communications network. It also plans to implement VoIP capabilities through Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile so that employees can place VoIP calls from their mobile phones and have access to the same Office Communications Server capabilities as they do from their computers.

Benefits

By choosing a Unified Communications solution from Microsoft, DK UNC found that it could provide a robust, custom infrastructure that would help it both reduce costs and improve employee productivity.

Reduced Costs

By integrating Office Communications Server 2007 R2 enterprise voice capabilities, DK UNC can significantly reduce its telephony and travel costs across the organization. When workers at headquarters communicate with employees at overseas offices, they can easily place a call through Office Communicator, open a desktop sharing session to collaborate on a project, or send an instant message to get a question answered quickly. All of this helps reduce long-distance and toll charges for making traditional phone calls. Employees who are traveling can also easily communicate with remote colleagues or the help desk through instant messaging or by placing a call by using Office Communicator, without incurring long-distance charges or charges on their mobile phones. They also have the option to compose messages using the Offline Message application and avoid using the phone if they do not have access to a network connection. By using the video and web conferencing capabilities, employees can avoid traveling to meetings at Korean branch offices or overseas branch offices, saving on airfare and hotel costs.

“Another area where we expect to reduce costs is for our support staff,” says SangJin Woo, System Manager of ESA Team, ITO, at DK UNC. “Presence, instant messaging, and desktop sharing make it easy for remote IT to help operators to help employees, no matter where they are. That means we don’t have to keep a full IT staff in every branch office.”

Finally, the Alerts and Broadcast Message applications ensure that people receive important information so that they can react in a timely manner in ways that help the company save—or make—money.

Improved Productivity

DK UNC employees have improved their productivity a number of ways. Employees can use the organization chart to find people within the organization quickly, and they can more easily escalate an issue to the next level if necessary because they can see the chain of command and view presence information for everyone in the company.

With Office Communications Server, communication is instant, because employees can see each other’s presence information and initiate a conversation through an instant message or a voice or video call. The addition of the custom presence states means that employees have even more information about the best time or method to contact colleagues, which helps to save time.

If a colleague is available, an employee can easily send an instant message or place a quick call through Communicator to get a question answered. Employees can also shift easily between instant messaging sessions, voice calls, or conferencing with the click of a button. “Desktop sharing and conferencing capabilities in Office Communications Server mean that employees can also spend less time traveling between branches for meetings,” explains GeonHo Yu, System Manager of ESA Team, ITO, at DK UNC. “They can collaborate instantly, which also means they have more productive time in the office.”

Employees who are traveling between branch offices or customer sites and have no access to a network connection can remain productive and work offline using the Offline Messaging application. Even offline, they can easily locate contacts in the organization chart application, compose a message, or add an attachment. When they reconnect to the network, their offline messages are sent automatically. This functionality is similar to the Office Outlook messaging and collaboration client, but employees can work more efficiently using just one application—Office Communicator—instead of spending time switching back and forth.

The custom capabilities that DK UNC developed help employees be more efficient, which also helps improve productivity. Using the Post-it application, employees can also easily turn messages into to-do lists or action items, ensuring that they stay on track with project milestones. They can also create lists and easily share them with coworkers. Through the Alerts application, employees can receive information about important decisions or next steps to take to move a project forward. Because employees can customize how these alerts appear, they will be less likely to miss an important task, and by using the Broadcast Message application, they can make important team announcements and ensure that everyone is up-to-date with the latest status.

“With the solutions we created, such as Offline Message and Alerts, we created additional communication channels to help us shorten our working time and increase our efficiency,” explains Byeongil Ye, Director of ESA Team, ITO, at DK UNC.

With a Unified Communications solution from Microsoft, DK UNC can continue to develop innovative and interesting ways to increase communication and improve productivity well into the future.

(Software and ServicesMicrosoft OfficeMicrosoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2Microsoft Office Outlook 2007Microsoft LyncMicrosoft Lync Server 2010Microsoft Server Product PortfolioMicrosoft Exchange Server 2010TechnologiesMicrosoft Office Communicator Web AccessMicrosoft Outlook Web AppActive DirectoryPartnersCovision) (This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.Document published September 2010) (For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers in the United States and Canada who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:www.microsoft.comFor more information about Covision products and services, call 02-2107-8944 or visit the website at: www.covision.co.krFor more information about DK UNC products and services, call 82-2-2108-8787 or visit the website at: www.dkunc.co.kr)Microsoft Office System

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