The way of business solutions
June 2016www.insightssuccess.com
Is Unied Communications Worth the Effort?
Dave Casey
Peak Up Time
The Power of Converged Solutions
Thomas Beck
Teo Technologies
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10TheAssured Motion for
any Vehicle
David Bruemmer
5D Robotics
Didier Jaubert
CEO
Arkadin:Arkadin:
Editorʼs�DeskEditorʼs�DeskCollaboration�of�UC�with�Cloud�Collaboration�of�UC�with�Cloud�
Unified Communications
Impacting Business
Communications
Unified Communications
Impacting Business
Communications
Chalk TalkChalk Talk
Need of an HourNeed of an HourSuccessful
Implementation
of Unified
Communications
Successful
Implementation
of Unified
Communications
FuturistaFuturistaUnified Communications
along with
BYOD Priority on
The Technology Roadmap
Unified Communications
along with
BYOD Priority on
The Technology Roadmap
Industry EvolutionIndustry EvolutionUnified Communications
to Revolutionize the
Public Sector
Unified Communications
to Revolutionize the
Public Sector
LEADING PROVIDER OF UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS
SERVICES FOR THE DIGITAL WORKPLACE
LEADING PROVIDER OF UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS
SERVICES FOR THE DIGITAL WORKPLACE
he focal point of all enterprises today is integrating their real-time Tcommunication tools like, text messaging, video conferencing, voice messaging, and other mobility features in their products to leverage
the improvement in communication technology. The business communication has become faster and on the other hand, the business productivity is getting increased just because of Unified Communication.
Enterprises are practicing the usage of on-premises infrastructure for integrating business communication. Cloud-based Unified Communication and collaboration is getting popularity among the enterprises, because of its benefits like cost reduction, improved scalability, and enhanced efficiency.
According to the experts, steady growth of hosted products will be a benefit factor of Unified Communications market trends, which is expected to surpass USD 49 billion by 2023. It is eliminating the infrastructure cost and offers a centralized management system wherein services are provided by means of the cloud.
The flexibility and cost-effectiveness of Cloud Computing have been increasingly adopted by service providers. Enterprises with cloud-based UC applications are allowed to eliminate capital spending and adopt an operational cost model for which enterprises will have to pay on the basis of the required capacity.
Furthermore, the increase in cloud technology has come out making the enterprises being able to offer solutions at par with the on-site solutions. The urge for real-time communication has resulted in vendors emphasizing on providing Web RTC solutions, which are expected to give faster video streaming and group chats in client devices.
Additionally, the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) indicates the connection of personal devices including tablets, notebooks, PCs and smartphones to an organization’s vertical’s network. It is helping the employees to gain admission to the network through their own devices, providing a number of operational as well as financial benefits.
There are several chief drivers of Unified Communications, especially for developed economies, like improvements in communications bandwidth, rise of third-platform services, and increased need for collaboration. The noteworthy technological developments in the field of Unified Communications like VoIP, VoLTE and session initiation protocol have increased the customer experience by providing improvement in quality of service.
Editorial
Archana Ghule
Unied
Communications
Will Continue
To Rule
The Marketplace
Editor-in-Chief Pooja M. Bansal
Art & Design Director Rashmi Borkar
Picture Editor
Amol Kamble
Archana GhuleManaging Editor
Co-designer Alex Noel
Visualiser David King
Business Development Manager Mike Thomas,
Database Management Steve
Technology Consultant Vishal More
Circulation Manager Robert
Research Analyst Jennifer
Business Development Executive
John,
David, Peter,
Robort,
Ariana LawrenceSenior Editor
Co-Editors
Sonal Burghate
Sugandha Sharma
David Smith
Charlie Gupta
Mary D’Souza
Stephanie Andrews
,6
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Marketing Manager Chris
Nick Adams
Didier Jaubert CEO
Cover story
Cover story
Dave Casey
Regional Vice President
Peak Up Time
Is Unied CommunicationsWorth the Effort?Is Unied CommunicationsWorth the Effort?
Thomas Beck
Director of Marketing & Business
Development, Teo Technologies
The Power of Converged Solutions
The Power of Converged Solutions
C O N T E N
Unied Communications
to Revolutionize the
Public Sector
Industry Evolution
Unied Communications
to Revolutionize the
Public Sector
Industry Evolution46
30
SuccessfulImplementationof UniedCommunications
Chalk TalkSuccessfulImplementationof UniedCommunications
Chalk Talk38
08
10
Collaborationof UC with Cloud
Editor’s DeskCollaborationof UC with Cloud
Editor’s Desk17
Unied Communications
Impacting Business
Communications
Need of an HourUnied Communications
Impacting Business
Communications
Need of an Hour24
FuturistaFuturista42 Unied Communications
along with BYOD Priority On The TechnologyRoadmap
Unied Communications along with BYOD Priority On The TechnologyRoadmap
Premiere Global Services, Inc.
Theodore P. SchrafftCEO
SOFTEL Communications, Inc.
John Cognata
Co-founder & Business
Development Executive
Wildix Unied
Communications Solution
Stefano Osler
CEO8x8 Inc.
Vik Verma
CEO
AireSpring, Inc.
Avi Lonstein
Co-founder & CEO
Blueface
Alan Foy
CEOPhilipp Beck
Founder & CEO
Luware AG
Yorktel
Ron GabouryCEO
T P A G E
20
22
26
28
44
32
36
40
For years experts and analysts have predicted, pushed, and prodded businesses to a future of unified communications. Their claim was that in a
world where all of our technologies and tools to communicate were truly integrated, there would be a transformative improvement in efficiency and work life balance. However, our world today feels less unified than ever before. It seems as if every day (or even every hour) brings a new stand-alone business application designed to supercharge productivity. The problem is that very few of these apps truly work together, and very few business users
derive the same benefit from each. Thus, we have actually created a new world of “dis-unification.”
Where there is pain, there is promise. Within our current situation there does lie the potential that inter application APIs can be leveraged so that different apps can work together, each user can choose the app of their choice, and in the end everything will be unified again. This IS a technical possibility. However, in reality the competing business interests of different application developers stands in the way of seamless and reliable integrations. Often times even apps that could be integrated
The Power of Converged Solutions
08 | June 2016 |
CXO Standpoint
have their interface capabilities turned off or removed for business reasons. Further adding to this complexity, many company acquisitions can lead to capabilities being disabled in the best business interests of the new owners.
Where to Turn? There are many paths businesses can take in light of these realities. Some choose to grin and bear the current situation. Some choose to build solutions of their own. Some attempt to select a handful of key suppliers to partner with, and build a tightly coupled ecosystem they hope will stand the test of time. And still others keep looking for the perfect solution that might not exist yet, that could be just around the corner, not realizing that by choosing inaction they run the very real risk of falling behind.
The Application Monopoly Game via M&AThrough aggressive merger and acquisition (M&A) activities, many organizations are looking to rope together impressive collections of complementary applications. These apps are intended to attract businesses looking to garner a wide assortment of functionality from a single vender, or at least from a smaller collection of vendors. A troubling component of this approach though, is that many of the vendors with the largest application collections also have the least business interest in allowing competing applications to integrate well.
What about Telco?Most business application developers are lacking the capabilities (and the understanding) to integrate complex PSTN services into more advanced applications. Even traditional phone
service companies struggle here, and appear to have little or no path to the future for deploying more advanced capabilities via their dated and bloated infrastructures. They rely on two primary vendors, Metaswitch and Broadsoft, who both have critical billing system integration capabilities with the legacy carriers, but lack more advanced applications. So, where are businesses to turn for truly integrated unified communications solutions?
Never Give UpWhile the needs are complex, and the more well-known vendors to choose from are lacking in key ways, all hope is not lost. There is a new breed of solution provider, one that possesses the pedigree of PSTN service integration, and also the next gen
application integration capabilities that traditional providers lack. These new solution providers are able to deliver truly integrated unified communications, call center, contact center, and analytics solutions in a single platform, providing not only a huge array of capabilities, readily customizable for each customer, but also built to integrate with other vendors’ solutions.These solution providers have engineered and designed for the demands of the modern business, and they are the ones to watch. While they may not be household names today, they are the forward-thinking partners that innovative organizations turn to when taking their next strategic leap in their business success.
Thomas Beck
Director of Marketing
& Business Development
Teo Technologies
CXO Standpoint
09| June 2016 |
CoverStory
Didier�JaubertCEO
The need for digital workplace transformation is widely accepted. Trends driven by the cloud, social communities and increasing mobility are resulting in dramatic changes in how people work, and will only intensify as
millennials rise to the top of corporate workplaces.
With digital communications technologies, businesses of any size are better positioned to share ideas, interact with customers and unleash the full potential of their people through more efficient and effective collaboration.
Digital has always been high on the agenda at Arkadin, but it’s taking on even greater importance as the driving force behind the company’s growth strategy. An NTT Communications company, Arkadin is one of the largest and fastest growing Unified Communications and Collaboration (UC&C) service providers in the world. It has operations in 33 countries with 56 offices spread throughout the Americas, EMEA & CEMEA, Asia Pacific and China, serving over 50,000 customers that span the largest global enterprises to standalone businesses.
CoverStory
Arkadin:Leading�Provider�ofUnifiedCommunicationsServices�for�theDigital�Workplace
“ Global yet Local Service Strategy”Arkadin’s approach to client relations is based on ensuring its clients succeed with positive collaboration experiences that deliver high ROI. Service is in Arkadin’s DNA and everything they do starts with the charter of delivering outstanding customer care.
Arkadin’s global yet local service strategy sets them apart in the industry, providing the best of both worlds: unmatched global coverage delivered by local teams who speak their clients’ languages and understand their cultures. Regional sales and support employees take time to understand customers’ unique needs and challenges - whether they are a large global conglomerate or an SMB - so that they can together implement the right communications tools for each individual situation.
Arkadin’s service strategy is truly end-to-end and multilayered, encompassing live assistance 24/7 in 19 languages, plus onsite and virtual user training programs. Arkadin offers sophisticated reporting tools and professional services complete with project managers, technical presales and service relationship managers for
more complex collaboration and UC deployments.
Didier Jaubert, Champion of Digital Workplace Transformation Arkadin CEO Didier Jaubert is championing a bold long-term strategy for becoming a digital workplace leader. Capturing a sizable share of the global UC market is integral to that plan. Since joining Arkadin in 2013 as Chief Partnership Officer responsible for the company’s extensive worldwide ecosystem, Mr. Jaubert has been instrumental in driving innovative go-to-market programs that have enabled sustained, profitable growth. Over the past five years, Arkadin has achieved a healthy 21% compound annual growth rate, making it the fastest growing Cloud collaboration provider in the industry.
Earlier this year, Mr. Jaubert was promoted to Chief Executive Officer, with full operational management responsibility for Arkadin, the business entity that controls Arkadin’s worldwide subsidiaries.
Mr. Jaubert brought 30 years of commercial and general management experience with IT and Telco multinationals to
CoverStory
Arkadin, including roles at Orange Business Services, where he was recognised for expertise in outsourcing and system integration, and at IBM where he held various management positions in Sales and Global Services in France and the U.S. He has an engineering degree from the École Centrale Paris and an Economics degree from Paris University.
“Successful Collaboration Experiences to Energise Teamwork”Arkadin’s collection of market leading digital meeting space and Unified Communications solutions enables
enjoyable collaboration experiences that are essential to success in a digitally connected global workplace. These services are delivered in the Cloud and backed by a cutting edge infrastructure for premium service quality.
Arkadin’s suite of UC solutions is from Microsoft Skype for Business and Cisco Jabber combined with WebEx. Delivered in the Cloud for fast international deployment with a high ROI, the services are integrated with Arkadin’s stable, crystal clear audio conferencing combined with a comprehensive suite of wraparound services (live assistance, training, reporting, etc.).
The center of their UC strategy is Arkadin Total Connect, a Microsoft Skype for Business hosted service. Integrated into Arkadin ‘as a Service’,
Arkadin Total Connect offers voice, contact center and conferencing to Office 365, all under a ‘single pane of glass,’ which frees up IT teams to focus on other strategic projects. The voice enabled Office 365 deployments seamlessly integrate with Exchange Online (within Office 365) for unified messaging that drives efficiencies whilst reducing costs associated with
rdtraditional PBX and 3 party conferencing services.
Businesses benefit from the convenience of a single all-in-one solution, which offers substantial cost
savings from on premise UC deployments, coupled with Arkadin’s premium quality integrations, networking expertise and customer support.
Didier Jaubert explains: “We are one of only a few service providers operating on a global scale capable of completing Microsoft’s offer as a fully integrated platform for meetings and voice. It’s a winning ‘best of both worlds’ strategy that puts us in complete alignment with Microsoft from a feature, server and geographic perspective.”
“Last Autumn Arkadin was recognised with NTT Communications in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications as a Service, Worldwide. We feel this recognition is a testament to the strength of our combined global UCaaS offering,” added Mr. Jaubert.
‘Three Strategic Pillars’ for Growth StrategyArkadin has an ambitious growth agenda based on capturing a sizable share of the fast growing UC&C market. The strategy is centered on three strategic pillars: Best UC&C Solutions in the Cloud, Expansion and Profitable Long-Term Growth and Premium Customer Experience.
According to Mr. Jaubert, Arkadin will maintain the two-pronged product strategy that has fueled its strong growth: “There is no future without
great products. We will enhance our own branded Arkadin Anytime audio conferencing and Arkadin Anywhere web conferencing. All solutions will be supported with the most digitally advanced cloud collaboration platform. We will also continue our partnerships with leading technology companies, including MICROSOFT, ON24, ADOBE, VIDYO, CISCO, BLUE JEANS NETWORK and IBM for best-in-class Cloud solutions that are feature rich, intuitive and integrated with our premium audio conferencing for an exceptional user experience. Each of our partners has a different set of capabilities which enables us to be a true one-stop shop for UC&C services.”
In addition to the best technology partners, Arkadin will align with the most strategic organisations and services for developing high growth go-to-market strategies. At the top of
CoverStory
[We have 15 years’ experience in delivering Cloud-based UC&C
solutions that t our clients’ needs for exible, cost-effective and
intuitive digital meeting spaces. Nothing distracts us from our mission,
which is to provide positive collaboration experiences backed up by
unparalleled customer care, every time[“ “
the list are NTT Communications and fellow NTT Group subsidiary Dimension Data, as well as strategic telecoms, agents, resellers and system integrators, all combining to create a powerful go-to-market ecosystem.
Mr. Jaubert adds, “We’ll also pursue acquisitions of organisations with stellar track records, advanced technologies and trusted reputations for expanding our global footprint and market share. Last year we expanded into Colombia with the market leader in the region through our purchase of T-Uno. We also acquired AT Conference to strengthen our collaboration product portfolio in North America. Our 2014 acquisition of implement.com, a key
Microsoft partner with a stellar track record in enabling service providers to leverage hosted voice and Microsoft technologies, has allowed us to extend our UC as a Service offerings so that businesses can harness the full power of UC for greater workplace productivity.”
The most important pillar and the real driver behind Arkadin’s growth strategy, according to Mr. Jaubert, is being able to offer customers easy to use and intuitive services coupled with unparalleled customer care. Mr. Jaubert explains that this is being achieved through a strong service culture which runs through the whole Arkadin organisation: “Our cultural and business values are
inextricably linked and applied across all aspects of our business. To ensure premium client experiences, we have customer success teams in all global regions. A newly created Customer Lifecycle Program has enabled us to harness the latest digital technologies to dramatically increase new user adoption levels. It’s all about delivering a complete 365 degree experience in order to build a true partnership and long-term loyalty.”
Eyes Towards The Future…While talking about future prospects, Mr. Jaubert says Arkadin’s opportunities for greater growth and leadership in UC are unlimited and just beginning to be realised: “We are
in a high growth market with the right mix of market leading UC&C technologies, the right channels to expand our global footprint, at the right time. Together with NTT Communications, we offer our clients the most sophisticated infrastructure, networking and telecommunications capabilities so essential for succeeding in today’s digitally transformed landscape. Finally, we have a first rate executive bench supported by a global team of collaborators who are highly entrepreneurial and passionate about Arkadin’s success. It’s a winning formula!”
CoverStory
UnifiedCommunications
UnifiedCommunications
ccording to a research, the global Unified Communications market size is assumed to reach USD 75.81 billion by A2020. Unified Communications industry includes variety of communication models such as messaging, transaction, and information system along with collaboration and interactive systems. The global unified communication
market will be driven by the availability of wireless connectivity and high-speed internet.
The various services of Unified Communications can be like, on-premise, on-cloud, or hosted systems. The On-premise systems are weak to grab attention of the enterprises than cloud-based/hosted unified communication systems as they need well-trained employees and sufficient maintenance. On the other hand they prefer Cloud-based systems, which are faster, needs low maintenance, and give uninterrupted scaling abilities at lower costs. The fast growth of cloud computing is expected to uplift the market for cloud or hosted systems.
The ability of Unified communication systems to help in the improvement of efficiency and productivity, enterprises are on the verge to accept it. Unified Communications enable enterprises to have connected employees and excellent operational agility and finally delivering better customer-experience.
The usefulness and high need of the Unified Communications has made us shortlist the 10 Fastest Growing Unified Communications Solution Provider Companies. These are the companies who are providing the best Unified Communication services while at the same time setting the industry standards.
Our cover story for this magazine, Arkadin is one of the largest and fastest growing Unified Communications and Collaboration (UC&C) service providers in the world. Digital has always been high on the agenda at Arkadin, but it's taking on even greater importance as the driving force behind the company’s growth strategy. An NTT Communications company, it has operations in 33 countries with 56 offices spread throughout the Americas, EMEA & CEMEA, Asia Pacific and China, serving over 50,000 customers that span the largest global enterprises to standalone businesses. So, here in this issue we are presenting you some of the quality Unified Communications solution provider to best suite your needs.
Unified Communication as a Service (UCaaS)
Expected to Drive Growth
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
The dependency on the chat, video, file sharing, collaboration and conferencing
have compelled companies to become more dependent on the Unified Communications (UC). Companies are taking all the advantage of new capabilities and applications in the cloud while leveraging their existing on-site platforms.
Nowadays, more and more companies prefer a hybrid UC consumption model, a mix of on-premises and cloud solutions, which enables company’s flexibility, on the other hand a migration path to the cloud-based services. To keep up with the constant speeding competition, companies need to keep pace with the rapidly-advancing communications technology.
UC on Cloud Boosting Productivity
When it comes to assemble the productivity systems and applications of a company, Cloud-based UC models are the right choices. Let it be the conference line, data backup, call routing stations, or email provider UC on cloud help put all four and many more at one place, making it easy to achieve at the higher level of a company. Business owners do not have to worry about any missed detail as everything will be safe on the cloud.
No More Updatations
Company’s UC channels exist in the virtual realm through apps, computer
software, and the cloud, so there will be no need to dwell upon IT matters or technological updates anymore. All the problems including bugs, malfunctions, etc. will be taken care of by the company hosting your UC. There is a benefit of purchasing or downloading an app upgrade or a newer version of your existing computer software, instead spending time and money purchasing the latest hardware update.
Ease of Communication
The communication with business partners, employees, stakeholders, and customers from across the country and around the world can be communicated freely by Cloud-based UC. Services that provide businesses with individualized phone extensions and email sorting, help companies connect customers with the right business representative instantly and easily,
making the business appear better organized and more professional. While it comes to getting a better customer or client base worldwide, cloud-based UC is the most beneficial.
Option of Tracking and Graphing Data
The UC provider you have chosen is often capable of tracking and graphing your incoming data, just because of the availability of all channels and productivity applications at one place. With the help of unified analytics, your UC provider can show you what geographical sources are responsible for most emails or phone calls, what demographics are quickest to schedule services with your company, and more.
With the use of UC, any business let it be small or large, can make it look bigger, more organized, and highly professional.
Collaboration
of UC with Cloud
Editors Desk
17 | June 2016 |
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Management BriefCompany Name
8x8 is the trusted provider of secure and reliable Enterprise Communications as a Service (ECaaS) offerings to more than 45,000 businesses operating in over 100 countries across six
continents.
AireSpring, Inc.
www.airespring.com
Arkadin
www.arkadin.com
Avi Lonstein
Co-founder & CEO
Didier Jaubert
CEO
AireSpring provides fully managed and connected end-to-end, next-generation UC solutions for multi-location enterprise
customers.
Arkadin is one of the largest and fastest growing providers of Unified Communications and Collaboration Services in the
world.
Blueface is an Irish provider of Voice over IP telephony services delivering cutting edge, innovative solutions which
enable their customers’ businesses.
Blueface www.blueface.com
Alan Foy CEO
Luware AGwww.luware.com
Philipp BeckFounder & CEO
Luware is a leading provider of customized service platforms based on Microsoft Unified Communications (UC)
technologies.
Stefano Osler
CEO
Wildix offers a complete solution of Unified Communications, including Hardware and Software. It produces its own certified
hardware: PBXs, VoIP phones, DECT systems, media gateways, switches, headsets.
Yorktel is a leading global provider of UC&C, cloud, and video managed services for large enterprise and federal
government customers.
Premiere Global Services, Inc.www.pgi.com
Theodore P. SchrafftCEO
SOFTEL Communications, Inc.www.softel.com
John CognataCo-founder & Business Development Executive
SOFTEL Communications is a proven choice for enterprises &
organizations, looking to harness business opportunity through
unified communications and collaboration technology.
Wildix Unified Communications Solution
www.wildix.com
Yorktelwww.yorktel.com
Ron GabouryCEO
8x8, Inc.www.8x8.com
Vik VermaCEO
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
VOSS is a software company that offers a BCOM (business communications operations management) solution to automate
and simplify the challenge of managing today’s increasingly sophisticated communications environments.
Mike FrayneCEO
VISIONOSS LIMITEDwww.voss-solutions.com
P i is the world’s largest dedicated provider of collaboration software and services.
G
Trusted Provider of Secure and
Reliable Enterprise
Communications
8x8 is the trusted provider of secure
and reliable Enterprise
Communications as a Service (ECaaS)
offerings to more than 45,000
businesses operating in over 100
countries across six continents. 8x8’s
out-of-the-box cloud solutions replace
operate as one unified entity while
delivering the highest quality of
service in the industry.
8x8’s distributed platform uses
innovative, patented geo-routing
algorithms to route communications
quickly and efficiently to the closest
available data center no matter where
the user is currently located, resulting
in crystal clear connections.
A truly global, hyper-scalable
cloud unified
communications and contact
center platform, 8x8 is powering the
communications infrastructure
worldwide for businesses of all sizes.
Whether it is an SMB operating out of
one location or a large multinational
enterprise, 8x8’s multi-tenant services
platform, housed in nine international
data centers, enables businesses to
20 | June 2016 |
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
8x8: Great Communications
No Compromises
Named as 1 of 40 “technology pioneers” by the World Economic Forum in 2003, Vik Verma, CEO of 8x8, in his 26 year career, has taken complex technology and created products and services that deliver value to customers worldwide. He began his 26-year executive career with startup Savi Technology, where he was one of its first employees.
Vik VermaCEO
| June 2016 | 21
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Key to growth will be to continue to
educate business leaders on the many
benefits of cloud communications such
as enhanced features/functionality,
increased flexibility and speed of
deployment. 8x8 is supporting this
transition with its integrated cloud
communications platform that delivers
one continuous experience across all
devices and business workflows no
matter the size of your business.”
8x8’s momentum is a testament to the
current market dynamics. The
company is seeing accelerated
adoption of cloud communications by
mid-market and enterprise customers,
who now represent over 50% of 8x8's
total service revenue. The market
opportunity ahead is tremendous –
with less than 5% of mid-sized and
enterprise companies worldwide
having migrated to the cloud,
according to Gartner.
8x8 is paving the way for businesses
making the transition to cloud
communications. They have built a
high growth, profitable business by
developing and delivering the
industry’s most comprehensive suite of
secure, reliable and integrated global
cloud communications solutions. 8x8
is continuing to innovate and enhance
the business value of their solutions
with deeper analytics and line of
business applications and integrate
additional collaboration tools within
their platform to provide customers
with the most comprehensive and
seamless global communications
experience available.
At 8x8, Vik is leading the team that
has pioneered business
communications’ move to the cloud
with the company’s ground-breaking
cloud unified communications and
contact center technologies and
services.
Future Vista of 8x8
While reflecting on the future vista of
8x8 Vik says, “We are at a tipping
point in the industry with many mid-
size and large companies now seeking
out cloud communications solutions.
traditional on-premises PBX and
contact center hardware and software-
based systems with a flexible and
scalable Software as a Service (SaaS)
alternative, encompassing cloud
business telephony, collaboration,
contact center, and conferencing
services.
8x8’s innovative ECaaS solution
brings all unified communications and
contact center services together into
one integrated cloud platform,
delivering continuous communications
experiences from desktop to mobile.
This enables companies of all sizes to
solve critical business needs and
modernize their infrastructure with
world-class business communications,
contact center solutions, conferencing,
collaboration and advanced analytics.
Vik Verma- The Technocrat of 8x8
Vik joined the company as a design
engineer straight out of Stanford and
then quickly rose through the ranks,
first as VP of Engineering and then
COO. As COO, he played a leading
role in negotiating the sale of Savi to
Texas Instruments. Subsequently
promoted to CEO, Vik in partnership
with leading VCs from Silicon Valley
and Asia led the management buyout
of the company.
Later, Vik re-engineered the business,
quadrupled its size, executed a joint
venture with Hutchison Whampoa and
sold it to Lockheed Martin. At
Lockheed Martin, as President of
Strategic Venture Development, he
focused on turning the company’s
military technologies and programs
into global commercial ventures
ranging from seabed mining to
nanomaterials.
““
The key
differentiator for
8x8, is that we
are the only
vendor in the
market today that
delivers a truly
enterprise-grade,
integrated and
global cloud
communications
platform across
unied
communications
and contact
center
switches and routers are properly configured to give their customers voice traffic priority over the network. End-To-End, Next-Generation UC SolutionsAireSpring offers fully managed and connected end-to-end, next-generation UC solutions for multi-location enterprise customers, including AireContact Cloud Contact Center SaaS application, AirePBX Business
connectivity fully integrated with an award-winning cloud communications suite to equip clients business with fast, secure, and reliable services.
Seamless integration is much more difficult with disparate technologies. AireSpring addresses this problem by delivering services over their own managed network with end-to-end QoS. Their special relationship with other carriers enables them to ensure
AireSpring’s Managed Connectivity is a revolutionary way to simplify
the complexities of integrating cloud communications solutions into IP networks. Companies need converged voice, video, and data solutions that they can count on but often don’t have the time or resources to manage, monitor, or troubleshoot a complex multi-vendor solution. AireSpring has the answer with end-to-end managed
22 | June 2016 |
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
AireSpring: Simplifying the Complexities
of Integrating Cloud
Communications Solutions
Avi LonsteinCo-founder & CEO
Avi Lonstein, Co-founder and CEO
of AireSpring has been a telecom
entrepreneur for over 25 years. In 1989,
Mr. Lonstein co-founded ADDTEL
Communications.
| June 2016 | 23
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
10The
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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team foresaw the massive changes in telecom technology, and rapidly built AireSpring’s own next-generation IP network to become a full-fledged VoIP carrier, offering a range of SIP Trunking and telephony services. Mr. Lonstein later spearheaded development of the company’s own nationwide MPLS network and created an innovative Mesh MPLS product that has won several awards. As Chief Executive Officer for AireSpring, Mr. Lonstein is responsible for the company’s operations, strategy, and transformation into a nationwide provider of managed services for IP communications, intelligent networking and cloud computing applications and services. He continues to lead AireSpring as the company expands its portfolio of award-winning services and applications to keep it on the cutting edge.
Mr. Lonstein says, “AireSpring’s success is based on our philosophy, whereupon we try to offer products that customers need, and add value through personalized service and high-quality engineering implementations. We see our pool of experts, and the manpower that they represent, as being our biggest key differentiator and our most valuable asset. Satisfying our customers is the end to our means; there is no higher priority.”
Reflecting on the future of AireSpring Mr. Lonstein says, “We are focused on providing our customers with the latest technology, and as such we are continually reviewing and evolving our product set. We have many upcoming projects, plans, and products that are in the pipeline for the future. We plan to be here for at least another 15 years.”
quality or Quality of Service (QoS). The design, installation, operation, monitoring, repair, and maintenance are all handled with the same high level of professionalism. AireSpring’s enterprise-grade cloud phone system, AirePBX provides a true unified communications capabilities through a host of advanced features that let users communicate and collaborate from anywhere.
One of the differentiating factors which sets AireSpring Managed Connectivity apart from other solutions is the unique value of the AireSpring Advantage. AireSpring’s award-winning voice and data products come with provider stability and reliability that comes with being a long-time industry leader, debt-free and profitable. AireSpring’s premier support includes a single point of contact, free AireCare 24/7 account management portal, and an escalation list that extends all the way to the CEO. The AireSpring Advantage also offers the largest available coverage on a reliable and diversified network and the assurance that, because all services are delivered by a single vendor, there is none of the usual finger-pointing in the event of a network outage. Avi Lonstein, a Telecom EntrepreneurAs a President of ADDTEL, he was directly responsible for growing the company from a start-up operation to one of the country’s most successful nationwide long distance resellers. Under Mr. Lonstein’s direction, ADDTEL was recognized as one of the telecom industry’s most innovative and well-managed companies, and experienced substantial growth during his tenure.
Mr. Lonstein’s next entrepreneurial venture was AireSpring which he co-founded in 2001. Mr. Lonstein and his
VoIP, SIP Trunking, MPLS networks, and Business Internet. AireSpring primarily differentiates itself through their managed connectivity services, as many companies find it increasingly resource intensive and have neither the technical teams, nor the CAPEX budget, to manage and maintain their own networks.
By delivering cloud communications services over AireSpring’s network, companies avoid the inherent unreliability of the public “best effort” internet, as AireSpring is able to ensure and control the priority of customers’ voice traffic on the network. Also, AireSpring provides professional execution and service from design, to implementation and turn up, to network monitoring and customer support, which helps alleviate pain throughout the process.
AireSpring’s managed network services enable companies to reduce their CAPEX expense and lower their operating costs. AireSpring’s managed services help customers defray those costs, and reduce their financial burden. By letting AireSpring take on the network operations, customers are able to have a stable monthly cost while enjoying all the benefits of the latest technology.
Unique “White Glove” Service ApproachOne of the only companies to offer a “white glove” service approach in delivering UC solutions, AireSpring’s business VoIP customers are given professional on-site installation and testing of phones, switches and routers. In addition to their nationwide network, they also have partnerships with all major carriers which enables them to configure their network switches to prioritize AireSpring’s customers’ voice traffic, reducing latency and delivering clear call
Phones, faxes, emails, and letters are no more the only means of business communication. The
condition is totally different than it was just a decade ago. With the introduction and the increasing use of mobile technology, cloud services, and 4G LTE cellular networks, which easily supports streaming video, business communication has changed its communication way thoroughly. The revolution in communication has begun, and there is a lot more yet come to come. Here are some Unified Communications trends ruling the industry.
Desk phones replaced by BYOD A big trend setter of business communication nowadays is the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) approach of the companies. The use of smartphones by employees and especially the ease of using them and the flexibility of these devices have
initiated the urge of BYOD in the companies. This is the reason business communication has shifted its way towards the new ways of communication.
Web-based communication tools has entered the scenarioThe traditional PBX systems and hardware-based video conferencing setups have been replaced by mobile devices and web-based communication services, making business communication a simple and more effective process. The untrustworthiness of BYOD approach has led the acceptance of VoIP and cloud-based email servers while it comes to business communication. WebRTC becoming ‘Communications Favorite’Proving to be the combination of all- mobile, web-based, and unified
communications trends is WebRTC, which is becoming the business communications favorite. It is an open standard for peer-to-peer unified communications that enables businesses to easily embed rich communications in apps and websites with no need of plug-ins, hardware or proprietary technology. An easy, cost-effective method to deploying unified communications, WebRTC is the most preferred business communication platform nowadays.
‘Internet of Things joining the conversation’Machines have been adding to the benefits of the business for a long time, but this is the age when truly machines will be ‘the whole and sole’ of the business because of the entrance of the Internet of Things in to it. The addition of connected devices to the business communications landscape via the Internet of Things has become the latest business communication trend. IoT is helping companies to transmit real-time business data employees are using throughout a work day and as systems develop, there will not be just a one-way communications with machines, but more interactive business communication that involve these devices.
Though these are the four leading trends of Unified Communications as of now, on the other side they are supposed be the leading trends for several more years.
Unified Communications
Impacting Business
Communications
24 | June 2016 |
Chalk Talk
Carriers. It is a technology driven,
Irish-owned Cloud Telecoms provider.
Founded in 2004, Blueface has
operations in Ireland, Italy and the
UK. Offering targeted solutions for
small to medium sized business
customers and customized Managed
Communications services to large
corporates, Blueface is focused on
delivering real costs savings through
the use of ground-breaking
in something unwieldy. This has been
changing recently as new
developments in technology and
interface design have impacted the
usability and efficacy of such systems.
One such pioneer in the field is
Blueface.
Blueface is a leading Unified
Communications-as-a-Service
Provider to Business, Enterprises and
The concept of Unified
Communications as a Service
(UCaaS) has been around for
some time, however there are various
interpretations and variations. UCaaS
seeks to create a single system to
handle all communications media
which a person might use including
phone, video, chat etc. Many systems
which have attempted this
simplification have ironically resulted
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The company has experienced substantial
growth under the dynamic leadership of
Alan Foy, Group CEO at Blueface. Alan
holds a Bachelors in Business Studies, a
Masters of Arts and Masters of Letters from
University of Dublin, Trinity College. He is
responsible for the strategic direction and
overall management of Blueface.
Blueface: Making Communication
Simple
Alan Foy CEO
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integration between their phone calls
and their sales and marketing process.
Blueface as a Team
Like any company, Blueface owes its
success to their people, who make it
happen each and every day. They are
fortunate enough to have a team of
talented, hardworking and most
importantly, genuinely nice people.
They have established a culture where
high performance is expected, and
delivered. People at Blueface are at the
heart of everything.
Future Perspective
Blueface’ in-house engineering team
has spent almost 100,000 development
hours on the company’s new platform.
They have already rolled out white
label service across 12 countries, to
major mobile carriers and ISPs, and
the latest version has already been
selected by an MNO and a pan-
European ISP. They expect demand to
remain high as businesses continue to
demand advanced cloud services.
Simultaneously, Blueface will also be
launching into the United States,
France, Germany and Spain to
complement their existing operations
in Ireland, Italy and the U.K. Their
new voice platform is making this
possible so the second half of 2016 is
shaping up to be an important and
exciting time for Blueface.
A little bit further down the road, it
will be time to organize the official
launch of their CRM and some other
interesting and innovative projects
which they want to bring to the
market.
platform upon release in the short
term.
Key Features of Blueface
A key element of Blueface’s service is
the close integration of mobile and
fixed voice, along with the integration
of various other channels. Their user
interface has been developed over the
past twelve years, constantly evolving
from user feedback with the latest
UX/UI features which enables the end
user to self-manage - it gives control
of the most sophisticated elements but
in a very simple way on any device.
Blueface is also rolling out their own
CRM that gives SME’s out of the box
technologies coupled with a reliable
value proposition.
Leader behind Blueface
Alan works closely with the
management team on a day-to-day
basis to execute Blueface’s growth
strategy and lead the company’s
expansion into new markets.
Prior to Blueface, Alan was an
executive with NCB Group (now
Investec) on the wealth management
side of the business and worked with
Coyle Hamilton (now Willis) in the
area of business transformation. Alan
was President of the Trinity Business
Alumni, the Chairman of the Ireland
Funds Young Leaders committee and
Board Member of the Ireland Funds.
Core Strategy of Blueface
Blueface’s strategy is built on a core
commitment to delivering cutting
edge, innovative solutions which
empower their customers’ businesses
while providing extensive cost
savings. Stunning innovation with
revolutionary pricing, and carrier
grade reliability is at the very heart of
Blueface’ DNA.
Blueface has a very sophisticated
deployment model which ensures that
deployment of service post-sale is
rapid and efficient. Pre-qualification of
the proposed site ensures that the
deployment is both suited to the end
use and capable of installation.
Blueface deployments revolve around
zero-touch hardware configuration and
a suite of sophisticated online tools for
user management. Blueface CRM will
provides additional functionality,
integrating seamlessly with the UC
““
As an MVNO, we
provide fully
integrated xed
and mobile voice
services which
includes shared
voicemail box,
short-code
extension to
mobile dialing
and call recording
add-ons for all interactions.
With the help of Microsoft UC technologies, Luware supports companies in adapting the communications between their staff and the customers to present-day demands, thus meeting the constantly rising expectations of the customers and ensuring work flexibility for their staff members.
productive day by day.
With the use of latest and most innovative technologies such as WebRTC, Luware is having clean and most performant integration capabilities. By using Skype for Business as base application and framework for the add-ons, Luware simplifies the user experience tremendously while providing only one client enriched with the respective
Native interfaces between Telephony, IM, Webchat, Mail, Video Conferencing,
Application/Desktop Sharing as well as interfaces for popular social media such as Facebook and Twitter build the foundation for full Skype for Business Integration and extension. Every aspect of the Interaction between customer and employees is covered with the popular add-ons of Luware and empowers Businesses to be more
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Philipp Beck, Founder and CEO of Luware, is a leading provider of service platforms based on Microsoft Unified Communication technologies. His portfolio includes solutions for contact centers, team-ACD or single-user workstations over multiple channels.
Luware AG:
Promising - Swiss and Simple
Philipp BeckFounder & CEO
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customer request, directly to the Microsoft UC client of the Contact Center Agent. Chat, Voice, Video, Email and even Faxes can be handled without leaving the Client.
TeamManager, provides advanced features to the Response Groups of Skype for Business / Lync such as Team Contacts, Team Presence, Reporting, and different Routing Options for Chat, Voice and Video.
PresenceAssistant, simplifies the routing of incoming calls, thus adding a feature known as target-oriented presence to Skype for Business / Lync various presence statuses.
RTC LAUNCHER is a web application using the open standard of WebRTC among others, thus enabling end-to-end connectivity between web browsers and Skype for Business / Lync.
SwitchBoard is a completely in Skype for Business Integrated Application that provides one-click functionality such as call transfer, calendar integration and email templates for callback requests.
Future PanoramaWhile talking about the future panorama Philipp says, “Due to the growing user adoption of Lync and Skype for business worldwide, Luware started focusing since 2014 mainly on the international market. First wins in Germany, Belgium, UK and Kuwait in 2015 paved the way for strong international growth.”
Going forward, with its headquarters based in Switzerland, Luware will focus on strongly deliver local in-county services in those regions 2015 and beyond. The most recent development includes offices in UK, Dubai, Spain and New York.
other add-ons, Luware offers a full range of all additional functions for Skype for Business and Lync.
The unmatched experience and expertise of Luware includes business processes in customer service, Microsoft UC technology, product development, project management and software engineering.
In conjunction with Microsoft products, the solutions from Luware allow customer service representatives
and internal services alike to handle all concerns individually, personally and quickly.
Beyond Traditional SolutionsLuware provide solutions that are more than just communications; they make the customers experience true cooperation:
LUCS, The Contact Center Solution that integrates native into Skype for Business or Lync. This enables channel independent routing of any
Philipp Beck, Passionate Persona behind Luware
Philipp Beck, just after his electrical engineering studies at the Hochschule Rapperswil, where he pasted with distinction, he worked at the Institute for Networked Solution and deal with Microsoft UC environment. Since 2007, Philipp holds the title Microsoft Certified Master for OCS, which he later confirmed with the title Microsoft Certified Master Lync 2010 and Microsoft Certified Solution Master Communications for Lync 2013.
Philip says, “We at Luware work with the principle, that happy employees is the key to sustainable corporate success.”
He adds, “At Luware we work closely with our clients to deliver solutions which meet the needs of today's customers and employees alike. With an emphasize on innovation and ease of use, combined with quality and simplicity our solutions are breaking new grounds in customer service while at the same time improving agent/employee productivity, supporting the requirements of the modern work place through improved communication, collaboration and mobility. Luware AG is a leading provider of customized custom service platforms based on Microsoft Unified Communications (UC) technologies.”
Luware - A Leading Provider of Customized Service PlatformsLuware is a leading provider of customized service platforms based on Microsoft Unified Communications (UC) technologies. It offers solutions for contact centers, team-ACD or single-user workstations for the following channels: Chat, Voice, Video, Mail, Social Media and Co-Browsing. With the help of latest technologies such as WebRTC, CRM integrations, recording solutions and
““
Solutions from
Luware provides
more than just
communications,
we make
customers
experience true
cooperation
CXO Standpoint
Pick up any periodical; monitor any blog and you will hear tale of the power of Unified Communications and how organizations galore are basking in a
connected world. But is this fact or fiction?
For decades, business has progressively sought quicker, more direct and effective ways to communicate both internally and externally. Not to show my age, but I grew up in the world of receptionists, large mail rooms, and pink message slips. We just knew we were cutting edge. This gave way to fax machines, WordPerfect on our desktops, and DID (Direct Inward Dial) where incoming calls were automatically routed direct to my desk phone, bypassing the
receptionist and my admin. Great to start with; quickly a security hole where all sorts of folks were ringing me up direct. Yuck! Not a fan of too much communication.
Fast forward to 2016, where the mantra is a Unified, Global, Universal world where we are all peers communicating via phone, email, text, mobile, video, social media, and groupware (Slack,Yammer). We even use text-to-speech and speech-to-text as we are too lazy to listen to our voicemails. Are we gaining ground or has the noise level risen to where little is accomplished while we are bombarded with information? My friend Heather Clancy opines on the social aspect in her Fortune column today:
Is Unied Communications
Worth the Effort?
Is Unied Communications
Worth the Effort?
30 | June 2016 |
CXO Standpoint
employees’ appreciation of technology to enable them to work anywhere. So UC is worth the effort when properly designed and implemented. It may require some open minded analysis as the company’s current providers often may not be the best choice for a UC rollout. And some folks will have to think ahead….At Peak UpTime, our goal is to help you elevate the IT conversation to address business challenges. We identify innovative IT solutions to help you effectively serve your clients, and leverage technology to keep your teams operating efficiently.
Celebrating our 30th anniversary in business in 2013, Peak has experienced growth and change in IT technology, but never wavered in its passion for serving our clients. Our history of serving clients and their corresponding reference, our strong financial position and capable, skilled team make Peak your natural choice to support your IT infrastructure.
At Peak, we tend to act in an advisory role with clients and strive to match their defined business processes with the available technology. A key component is providing just the right amount of unified connectivity for each role or usage model. For example, a call center agent needs telephony, text, and perhaps point to point video to serve the client, but should not receive incoming personal calls, extraneous emails, or be ordering shoes on Zappos at their desk. Access control is still a valid term.
I recently rented a car using a kiosk at the rental call center. Great experience! While others formed a line in front of a harried counterperson, I had a quick video call with a pleasant an efficient agent in a far city and was behind the wheel in a snap. We had a data, video, and audio conversation. My paperwork was delivered to my phone while I strolled to the car. I brought up a QR code which was quickly scanned as I reached the gate. Effective use of technology….
There are myriad UC systems available today with varied capability and market acceptance. Two characteristics define the winners; simplicity in function, and tight integration to application platforms.
The best technology, poorly delivered and overly complicated, will be swiftly be rejected by the user community. There is a reason iPhones triumph over technically superior and far less expensive competing devices. Simple. Intuitive. Bulletproof.
Saw this first hand on a UC rollout several years ago. At the time Blackberry and Nokia ruled the corporate mobile market with Motorola
close behind. As we trained users in the use of their mobile client app, the universal question from executives (not sales or engineering) was “When can I use my iPhone to connect?” Each had a company phone (Blackberry) in one pocket, and a personal iPhone in the other. That is when I predicted Apple would win. (And I was smart enough to purchase a few shares).
Application integration is where a properly implemented UC system can leverage the incredible sums spent on Enterprise ERP, CRM, and integrated databases. Information is delivered directly to stakeholders at their desk, on the road, at home, and unfortunately even on vacation. The flip side is delivering a flawless presentation to your best client via desktop sharing from your tablet whilst standing on the sidelines at the youth soccer game. With your boss and team conferenced in. We have seen corporations win “Best Place to Work” rankings due to
Dave Casey
Regional Vice President
Peak Up Time
| June 2016 | 31
Accessible anywhere, anytime and on any device, PGi’s award-winning collaboration solutions drive productivity and teamwork for approximately 50,000 customers around the world.
Noteworthy innovations of PGi:
Smart Calendar App. PGi launched iMeet Agenday nearly two years ago
customers to leverage specialists like PGi. PGi: Conferencing Solutions for Every BusinessPGi is the world’s most dedicated provider of collaboration software and services. For more than 25 years, PGi’s dedicated portfolio of products has served the end-to-end collaboration needs of enterprises.
Today’s incredibly dynamic and complex, UC&C marketplace is dominated by a few large,
well-known vendors, collaboration providers and small start-ups. Clients are seeking more choices; they want help making collaborative decisions that work for their users. The risk and investment required to get it right in today’s intricate and rapidly-moving market, making it more important for
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PGi: World’s Most Dedicated
Provider of Collaboration
Software and Services
Theodore P. Schrafft, CEO of PGi is leading the group since the company’s private equity acquisition in December of 2015. Ted served as President since July 2006 and oversees the entire operations of PGi. He has more than 35 years of experience in the technology and business communications industries. Theodore P. Schrafft
CEO
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The Collaborative AdvantageToday, PGi are uniquely positioned with a new, strong capital partner, as well as a more balanced approach in their go-to-market strategy as they continue to evolve and succeed in this market. The good news is, collaboration is on everyone’s mind and there is no shortage of opportunity. “After 25 years in this space, PGi has established credibility and built a customer list that's second to none. We are well-positioned to be more agile and responsive than the other brands. Furthermore, we have the global reach, scale and credibility that our customers demand,” assures Mr. Schrafft.
Team PGiPGi is synonymous with collaboration. Their products – and, by extension, their satisfied customer base – does not exist without the collaborative mindset exemplified by their team. The bright minds at PGi have streamlined the process of putting their heads together to take a concept from inception to reality with impeccable execution.
Team PGi provides their customers with top-notch products that incorporate cutting-edge technology for a seamless user experience. Their focus on the customer with a constant eye on innovation is driving the company forward in 2016.
Effulgent Days aheadAt the highest level, team PGi is being more deliberate about listening to their customers in every way they can. In July 2016, PGi will celebrate its 25th year in business; they have built the company by listening to customers and anticipating their changing needs in the collaboration space.
Microsoft Outlook. Equipped with custom company branding and key dial-in numbers and passcodes, the enhanced Outlook plug-in improves the user experience of scheduling and joining meetings and allows one-click entry for guests joining via a mobile device.
Leadership Dedicated to Bringing the Best Collaboration Experience
With extensive expertise in operations management, sales and marketing, Mr. Schrafft previously served in various capacities with the company. He also served as President of PGi’s former Voice and Data Messaging business unit and as Vice President of Corporate Messaging.
as one calendar app that unifies personal and professional calendars and makes it super simple to join a meeting in one click. iMeet Agenday presents all of your meetings and appointments in one easy-to-read format and then connects to conference calls and web meetings with a single touch. iMeet Agenday users can also check out LinkedIn profiles of meeting guests and get updated weather and driving directions.
Webcasting. iMeetLive is a PGi product that makes it easy to create professional-quality webcasts and webinars for up to 10,000 people. The secure, cloud-based iMeetLive webcasting platform provides marketing and corporate communications teams with fully managed or self-service webinars for lead generation, town halls and other events.
Services. PGi drives additional productivity and value for businesses through adoption and real-time service support of collaboration solutions. Beyond products and applications, the services part of their business is also becoming more critical as PGi helps customers manage the complexity of enterprise collaboration. The more value we can bring to our customers by driving adoption and utilization means clients realize the value of collaboration and can document a return on investment.
Productivity Apps. Their Modality Systems subsidiary has some unique productivity apps that are ‘add-ons’ for the Office 365/Skype for Business experience. As an example, they recently launched CustomInvite by Modality Systems to make it easy to create customized Skype for Business meeting invites directly from
We are dedicated to
bringing the best
virtual collaboration
experience to each
and every business
professional around
the world through
our product
innovation, our
global network and
our extraordinary
customer care
““
Assured Motion forany Vehicle
PS has been a boon for the
Gworld of transportation in
general and for the robotics
industry in particular. Despite this,
robots have failed to permeate our
world. They still lose track of where
they are and as we see in the news both
military and commercial drones fall
out of the sky. After years of using
robots to solve difficult, real world
problems such as landmine detection,
mapping out the hazardous chemicals
and detecting radiation, 5D came to
realize that reliable, useful behavior is
dependent on accurate positioning.
GPS lacks accuracy and doesn’t work
indoors. For instance, GPS systems
often still think you are on the
highway, even after you take an exit.
Vision and laser systems can be used to
aid in localization and 5D has
incorporated a great deal of those
technologies to aid in navigation.
Unfortunately, neither lasers nor
cameras can see around corners and are
easily disrupted by dust, rain, snow,
and dynamic environments. This lack
of reliability reduces value of mobile
robots across the board and impacts
hopes of more efficient, autonomous
driving.
To address this problem, 5D created
and patented a technology that
provides reliable, centimeter level
accuracy and reliable behavior in any
environment. The 5D module
David BruemmerCEO, Co-founder5D Robotics.
CXO Standpoint
34| June 2016 |
embodies this technology, including an
innovative Ultra-Wideband necessary
to provide accurate position,
orientation and behavior software for
safety and autonomous navigation. The
reliability and accuracy have been
proven for landmine detection, squad
support missions and hazmat
environments for both ground vehicles
and drones in the military. Now we are
bringing the technology into a variety
of commercial environments starting
with heavy equipment and moving
towards intelligent transportation. The
technology can go onto people, robots,
drones, automotive systems and
anything else you might want to track.
There are two complementary ways to
use the 5D module. The first uses
relative positioning to allow safe
motion, obstacle avoidance, follow,
wagon training and a host of vehicle to
vehicle applications. In this relative
frame of reference the modules link to
each other without any dependence on
GPS or a global reference frame and
no modules are necessary in the
infrastructure. Like neurons in the
brain, modules that support a particular
function work together and specific
clusters of modules can dedicate
themselves to a particular function
while still maintaining recursive
awareness to a larger ecosystem.
The second way to use the technology
is as an absolute position reference
where modules in the environment can
be a GPS enhancement. In this model,
applications designed around GPS can
work as intended, but with much
higher reliability and accuracy. With
the 5D module it is possible to
accurately judge follow distance and
perform predictive braking. Within
minutes, it is possible to add the
modules to just about any
environment. We anticipate building
modules into light fixtures, traffic
lights and roadside equipment. We are
already contracted to move the
technology into a variety of heavy
equipment applications for forklifts,
scissor lifts and other equipment. The
technology has the ability to impact
construction, mining, logistics and
energy sectors. In the burgeoning
drone world, 5D has shown that we
can replace or enhance existing GPS
dependency, allowing drones to
provide more accurate surveying,
mapping and data collection for
surveillance, security and inspection.
One of the most exciting future
opportunities is smart mobility
applications. Beginning in closed
environments like campuses and
resorts, off-highway personal mobility
systems can meet you wherever you
need a lift and drive you on dedicated
routes to your destination using
existing paths. You never have to go
somewhere to pick it up or drop it off.
It just goes on to the next closest
person who needs a lift. Across all
these applications, the 5D modules
provide a crosscutting, interoperable
solution and help us create intelligent
ecosystems where everything is safer
and more efficient. The benefits extend
not only to robotics, but also include
big data analytics where the 5D
modules provide the ability to collect
and accurately position a variety of
data. The precision of this data allows
for both analysis and prediction at a
level never before possible, allowing
increased efficiency and awareness
across countless applications.
CXO Standpoint
| June 2016 | 35
processes and/or create revenue opportunities. We do this by creating innovative or disruptive approaches to the way businesses use communications technologies, and the results are measurable business gains”.
Q. What kind of different tools and applications does your company use to extend your UC service beyond the traditional voice, video, instant message and presence that comprise UC today?SOFTEL engage across many different sectors and we have found that “Unified Communications” means something different in each of them. As examples;
video collaboration, etc. So SOFTEL stepped onto the scene aiming to facilitate how people communicate in the midst of changing modalities. Our customers capitalize on this disruption because we help them align new communication norms with their existing business strategies. Effective communication is the foundation for all business transactions. SOFTEL is an expert at adapting the tools (systems and modalities) businesses use to communicate internally-and externally. As new technologies evolve, consumers compel businesses to adapt to ever-changing methods of transacting business. SOFTEL helps those same businesses optimize their
Q. What kind of support and services related to Unified Communication does your
company offer?“For more than 20 years, SOFTEL has been helping businesses think in creative, progressive ways about their technology investments. In 1993, our founders began the business in response to evolving enterprise communications modalities. Business-to-consumer and business-to-business interactions were, and continue to be, progressively disrupted-think voicemail, call centers, Interactive Voice Response (IVR), cellular phones, Internet, email, VoIP, smart phones, SMS, social media, web and
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John Cognata, Co-Founder and Business Development Executive of SOFTEL Communications, explains why SOFTEL is a proven choice for enterprises and organizations looking to harness business opportunity though unified communications and collaboration technology. John’s passion is finding ways to combine innovation with technological solutions that solve business problems, creating distinctive (sometimes disruptive) value-driven solutions for network service providers, IT solution providers and their customer base.
John CognataCo-founder & Business Development Executive
SOFTEL Communications: Helping Businesses to Evolve
& Produce through Innovations & Collaborations
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“We chose expertise and experience over a big name. We appreciated the SOFTEL hands-on approach and their capacity to assimilate our complex business processes and propose appropriate solutions.” “The SOFTEL solution has been invaluable to our organization and has resulted in a reduction of about 70% of our security resets on the network side, and there is no telling what the translation is in productivity gains to the organization. This has helped us become among the pioneers in the journey towards true self-service and user empowerment.” Q. What are the future plans of your company?Our company, like many others, evolves with the available technologies. SOFTEL invests perpetual research effort and time in looking beyond the available sectors for Unified Communications, in the spirt of innovation to drive value for our customers. We look for opportunities that bring together UC as a Service, outside of where you might expect to find it. That’s because we recognize that UC isn’t just for human to human interactions - there’s a whole host of new business within collaborations for business, gamification, telemedicine, collaboration for the federation of resources, remote resource training, Virtual Reality, IoT and on-line bots & Artificial Intelligence (Content & Knowledge Management) - all of which continues to extend UC into all directions, across all sectors. Of course, we serve many different clients and customers in Contact Centers but that is’t where we see that UC ends. Wherever there is a need for innovation, expertise and experience in supporting excellence in communications and collaboration amongst humans or between humans and machines - that’s where you will find SOFTEL!
While our core area of focus is B2B communications, we see a growing need to provide Collaboration between B2C. In doing so we are innovating the Telemedicine, Gamification, Education/Training, and Social Media applications and enhancing communication channels in these market segments. As an example, in the areas of telemedicine and preventive maintenance; We are helping our service provider and IT solution provider customers develop and deliver new services through the innovative application of UC or Collaboration technology thereby creating additional revenue streams and generate better productivity for multiple parties.
Q. With the introduction of a new technology every other day, what kind of changes you are experiencing?SOFTEL recognize that most customer service-oriented organizations are facing a dilemma in keeping up with the explosion of new technologies and new ways of communicating for consumers. Our aim is to provide the glue that keeps our clients solution upright, functional - and relevant. With each new wave of social or personal communication methods comes the opportunity to innovate, through that disruption. The end result is a more streamlined and unified method of interacting across each channel - new or old.
Q. How your team has contributed to the success of your company? Experience, focus and an unwavering commitment towards our customers’ success! Our team reflects this in each role and task they are allocated; seasoned professionals who know what works and - more importantly - what doesn’t. Through their teamwork at every level, they uphold the core of SOFTEL, frequently going the extra mile to make sure the job is done right. Here’s a few of our customer quotes, reflecting our core values;
Microsoft Skype for Business (SfB) is the fastest growing UC platform, according to leading industry analysts. SOFTEL is a key Microsoft partner, with Gold certification and competency in Microsoft Communications and Productivity platforms. Alongside platform implementation and ongoing support, SOFTEL provides core re-development using both the UCMA and UCWA developer toolsets. This is a key area of strength for SOFTEL, in developing Microsoft Skype for Business Cloud applications - something very few other providers can achieve. This means that we can develop from the ground up, based on very specific enterprise customer needs. As for Cisco, SOFTEL is a key service partner with expertise in UC and Contact Center, including an evolving Cisco IoT practice. With strong experience in CISCO UCCE best practice implementations for leading multi-national enterprises that aim to streamline both operations and customer services. Using a “hybrid” approach to combining UC communications channels we architect, design, develop, test, implement and manage on premise and Cloud enterprise applications based on a customer’s business specifications and enterprise security protocols. In truth, there is no real extent to the versatility of the UC or Collaboration solutions that SOFTEL have provided for their customers and partners. Our applications and development toolsets reflect whatever is required to combine the customers channels and platforms of communication.
Q. How your company is going beyond the conventional way and proving to be the unique one in the maturing competition?SOFTEL continues to provide new ways to enable Collaboration through Unified Communications solutions.
Unified Communications (UC) is referred as, “A whole new way to the business
communication”. A perfect UC solution is the backbone of a successful business, just because of its ability to operate, work and communicate best. The successful implementation of UC depends on the investment of time and resources: strategic planning and engagement of the business. The most important part is the ‘strategic planning’, which needs to be observed, understand and incorporate, effectively. The basic is the understanding of the requirement of a perfect planning and following the process. First of all, a business needs to start identifying why exactly they want to incorporate Unified Communications, just to properly build a business case and measure success.
Just because there are multiple elements, which resides in unified communications solutions rather than a single product, getting a tailored solution is essential and more achievable when knowing exactly what is required. There are numerous challenges companies have to face, while implementing a perfect fit UC plan, including changes to business processes, integration issues with other software applications or systems already in use, security and compliance.
For the best adoption of UC, there are a few points to think on:
Need of Regular Evaluation in the
Technology
Unified Communications is not a technological tool in isolation, but on the other hand, it is a strategic solution that benefits business efficiency and operations. An important aspect while instrumenting the UC solution is to understand the benefit and outcomes it is going to bring. A regular evaluation of the technology and correspondence with employees to help incorporate awareness, adoption and culture change is the key to a successful implementation of a Unified Communications Solution.
A Perfect Strategy to be Implemented
A perfect strategy for UC is needed to be developed first, and then implemented. The fact that Unified Communications affects all parts of the business; there are some factors to be considered, which include culture change and technology adoption, training, business processes and objectives, technical requirements, financials as well as stakeholders, governance and policy.
Changing Business Cultures
One of the utmost important things, while implementing UC is the knowledge of ongoing business culture, which will let the company determine the impact deployment and integration of the Unified Communication’s solution, is having. It will help the company to transform
the culture which will be more collaborative and communicative. The change can be made by planned training and education to employees through the different levels of the Unified Communications solution deployment.
More emphasis on Training and Employee Engagement
Another key factor of a successful employment of a UC strategy is getting the employees, who are the actual users of the unified communications solution on board. The training and getting employees to understand the value offered by the technology to help in their workflow will help in better UC strategy implementation. This will eventually turn into getting employees involved and add up an engagement and integration into their workflow.
Importance of Planning and Testing
Regular planning, measurement and evaluation are very important, while ensuring maximum benefit from UC. This will turn out into a better response and resource allotment to challenges, technological requirements, employee adoption etc. which can arise in the process. These things have to be cared of while implementing the UC strategy to get most from it, which will be resulted in a UC adoption and use by employees as a regular part of their work and help with an increase in their level of productivity.
Successful Implementation
Of Unified Communications
Successful Implementation
Of Unified Communications
Need of an Hour
38 | June 2016 |
Systems, Media Gateways, Switches,
and Headsets. Also, Wildix offers
warranty on its products and
installation is carried out by Wildix
certified installers.
The distinguishing feature, however, is
the Wildix Software, which includes
the admin interface for system
who will simplify and automate daily
operations and increase the workplace
productivity of system users. Wildix,
founded in 2005, a state-of-the-art
solutions provider, offers a complete
solution of Unified Communications
including Hardware and Software.
Wildix produces its own certified
hardware: PBXs, VoIP phones, DECT
Organizations that are looking
to improve productivity and
responsiveness while
reducing their IT costs, Unified
Communications is proving to be a
significantly important investment.
Hence, it is crucial to select an
enterprise-class Unified
Communications Solution provider,
Stefano OslerCEO
Wildix: Simplifying the Company’s
Internal & External Communication
while Optimizing Productivity
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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Solution ProviderCompanies
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Stefano Osler, CEO of Wildix got a degree in
Computer Science. He started his professional
activities, like working on software
development and analysis in the field of
human-machine interaction. In 1998, he
founded his first company, Intellicode, which
has grown over years and is now operational in
the market.
40 | June 2016 |
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Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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and video), to schedule a
videoconference, to share a desktop,
an application or a link.
Approaching to the Radiant Future
Wildix believes that the future of the
UC is in the Cloud, this is why they
have created an offer that includes
Unified Communications services in
the Cloud. Another strong point of
Wildix is the integration of WebRTC.
Wildix system has been the first one to
fully integrate WebRTC into the UC
system, including softphone,
WP600ACG Android phone, WebRTC
Kite and videoconference. Finally -
Wildix constantly works on
integrations, to make its system
compatible with different HW and SW
solutions, such as CRM and ERP
applications, video surveillance
systems, professional headsets. Their
aim is to fully integrate their
communication solution with different
tools, in order to simplify and
automate daily operations and increase
the workplace productivity of those
who use their systems.
In March 2017, Wildix will participate
in the Enterprise Connect conference
in Florida. The conference is designed
with an objective to help maximize
your investments in communications
and collaboration systems, software,
and services.
“Surely our goal is to continue with
the process of internationalization,
considering new markets, such as the
US and the UK; research and evaluate
new technologies to be integrated into
our UC system; work on the
integration to ensure the compatibility
of our communication system with
different HW and SW solutions,”
desists Stefano.
solution, introduced back in 2013, is
the tool allowing the customer to
interact with the company via the
corporate website using live chat, call,
video, desktop sharing and file
transfer. Wildix WebRTC Kite solution
received the prize as the best Unified
Communication solution at the IP
Convergence in Paris, and was invited
to participate at WebRTC Conference
& Expo in Santa Chiara in California
(2013) and World Conference in Paris
dedicated to WebRTC (2013-2014).
Wildix also offers a web-based
videoconference solution based on
WebRTC, which does not require any
additional hardware. Wildix video
conference is available for the users of
the system, but also for the external
users via the browser. It’s possible to
record a videoconference (both audio
management and user interface for
collaboration. Both components are
web-based and accessible via the
browser, without having to install any
client or plug-in, which makes the
system compatible with any OS
(Windows, Macintosh, and Linux) or
tablet.
Leadership Committed to Standards
and Innovation
In 2000, Stefano started to work on the
development of a new communication
system and dedicated himself to the
project management activities.
Stefano assures, “Being a company
that develops front edge
communication systems, Wildix
strongly believes in innovation. The
product that we develop is the one that
we daily use at work. Before any new
tool or feature becomes available for
our customers, usually it passes a
usability test inside the company - our
employees are the first one to try it
out.”
In fact, new information and
communication technologies have
greatly changed the work lives over
the past years. Many of Wildix
employees constantly travel abroad to
other offices of the company and
participate in different events. Right
now, they can work anyplace, anytime
and use any device. Since the system
is web-based and compatible with any
platform, it makes no difference
whether they are in the office, at home,
on the move or abroad.
Outcome of Culture of Innovation
Wildix is the first company to have
fully integrated WebRTC technology
into a Unified Communications
platform. Wildix WebRTC Kite
““
The goal is to
avoid the
compatibility
issues
which often
appearduring
the installation
phase when using
the products of
different brands
As per the predictions, 1.3 billion workers in the
world are mobile workers. This is the reason;
many companies are sought after empowering
mobile workforce. Employees are using a single connected
device for all their needs like email, information
management, social media, corporate applications, web and
video conferencing, and note taking, for a long time. This is
the reason, which is making them use the multiple phones
and devices, making the companies have multi-device
connectivity to the enterprise systems.
The productivity of an employee can be traced from
anywhere, just because of the advancement of Bring your
own device (BYOD) strategy. Also, it fetches them freedom
of not getting bound by a workplace. The expectations and
needs of these workers in the modern scenario of working
are increasing the company’s choice of implementing
enterprise-wide Unified Communications (UC). UC offers
Unied Communications
along with Bring Your Own Device
(BYOD) Priority on
The Technology Roadmap
Futurista
42 | June 2016 |
Futurista
employees the access to real-time
communications tools on any device,
proving beneficial to the companies by
letting employees collaborate anytime
and anywhere.
The Time Saving Ability for Real
Productivity Gains
According to a research, organizations
with UC save an average of 32 minutes
per employee per day, just because UC
enables staff to reach one another on
the first go. The real-time collaboration
features offered by UC, like screen
sharing, presence, instant messaging,
SMS text messaging, and video
conferencing makes the interaction
between colleagues quicker and easier.
This ease of communication and
collaboration empowers the workforce
which allows them to focus on
organizations core business goals and
avoid communication barriers like the
need to return missed calls and manage
multiple virtual voicemail boxes and
email threads.
No Restriction on Using Devices
UC also helps the user in keeping their
personal mobile number private, at the
same time allowing them to be in touch
with colleagues and customers using
virtually any device. Additionally, the
business phone calls made from the
employees mobile number appear to
originate from company’s Hosted
Voice number instead of employees
own mobile number. These business
phone calls also use employees Hosted
Voice minutes plan. An employee can
have a facility to start a call on their
desk phone and transfer it to their
mobile or vice versa instantly.
MegaPath UC includes desktop,
smartphone and tablet clients for all
major OS platforms, enabling a full-
featured UC experience across devices.
UC Makes the Cloud-Based
Deployment Easy
Organizations can constantly and
inexpensively scale cloud-based
communications services to best fit
their need. Organizations using a
virtual phone system with UC can
easily ramp up new employees and
perform self-service provisioning. The
availability of buying UC in a
subscription payment model, they get
only what they need and avoid large
up-front (capital) expenditures as well
as continuous staffing costs to upgrade
and maintain an on-premises system.
UC and Integrated Voice Making
Communication Faster
UC offers one easy-to-use interface
including all like, office phone systems
are often integrated with enhanced
collaboration and unified messaging
features such as screen sharing,
presence, instant messaging, SMS text
messaging, and video conferencing.
All these communication and
collaboration features of UC helps
speed up virtually every aspect of the
business cycle like decision-making,
customer support issue resolution, lead
generation, sales, etc.
UC with integrated telephony allows
busy workers more freedom and
flexibility in the way they
communicate and manage their
communications, expanding
productivity and collaboration. The
features like calling and mobility like,
Find Visual Voicemail (voicemail
transcribed as email), Me/Follow Me
(self-service call routing), Audio
Conferencing and Call Recording
enhances a mobile and productive
work style, at the same time improving
interactions with colleagues, partners,
and customers.
Need of an Hour
The need of an hour is the Real-time
communications and collaboration
solutions for a business; let it be of any
size. Let an organization have a single
location or hundreds of locations with
remote employees spread across the
globe, they need UC solutions, just
because of the benefits like, reduced
total cost of ownership, reduced travel
time, enables better collaboration, and
the ability for all employees to connect
faster and get more work done.
Thus, let it be company of any size, it
is keeping Unified Communications
and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
as a high priority on the Technology
Roadmap.
| June 2016 |43
Beyond Traditional Services
Yorktel’s Professional Services
division offers an end-to-end suite of
advisory services that help Fortune
1000 businesses and government
agencies develop, deploy and
maximize unified video
communications and collaboration
solutions. By employing best practices
for video and an ITIL-based service
design methodology, coupled with its
and a trend toward cloud services or
cloud/premise hybrids.
For more than 30 years, Yorktel has
removed complexity from video and
UC&C, and executed its operational
mandate to deliver products and
services that increase usability and
agility for today’s multi-national
enterprise.
To address the objectives and
needs of clients as well as
employees, both inside and
outside its network, an organization
needs the ability to communicate and
collaborate effectively. Adoption of
unified communications and
collaboration (UC&C) becomes more
ubiquitous with smart devices
supporting clientless UC applications,
a greater density of commodity video
44 | June 2016 |
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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Yorktel: Making Unified Communications
& Collaboration Simple
Ron Gaboury, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was promoted from Chief Financial Officer to CEO in 2011. His leadership has been characterized by executive management, financial and technical acumen. From 2012 - 2014, Yorktel acquired three companies, First Connections, Expedite VCS and MultiSense, which facilitated global expansion into EMEA and its entry into Telehealth and other new markets. Ron Gaboury
CEO
| June 2016 | 45
Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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Fastest GrowingUnied Communications
Solution ProviderCompanies
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Ron was appointed Chairman of the
Board for the New Jersey Tech
Council, the state’s leading industry
association. As a frequent speaker at
events and years of active
participation, Ron was selected to this
post for his track record and insightful
leadership.
Education and thought leadership have
become a hallmark of Yorktel
communications and marketing. While
labor-intensive, case studies,
whitepapers, speaking engagements,
and other efforts provide a valuable
service to the market. Recent papers
on the Next Generation Workplace,
UC&C Productivity, Telehealth, and
Webcasting provide insight on proven
best practices, and guidance for a
marketplace in constant flux.
Team is the Strength
To Yorktel, “collaboration” refers to
more than products and services. As
the company evolved over the past 30
years, what has not changed is their
belief that each client relationship is a
partnership. Companies with a
“vendor” mindset focus only on sales
and their own agendas. Their mentality
is that they are an extension of their
customer’s team; they approach each
engagement with a conviction that
success will be defined by long term
gains in productivity, marketshare and
other quantitative returns.
Contrary to most, they know that the
relationship doesn’t stop once the
contract is signed. From the initial
assessment and roadmap development,
to deployment, user training and
ongoing management, Yorktel
provides the high-touch support to
execute from end to end.
including the aforementioned SIP and
H.323 protocols, Microsoft Lync and
Skype for Business, WebRTC and the
public telephone network. Native
support for disparate technologies
makes the Enterprise Gateway a
powerful yet simple solution.
Recognizing a worldwide exodus from
Capex-intensive Tech/Telecom
infrastructure, Ron successfully
positioned Yorktel at the forefront of
the cloud and managed services
revolution. In 2014, Frost & Sullivan rdranked Yorktel as the 3 largest
managed video conferencing services
provider in North America.
Yorktel has achieved numerous
milestones, industry honors and
distinctions during Ron’s tenure as
CEO, including, in January of 2016,
vendor-agnostic approach, Yorktel
delivers communications strategies
that support usage models for on
premise or cloud, self-service or
managed service, and integrate
seamlessly with IT practices.
Yorktel goes beyond traditional UC&C
with Univago, a breakthrough video
collaboration platform as-a-service.
Introduced in 2015, Univago solves
interoperability and quality of service
(QoS) problems common to BYOD
(Bring Your Own Device) and remote
collaboration, and with legacy
equipment connections and upgrades.
Developed in response to the glaring
absence of an enterprise-grade, video
collaboration platform that offers more
than just a ‘bridge in the cloud,’
Univago supports a variety of
deployment architectures and
drastically reduces bandwidth
consumption and bottlenecking that
result from large-scale video usage
forced to use the Internet. In addition,
as a self-service, subscription-based
offering, Univago is flexible and
simple to adjust over time, allowing
customers to control costs and scale
with future growth, while eliminating
the need for capital expenditures in
hardware that will soon be obsolete.
Unique to Univago is Yorktel’s
Enterprise Gateway, which
eliminates interoperability issues that
often plague users trying to connect
between their Microsoft Lync/Skype
for Business deployments and existing
SIP or H.323 conference rooms and
infrastructure. The Enterprise Gateway
enables Univago to natively facilitate
communication between existing
conference rooms and the most widely
used telecommunications platforms,
““
Our strategy is simple:
offer services and
solutions portfolio that
aligns with the needs of
our customers. The
markets in which they
compete grow more
competitive each day, and
it's essential that they
have a trusted partner
which not only provides
technology, but also the
tactical expertise,
guidance and long-term
support they need to
remain agile, productive
and efcient
Industry Evolution
It has been a long time since the first IPbased PBX was launched. Still today, loads of organizations are challenged by different UCC technologies. This is the
reason; IT decision-makers have to plan for comprehensive UCC strategies, and to invest in them essentially. Bring your own device (BYOD) approach of the modern day organization and the exhausted budgets are compelling IT divisions to act. The recent advances in enterprise video technologies and services, and the over use of social media for business use are increasing the collaboration options to the employees at the same time, tension for organizations.Here is how large organizations are looking towards Unified Communications.
Services for Any Need
For an effective and efficient voice and Internet communications available on a single software platform Unified Communications is the most helpful. UC enables an array of services which can be added or removed as required, easily adapting to the needs of the institution and the requirements of a variable workload. Being a backbone to the Public Sector organizations, IT is helping the public to get in touch with their local representatives, and allowing collaboration between Public Sector staff. In lower running costs, simultaneously offering the option to use services on a Pay-As-You Go basis, UC is giving a chance to these
organizations to become modernize.
UC Contact Center for Managing Vast Amount of Calls With the help of modern VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), UC can create a local Contact Centre for public organizations at 80% lower costs than by running physical telephone networks. Using the available computer servers to create a virtual telephony network especially where calls are free to the user, this can be achieved. Having immense capacity, the system can manage thousands of calls at one go, allowing a higher rate of successful call resolutions and while affirming the loss of lost calls. One more striking benefit of UC is the single software platform that permits the user to see who is available at a glance from their displays, so employee can route calls to the most appropriate person instantly. UC will help the employees to deliver better customer service and add up to the morale of staff who will find it easier to successfully resolve enquiries.
Good Replacement for the Expensive New Infrastructure
UC services is having the ability to use the existing hardware and physical infrastructure of an organization to create an integrated, modern communications system. UC uses open software solutions to bring everything at one place. Variety of communication softwares like Email, text,
UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS
TO REVOLUTIONIZE THE
PUBLIC SECTOR
I
46 | June 2016 |
Industry Evolution
voice calls, video conferencing, Instant Messaging etc on a range of devices can be easily adapt to new technology and the changing needs of the organization, with the help of UC. The most important thing is there is no need to get rid of current equipment, because the only required thing is software installation.
Gives Flexibility to the Workplace Offering a range of services that can be changed to suit the organization’s needs, help organizations to be flexible to avoid a waste of money and resources, helping them to achieve cost savings without compromising on service. This is a way with which the
UC user-friendly software platform is accessible from any electronic device, enabling more flexible working patterns for Public Sector staff. Just with the help of a single contact number and email address, employee can access calls, documents and messages on the go, from the office, or working from home.
UC Offering Better Services to the Public
UC Contact Centre services make it easy for the members of the public to get in touch with those who manage local services, with a single contact number for departments or individual members of employees. The all-time
availability of these services makes the employees accessible all the time, let them be anywhere during the working day so queries can be addressed without delay. Additionally, the integrated IT platform enables members of the organization to see the available employee, to answer queries, so that calls can be answered at the same time, without any need of call back sometime later. With the availability of greater call capacity and fewer calls lost, UC offers a better, more efficient service to the public.
With these capabilities Unified Communications has the ability to revolutionize the public sector.
| June 2016 | 47
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