The board has signed off the proposal and the supplier's
engineers are heading for the door, but how does a business make
sure its new unified communications system delivers?
Much of the advice that Computer Weekly has gleaned from
industry experts about introducing unified communications is plain
commonsense.
"Something as simple as voice mail delivers a lot of benefits,"
says Gene Reynolds, communications consultant at CC. "But if
employees are to use unified communications effectively, you need
to prepare in two ways. First, you need a rigid IT policy and
processes. Second, the business needs to assert those
policies."
Certainly, users with presence dashboards on their desks need to
get used to altering their status settings and arranging for calls
to be rerouted as they move from one channel or from one location
to another. There are other disciplines to be learned such as when
and how to use desktop video and collaboration software instead of
face-to-face meetings.
The IT department too has to make preparations. "The demands of
unified communications applications can be very taxing on
ill-prepared IT staff," warns Ian Cummins, vice-president of
consultancy Network Instruments. "Organisations may not be prepared
for the increased daily monitoring and management required to
maintain optimal performance."
Seasoned IT people recommend preparing a user guide for quick
reference and drawing up best practice guidelines so there is
consistent use of a system. Remote workers in particular need to be
shown how to transfer calls, initiate conferences and access user
directories.
"The introduction of a unified communications system may require
users to change the way they work," points out Dave Paulding of
Interactive Intelligence. "For example, traditional telephones
might be replaced in favour of soft phone screen-based client
applications."
However, many younger end-users are already very familiar with
unified communications facilities such as instant messaging,
presence and videoconferencing. A recent survey of IT managers by
Dimension Data found that nearly half agreed that integration was
achieved more quickly with unified communications than with other
IT projects because end-users were more comfortable with the
technology and so needed less training.
"You are always going to find a different and varied experience
when it comes to training," says Gary Bellfield, ICT manager of
Tayside Fire and Rescue Service, which covers Perth and Dundee in
Scotland. "Younger people are demanding instant messaging, but that
also means in our [organisation] there are champions who can help
others."
Even so, Tayside has given its 750 staff ample time to adapt to
the technology by adopting a phased deployment which began with
Microsoft's
Unified Messaging module 14 months ago, followed by
Office Communications Server 2007 last autumn, which the
organisation is part of the way through implementing. So far
Bellfield has concentrated on presence and instant messaging with
further voice and videoconferencing features to come in a second
stage.
Tayside has seen a 30% reduction in e-mail as employees switch
to instant messaging. The result is speedier working with less time
taken to clear administrative tasks, says Bellfield.
Although the fire and rescue service is separate from Tayside's
999 command and control system, senior officers at a fire can use
mobile devices to call for expert help. During a recent fire
involving batteries, fire fighters were able to contact a world
expert on the topic in Japan using the technology.
Ashford Council was one of the first public-sector users of
voice over IP (VoIP) back in 2003. Since then the council, whose
rapidly growing population is set to double over the next few
years, has added a raft of unified communications features to its
Mitel-based network. Facilities include voice recognition,
teleworking, instant messaging, fixed/mobile conversion and
presence.
Over the past five years, the key issue for Ashford has been
ensuring that its investment has an impact on how the organisation
operates. "The technology is all well and good, but you need to
have a team of people looking at how it can improve business
processes," says Rob Neil, Ashford's head of ICT and customer
services.
Neil has set up a group that discusses with department heads
ways the technology might improve their operations. Ashford has
already had some startling wins. Voice recognition in its customer
services contact centre allowed incoming callers to be routed
directly to the person they wanted to speak to, eliminating the
need for agents to reroute calls to colleagues.
"It sounds trivial but it is the fastest return on investment I
have ever seen," says Neil. "An investment of £18,000 paid for
itself in two-and-a-half weeks. You need to think of return on
investment in the round. You don't get a return from converting a
PBX to VoIP. You only get a return from value-added services like
contact management and presence."
For fleet management company Venson Automotive, £130,000 spent
on
Cisco's
Unified Personal Communicator last year represented its biggest
IT investment for some time. The technology went in as Venson moved
to a new headquarters building and was prompted in part by a desire
for more effective call management.
Venson handles a high volume of enquiries from clients. "A lot
of businesses like ours have used Outlook, so with just an
additional toolbar end-users picked up it up very quickly," says
Anthony Richman, Venson's finance director. "The real benefit was
behind the scenes. Before, it was difficult to set up call groups
now it is much easier to change call routings and bring on new
end-users."
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