Unified Communications

Hello! My name is Rose and I’m currently a student at American Public University working towards a degree in Information Technology Management. I’m also currently employed at Sprint as a Supervisor in Legal Compliance. As part of one of my classes I had to write a research paper on a subject relating to the class. I choose Unified Communications since it is something that I currently use every day to perform many tasks and I believe it to truly be a great time saver.

Unified communications are becoming more prevalent in most workplaces today because they offer many benefits that are hard to ignore. Even though it can be complex to learn, it can help companies work more efficiently through the integration of voice and data on one platform and ability to transfer seamlessly between working on a computer to a mobile device. Understanding what unified communications is, what features it has, and how secure it is can help companies put into production a system that can help increase productivity and make employees more efficient. Knowing all the functions of the tool can make the platform more useful to those that are currently using it and more enticing to use for those that aren’t currently.

Currently, there are many options available to choose from when picking a unified communication solution. So, doing some homework will be required to make sure that the right system is chosen. Some of these options are available from vendors such as Microsoft, Cisco Systems, Unify Inc., ShoreTel, Avaya, Polycom, and Alcatel-Lucent. Each of these offers their own interface that will provide the user with a seamless experience when communicating with other individuals. The features that each vendor offers is key to deciding which system right for your company. Unified communication systems allow for users to interact virtually from anywhere around the world. Some of the most popular features unified communication systems provide are a presence, unified messaging, integrated audio/web conferencing, one number reach, instant messaging, click to dial features, corporate phone books, disaster recovery, screen pops, and extension dialing over all locations (Compare Business Products, 2010).

According to Arnold (2015), the majority of the workforce already uses some communication systems in a standalone fashion which is very inefficient and duplicates effort. Having to change between systems based on the type of communication can be time-consuming. Unified communication systems address this issue by integrating the different communication systems that an individual uses each day into one common environment. This makes the experience the same each day and for each user regardless of what operating system or network they are using to access the system. Unified communication systems are built to allow the freedom of location for the user. This allows the user to be just as proficient and productive whether they are in the office, at home, or in a coffee shop.

In conclusion, unified communication systems are different communication applications that are grouped together in one or few systems where they allow a user to seamlessly achieve functions they normally would do using many systems or applications. They offer many features to help increase the production and efficiency of employees be reducing duplication of work, shortening steps to achieve calls, achieving smarter and more convenient ways to hold meetings, and making it possible to see colleagues status and location. When it comes to security, research to determine if the unified communication system encrypts the data. There are so many options to choose from when determining the best unified communication system.

References

Arnold, J. (2015). Four ways unified communications benefits productivity. Retrieved February 12, 2017, from http://searchunifiedcommunications.techtarget.com/feature/Four-ways-unified-communications-benefits-productivity

Compare Business Products. (2010). 10 Must Have Unified Communications Features. Retrieved March 12, 2017, from http://www.comparebusinessproducts.com/briefs/10-must-have-unified-communications-features