Unified Communications as a service (UCaaS) brings greater flexibility and ease of use to business communication. It moves traditional on-premise communication systems to the cloud so that organizations can implement, manage, and upgrade them more efficiently. For instance, Gartner predicts that 75 percent of enterprises will stop using desk phones by 2024, up from just 30 percent in 2020. UCaaS is uniquely suited to WFH precisely due to its flexibility and low cost footprint.

UCaaS is a cloud-based communication system that combines voice, video, chat, and file sharing (along with other value-added services) on one platform that operates on a monthly subscription model.

UCaaS solutions can be modular, which means that enterprises pick and choose the service component and communication channels most relevant to them. They are also remotely managed, which reduces the need for in-house configurations and maintenance by the customer company. As a result, it is suitable for companies and work environments of every size, allowing SMBs to deploy a basic solution at low costs. At the same time, large enterprises can scale and adopt as many features as they need.

UCaaS is ideal for WFH setups for three reasons:

●       It is cloud-based and can be accessed from any location.
●       It is remotely managed and can be supported by IT without visiting employee homes.
●       It is modular so that different employees get access to different features, depending on their roles.

There are several ways organizations can maximize the benefits of UCaaS when providing employees with WFH facilities:

UCaaS vendors typically have data centers around the globe and can support users in any location while maintaining centralized visibility. This means that an employee two blocks from the HQ and another employee sitting on the opposite side of the globe will enjoy the same communication and collaboration services. Organizations should maximize this benefit by hiring outside of their local regions. UCaaS can support WFH setups in any part of the world, making it possible for employers to gain from a wilder talent pool.

Security is one of the top concerns when implementing a WFH setup. Employees can use UCaaS on a personal device, connect through public Wi-Fi, share passwords with family members, and so on. Organizations should protect UCaaS systems against these risks by implementing multi-factor authentication, secure endpoint access, and malware protection for employee devices. User awareness training should also be a top priority.

5G is now increasingly available in mature economies like the US and the UK. While the network infrastructure is still nascent, hundreds of cities and towns have 5G connectivity, which significantly improves the UCaaS experience. This is particularly useful for business leaders, team leaders, contact center managers, and other employees in decision-making roles. 5G-powered UCaaS helps them stay connected with multiple teams and stakeholders across the day so that they can orchestrate workflows with ease.

Organizations can provide WFH employees with bundled solutions like the Verizon + RingCentral UCaaS offering. It combines network services like 5G, mobile edge computing, and security with RingCentral’s office communications suite.

UCaaS is designed for interoperability, and organizations can integrate it with customer-facing systems like Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS). That way, employees can enjoy the same user experience when interacting with their co-workers or with customers. It also allows agents working from home to collaborate with their team members when resolving customer doubts instead of working alone. Several leading UCaaS vendors offer this capability, such as Vonage.

In addition to organizational measures, WFH employees can take steps to optimize their home office setup with UCaaS.

  • Invest in UCaaS-ready peripherals – Select speakerphones, headsets, and other peripherals designed for unified communications. These devices come with unique features, such as a button to launch the UCaaS platform with a single press
  • Avoid shadow IT – UCaaS solutions have nearly every feature one could require for WFH work. When searching for a specific feature, reach out to the IT administrator instead of installing a SaaS app. This will aid in security and user experience in the long term
  • Leverage presence systems to maintain work-life balance – UCaaS platforms have robust presence systems where you can indicate your availability, reasons for being busy, or any other information. Update your presence on time so that co-workers do not inadvertently infringe upon your work-life balance
  • Meet frequently – Use the UCaaS platforms to meet via video and not just connect telephonically. Face-to-face interactions (even virtually) help WFH employees feel less isolated, and they can also be useful for non-work discussions like end-of-week happy hours

While UCaaS is a vital enabler for WFH, users must also know about its role in hybrid work. Organizations are gradually shifting to a hybrid model, where employees retain the benefits of WFH but occasionally meet in person for engagement, client interactions, events, and other activities.

UCaaS can support WFH setups and physical meeting room systems simultaneously so that organizations can govern the entire environment from a centralized hub. This allows organizations to customize the setup for WFH environments and adapt to in-office use cases where needed.

 

 



from UC Today https://ift.tt/srFkINe