A spot check on your existing telecoms strategy and current infrastructure will focus you on what you have now, and lead you onto what you need to do next. Design a simple scale (for example poor, average, good and excellent) and use it mark the three areas of licence compliance, safety and security - score each element. Then look at how your infrastructure supports your telecoms strategy and score it too, followed by a list of the benefits you currently get from your telecoms (refer to the list of telephony applications later on) and score each one - use a scoring scale of very useful, quite useful or not useful. Finally, check each benefit against your business goals. Your simple scoring system will help you see if your current strategy and infrastructure is o fit for purpose, o aligned to your business goals o delivering results Any scores below excellent or very useful are areas for review and improvement. Once you have completed your spot check, take a moment to consider your organisation's business-telephony profile. Can you define it? Your organisation may have several telephone profiles, and each telephone profile may need different technology features. Telecoms strategies depend on how intensively the telephone is used and you need to have defined your profiles to position your telecoms strategy supportively. Understanding your current setup and your use of technology today you can then decide which communications tools you need to support your business profile. Do not be limited by your current configuration - your business requirements should be fulfilled, not defined by the products you use. The summary information gleaned from this exercise highlights potential operating cost reductions or improved services to your customer, possibly without substantially changing your infrastructure, hardware or software. Opportunities for innovation and improvement are now easier to identify and pursue. What do others have It is tempting to think of voice messaging systems and processes as the major feature of telephony. World class organisations look beyond the obvious and consider how telephony serves their business. Consider these four problems o People move around and maintaining contact is difficult o Offices are fixed in one place, and have size limits o Investment in existing technology limits your ability to change o Workforce depend on voice mail A holistic view of these problems will show how telephony can be part of the solution. Single contact numbers and unified messaging for people who move around; use of hot desking to make better use of limited office space with single number and VoIP technology; enhanced applications delivered over your existing technology investment, and voicemail telephony alternatives explained to your workforce along with instructions on how to use them and why. Running hybrid solutions consisting of IP telephony networks and PBX together is common practice as it makes economic sense. You can introduce advantages and benefits to support your business goals gradually, without writing off your existing investment in infrastructure. Look at how your competitors (or your vertical market) address areas of cost, complexity and risk. Learn from them, consider copying them (or avoiding their mistakes) and be alert to ideas to complement your strategy.
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