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Hosted IP telephony: The foundation of your company's future

A hosted IP telephony solution will give all the expected office phone system call features, delivered via the provider's Internet infrastructure, says Richard Vester, Director of Cloud Services at EOH.


Johannesburg, 24 May 2016

Many organisations need to update or replace their legacy phone systems at some point. However, the way to do this isn't the same for each business. Some will be able to adapt their current networks with tools such as SIP phone service, but others could have infrastructure that are way overdue for retirement.

Instead of opting to install a brand new on-premises solution, many companies are choosing a hosted IP telephony solution in the cloud. Not only does this makes their telephony needs easier to manage, cheaper and more effective, it provides a base from which their communications can evolve to keep pace with the changing face of business.

"A hosted IP telephony solution will give organisations all the expected office phone system call features and quality, delivered via the provider's Internet infrastructure," says Richard Vester, Director of Cloud Services at EOH. "But more importantly, it's the basis of any future communications network the company will need to continue growing, and is the core of Unified Communications (UC)."

As more companies are harnessing the power of cloud and mobility, the latest communication and collaboration techniques and technologies are increasingly essential to their workforces. "Today, it is becoming the norm, particularly among millennials to work remotely, at least part of the time. Today's workplace is vastly different, with a greater focus on soft skills and a stronger emphasis on the balance between our business and personal lives," Vester says.

Modern professionals are harnessing the full power of cloud and mobility, and are increasing productivity at the same time. "They rely on their places of employment to support them, and having a hosted IP telephony solution enables them to do exactly that. It benefits both staff and the business leaders. Moreover, businesses with expansion plans, who wish to open offices in new locations and expand across the globe, no longer need to wire a whole new location. All that is needed is for employees to download an app onto their devices, and they are connected with both the new location and the company headquarters."

Vester adds that there are several other benefits of going the hosted IP telephony route. "Firstly, your technical staff can focus on their core responsibilities. They already have a massive workload and amount of responsibility in the organisation. Too much of their time can be consumed making sure that networks are operating efficiently, and while this is an essential function, it does hamper innovation within the IT department."

He says that having a hosted IP telephony solution is ideal as it allows all the infrastructure to be maintained off-site by a dedicated group of experts, freeing up in-house technical staff to rather focus on ways it can be leveraged to benefit the business. "Seeing as no two businesses are the same, and no one understand a businesses' specific needs better than their technical staff, taking away the need for them to physically manage the enterprise technology can only boost productivity."

A good hosted IP telephony offering removes all management requirements, and will come as a complete and competitively priced solution, giving businesses a scalable, and feature-rich alternative to regular telephony services, while removing the need for expensive equipment.

Lowered cost is another major benefit to hosted IP telephony. "A lot of cash is thrown at managing enterprise networks. As with any infrastructure, elements can break and need to be fixed or replaced. In addition, new iterations of hardware need to be bought to ensure that the availability and quality of business communication systems stays constant. As you can imagine, this is even more the case when an entire system needs to be replaced."

Hosted IP telephony providers have already built these costs into their operational procedures, and can therefore pass savings down to their clients, who can redirect their cash to more business-critical needs, he says.

"To get the most out of the technology, offsite, top-of-the-range technologies are a far better option than replacing ageing legacy equipment. Hosted IP telephony is the perfect solution for customers who not only are doing business locally, but working with overseas companies too. Think about reducing costs, while having access to the latest and best hardware on the market, a wide range of features, and the flexibility and scalability to adapt to the businesses changing needs and demands."

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EOH

Listed company EOH is the largest enterprise applications provider in South Africa and one of the top three IT service providers. EOH follows the consulting, technology and outsourcing model to provide high value, end-to-end solutions to its clients in all industry verticals. EOH Cloud Services, a division of EOH, puts customers in control of their cloud experience at any point in their cloud journey.

For more information visit: www.eohcloud.co.za

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