ICT solutions provider, Telkom Business Connexion and Cisco have partnered to introduce an end-to-end cloud hosted collaboration solutions (HCS) offering.
Telkom Business Connexion says HCS seeks to harness powerful communication and collaboration tools to provide customers with bespoke access to feature-rich solutions stored in the cloud, which will be conveniently provided by one solutions provider.
Cisco has designed and built the HCS cloud solution within the Telkom cloud network, while Telkom Business Connection is responsible for the customer pre-sale solution design, post-sale implementation and post-sale operational management. HCS is provided in conjunction with other Telkom services such as WAN, LAN, operations, and monitoring, says the company.
Isaac Mophatlane, CEO of Telkom Business Connexion, says Telkom Business Connexion and Cisco's HCS offering utilises the cloud to address the on-premises pain points many businesses face by introducing cutting-edge technology to aging infrastructure and facilitating remote and mobile work cultures to improve productivity.
"Rather than relying on an on-premises solution, businesses can utilise the cloud on a 'pay-per-user consumption model' and keep their operations on the cutting edge of new technology, giving them a competitive advantage as they seek to serve current and future customers.
"The flexibility of HCS provides benefits for employees and it supports "bring your own device," which improves morale by allowing employees to use their preferred devices and omni-channels that are important to them," explains Mophatlane.
This is a benefit for many businesses since employees are increasingly looking for flexibility from prospective employers, he adds.
"In the past, many businesses have used "on premises" solutions to manage communication, collaboration and storage, but these are less flexible and can be expensive to monitor, maintain and replace in order to adapt to the fast pace of digitalisation," notes Mophatlane,
Additionally, this allows businesses to collaborate easily to introduce new products and services at a rapid pace and establish new revenue streams without incurring huge upfront capital outlays, he continues.
Cathy Smith, general manager of Cisco SA, says HCS supports all of Cisco's collaborative office features and functionalities, such as WebEx, video and Web conferencing, instant messaging, voice and mobile using subscription-based, 'as-a-service' consumption.
"At Cisco, we believe that collaboration is more than a technical architecture, solution, or product. It enables our customers to engage as naturally as possible allowing them to do their best work.
"Through our HCS offering, in particular, Telkom will be able to build enriched customer experiences across SA," she points out.
According to Telkom Business Connexion,the solution targets large businesses and corporates, that is, businesses with more than 250 employees.
"HCS would suit companies who are looking to change their working practices i.e. who accommodate remote workers/home workers etc. The solution also caters for organisations that make use of advanced UC functionality such as instant messaging, mobility, video, and unified messaging.
"It is also suitable for companies who are security conscious, who want their own secure instance of a hosted capability and do not want to share," says the company.
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