Last week, a leading IT services company for small and medium business, Space Age Technologies, switched off its PABX, replacing it with a state of the art unified communications system.
Unified communications (UC) - the integration of communications for optimisation of business processes - encompasses multiple communication methods, including voice, e-mail, voicemail, instant messaging, faxing and conferencing. The goal of UC is to facilitate the streamlining of business communications, increase productivity and, in some cases, lower costs.
Space Age Technologies' implementation is a fully Microsoft-based UC solution. All components from the Microsoft UC stable have been implemented: Office Communication Server, Exchange 2007, Edge Server, Mediation Server and Quality of Experience Server. This highly technical implementation relied heavily on the technical expertise of partner company, Wolhuter Associates - software developers, networking and communication solutions specialists.
Danie Gordon, Unified Communications & Collaboration Product Solution Manager at Microsoft, commented: "We are very excited about the deployment that Space Age Technologies has made on our unified communications platform. It not only showcases great technology and productivity tools, but also Space Age Technologies' commitment to innovation in the Western Cape."
With Microsoft having made it into international research group, Gartner's Magic Quadrant for unified communications and, more recently, for corporate telephony, Space Age Technologies' deployment is testament to their passion for embracing new technology for business benefit.
Gartner recently commented that there is a significant difference between the expectations of UC and its actual benefits. Unified communications should not be about saving money, but rather about improving productivity, collaboration and customer service instead.
Mark Geschke, Space Age Technologies MD and chief driver of the UC project, agrees: "Cost saving should not be a motivator, although there is a possibility that there will be a saving on internal calls - there are cheaper systems that provide this. UC enables our employees to collaborate seamlessly wherever they may be - in the office, on site, at home or on the road. In addition, features such as presence, instant messaging, quick and easy conference calls - the list goes on - will add value to our business, allowing us to differentiate our services and our value-add to our customers."
UC is dependent on a reliable and stable IT platform. This is Space Age Technologies' specific area of expertise. The company has proven its worth by reeling in various accolades over the past decade, one being the global Microsoft's Worldwide Network Infrastructure Solutions Partner of the Year for 2007. Its clearly defined niche is to provide and maintain standardised, stable IT platforms for their customers to seamlessly run their business applications.
"We believe that the incorporation of cutting edge technology will allow us to become even more agile and responsive to our customer's needs. While we have only been using UC for 14 days, the benefits are already tangible," commented Geschke.
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