Interview with UC expert suggests steps to maximize return on tech investments

A recent study of small and medium sized enterprise officials from eight different countries found that, based on the data collected, companies that have fully transitioned to an IP-based communications infrastructure can save 43 percent annually when compared to companies using traditional business phone systems.

In order to better understand the issues surrounding these results, Carl Weinschenk – tech blogger for IT Business Edge – spoke with unified communications expert Jan Hickisch, who helped undertake the study's design.

Because of the consolidation afforded through a unified communications platform that integrates a number of different applications into one platform, the hardware needed to maintain daily operations is mitigated. In fact, Hickisch provides an example of the German Council for Labor, which has more than 150,000 users on its network.

While this kind of activity could quickly drain an enterprise's resources, Hickisch mentions that by switching to IP-based solutions, the company was able to save 25 megawatts of energy each year, generating the kind of savings highlighted in the study.

One of the items stressed most heavily by Hickisch was the necessity to follow through fully with the transition from a dated communications system. Simply starting a shift to a unified platform is not enough, and business officials must consequently lay out a specific plan of action on how to finish the project in order to realize the full savings that are available.

In order to ensure that this task is undertaken properly, it would be wise for business officials in Ohio to partner with a Cincinatti IT consulting firm that can provide the resources and staff assistance help reduce the unpleasantries associated with changing a technological infrastructure.

From our offices in Dayton, Columbus, Cincinnati and Cleveland, PRO OnCall is your single-source technology consulting service, offering managed IT support, unified communications solutions and on-call IT support.