subject: Features of a Robust, Business Phone System [print this page] Features of a Robust, Business Phone System
To the credit of most organizations, management has climbed aboard the technology freight train and have been using email, IM (instant messaging), smartphones and videoconferencing solutions for years. However, what is still eluding many organizations is the integration of IP-based systems that, from a communications perspective, provide a way to bring everything together and improve collaboration among co-workers, partners, vendors, and customers.
Enter unified communications. UC incorporates real-time services including IP telephony, conferencing, softphones, and presence into a company's workflow. It is an investment that can yield significant cost savings and efficiencies from a business process perspective.
As a business owner considering various options for your business phone system you likely place a high level of importance on call control and convenience.
A robust business telephone system can provide you with both, with features that include:
Capability to easily view a list of outgoing and incoming calls and hit redial to return calls you may have missed.
Video calling that puts co-workers face to face with a click of a mouse, even if there are many miles between them.
Audio and video recording to your local PC that lets you review what was discussed during a meeting.
Phone book for uploading Microsoft Outlook contacts.
Configuration tools that allow for personalization of your phone's features with ringtones, pictures, and an enhanced phone book.
A business phone system may also include instant messaging, collaboration, and presence awareness functions. Some systems even give users the ability to turn an IM exchange into a video conference or whiteboarding session without interruption.
Instant messaging allows for real-time communication between colleagues at a distance.
Whiteboarding lets coworkers collaborate and brainstorm with one another right from their desktops.
File transfer gives participants in a chat session the ability to exchange files from within the chat window.
Presence awareness enables workers to quickly detect a colleague's availability for a time-sensitive discussion.
With the big-business collaboration capabilities offered by business phone systems, employees can now become more efficient inside and outside the office. They will have the tools to collaborate up close and personal regardless of how much distance there is between them and other business associates, fostering faster decision making, better service, and business growth.
