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Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Unified Communications (UC): together or separate at your company?
VoIP is often seen as "the" path toward UC, but UC is possible without VoIP. So is VoIP worth pursuing for its own benefits, whether or not UC is a goal? Or is UC the goal, with or without VoIP?
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6 Answers
Certainly Voice is still the primary communication method for human beings, so any UC Solution must contain a "fully integrated" voice platform. That said, VoIP is not a requirement. Since VoIP is much easier to integrate into other business applications, it makes sense to consider VoIP as a part of the solution. One should also insist on Voice response & Voice-to-text integration to enhance the access to the man-machine interface. In most VoIP systems this is not a difficult process to integrate. In TDM systems this is quite expensive to integrate.
To comment on Duane's post above, I believe the cost to maintain the TDM voice network, side-by-side with the IP network would be higher then building in IP Network redundancy and network diversity. The TDM switch also presents an additional point of entry for change management, increasing the management time, thus the cost as well. Being a hospital, consider building a robust IP infrastructure and a fully redundant VoIP server to keep the network at 5-9's. If the PSTN network is the concern, split the network (external bandwidth requirement) between two providers and have them enter the building from disparate entry points, providing network diversity and 7-9's reliability to the PSTN. If possible, choose PSTN vendors that have MEN configured in SONET Rings, as these are "self-healing". SIP Trunking should be deployed in this scenario as well. The cost savings from SIP Trunking vs TDM (PRI's or T-1's) will easily pay for the deployment of the UC system, the redundant servers/network and any small cost for the diversity.
VoIP creates a much more viable foundation for UC to build upon, but they are by no means married. From what I see with clients, most VoIP projects are implemented for cost savings (digital trunks, ease of MAC, support costs) while UC is is implemented for productivity/efficiency reasons.
TDM systems can integrate with UC but the customization can be costly and confusing. If one link in the UC chain changes, major re-programming must be done. Using a standards-based VoIP system as the foundation is the best path to UC, but not the only one.
I think your question sets up an either/or response. For SMBs that are particularly cost conscious, VoIP will likely be as far they go with new technologies. In these cases, cost trumps technology, and VoIP will seen and used as a cheaper form of telephony. Even if UC features were tacked on for free, I suspect the takeup will be limited - it's just not that important for their day-to-day needs.
In larger companies, telephony savings are not as big an issue, and there is simply a greater need for integrated communications. Not to mention that these scenarios will likely have a more advanced network in place to support UC-type features. These companies will also be more open to thinking about VoIP strategically and how it can add value to other things like UC.
As a Technical manager in a hospital environment this questions bothers me. From a finacial standpoint you combine them. From the risk point, if the network is down the downtime process has been the legacy phones and paper. That is why with the Legacy switch in place and upto date only IP Telephony was only used for remote sites and wireless phones. With a large enough budget for full redundancy I might get more comfortable.
I like the way Bill put it, "VoIP creates a much more viable foundation for UC to build upon." UC and VoIP need not be dependent on one-another. However, integrating UC components such as voice response and text to voice is difficult with a TDM system. The progressive step, then, is to use a dependable VoIP system and integrate other UC components.
For companies who don't have the budget to spend on redundant systems, consider using a provider with redundancy and a good report card of dependability like OnSIP.
It's not imperative to implement a VoIP solution to achieve UC, but the way communications are moving in today's day and age, VoIP should be a priority to implement for most businesses. Our organizations specializes in implementing the most cost effective VoIP/telcom solutions in businesses including full redundancy often with multi-carrier relationships. I would recommend not to be discouraged by the complexity of the solution in regards to cost, for there are many sound VoIP solutions that can be implemented without breaking the bank.
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