MICROSOFT TEAMS MARKET GUIDE - 2022 Essential Insights for - UC Today
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MICROSOFT TEAMS
MARKET GUIDE
2022
Essential Insights for
Tech Professionals
HEADLINE SPONSOR
FOREWORD
Teams is Not Slowing Down
Microsoft Teams continues to grow at This is where the wider Teams and The Future of Teams
a relentless pace, with monthly active Microsoft ecosystem comes into
users most recently reported as hitting play. More and more vendors are Microsoft may have taken a strong
a huge 270 million. This is for a platform building integrations into Microsoft positioning in the market, but that Tom Wright
that launched just five years ago. Teams, making it the hub for many doesn’t mean it is showing signs of Senior Editor | UC Today
organisations. Meanwhile, Microsoft slowing down. The likes of Viva and
tom.wright@todaydigital.com
For many businesses, the first phase itself continues to build out the Loop will only enhance the Teams
of Teams will have seen them use platform’s scope and ease of use. experience, while we’re only
its messaging and video capabilities Operator Connect is still in its infancy going to see more innovation in
predominately - particularly at the but will make it simpler than ever to extended reality through solutions
start of the pandemic when they were plug existing voice services into the such as Mesh.
forced to work remotely and already Teams platform.
had the platform as part of their We’re also likely to see more of
Microsoft subscription. Alongside software is the booming Microsoft in the contact centre – Rob Scott | Publisher
market for Teams-compatible be that through more third-party rob.scott@todaydigital.com
We’re now in a different phase, hardware. Businesses have a vendors obtaining certification with
where businesses aren’t making snap newfound appreciation for their Microsoft; Microsoft itself building
decisions to stay operational but are meeting spaces and know they more CX-focused features into Teams; Chris Porter | Commercial Director
thinking more about their long-term need to invest in making them fit for or Dynamics 365 Customer Service chris.porter@todaydigital.com
communication and collaboration purpose in the age of hybrid work. continuing to expand.
strategies. This coincides with the This has led to a boom in innovation David Dungay | Editor in Chief
emergence of hybrid work when a lot among the world’s leading hardware Wherever Microsoft chooses to focus david.dungay@todaydigital.com
of people are less likely to be sitting at vendors, creating an ecosystem of UC in the digital workspace, we can be
a home desk all week and more likely players all working to make the Teams sure that there is a lot more to come.
News Desk
to be working on the move or in experience better for the end-user.
the office. newsdesk@uctoday.com
Thank you to all of our Sponsors,
Advertisers and Contributors.
2
MICROSOFT TEAMS THANK YOU
HEADLINE SPONSOR to all of our Sponsors,
Advertisers and Contributors
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Microsoft Teams
This flexible and extensible ecosystem for Microsoft Teams, ideal for
of tools is growing more powerful with future collaborative sessions in XR
Sponsored by the regular introduction of new and environments. At the end of 2021,
improved features. Just some of the Microsoft also introduced Mesh for
trends driving the growth of Microsoft Microsoft Teams to help companies
Teams today include: build their own metaverse experiences.
Boasting a monthly active user count of 270 million, Microsoft
• A customisable ecosystem: Microsoft Teams: Looking Ahead
Teams has quickly emerged as one of the most valuable
One of the reasons Microsoft Teams is
collaboration tools. so powerful is that it allows companies As we move into a new age of work,
to connect the Teams ecosystem to defined by things like the Metaverse,
More than just a convenient video conferencing and messaging system, Microsoft their existing tools. The solution comes artificial intelligence, and extended
Teams represents a comprehensive ecosystem of powerful tools for enabling with a robust app market and access reality, Microsoft Teams will continue
hybrid work. to the Power Platform environment, to introduce us to new cutting-edge
where users can access low-code collaboration methods.
In the last couple of years, Microsoft has begun to transition Teams from a simple and no-code solutions for adding
replacement technology for Skype for Business into an entirely new concept. their automations and integrations Microsoft has always been committed
According to Satya Nadella, Microsoft Teams will soon become a solution as big as into Teams. This customisable to delivering the most exciting tools for
the operating system or the internet. approach makes Microsoft Teams collaboration and communication to
one of the more flexible tools on business users. We’re likely to see more
The Trends Driving Microsoft Teams in 2022 the market. investment into even more
immersive experiences.
Microsoft Teams is one of the fastest-growing products ever created by Microsoft. • Operator Connect and
The solution is powerful because it adapts so quickly to the needs of a changing Direct Routing:
workplace. During the pandemic and throughout the shift to the post-pandemic Direct routing is one of the many
landscape, Teams has become one of the leading companies paving the way to the ways Microsoft ensures companies
future of hybrid work. can build their ideal communication
strategy within Teams. The company
started to build on this solution with NEWS
the introduction of Operator Connect,
an easier way to connect voice to
Teams through approved providers. REVIEWS
• The Metaverse:
Microsoft is just one of the many DIRECTORY
companies investing in the future of a
more “connected” digital world with
the Metaverse. Already, Microsoft
has begun introducing 3D avatars
6
Microsoft Teams - The
Secret Key to Productivity
in the Hybrid Workplace
For IT teams in particular, the pace of change in the
workplace since 2020 has been nothing short of dizzying.
With each work-from-home employee essentially
functioning as an individual branch office, new
collaboration platforms are coexisting with legacy PBXs.
Here are 3 top tips to develop a winning Microsoft Teams 2. Make Microsoft Teams Your Complete colleagues. Many managers are also
strategy for 2022 and beyond. Voice Communications Platform creating similar meeting spaces in their own
Microsoft Teams is the ideal platform for private office rooms. Device strategy plays a
1. Microsoft Teams Fits the Hybrid Workplace Like a Glove all your voice and video communications big part here, and AudioCodes can provide
It’s safe to say that the past couple of years have changed needs, and it’s easier to get started than business phones and meeting room
the nature of work forever. Working from home is now you may think. You don’t need to throw solutions for every Microsoft Teams scenario.
standard practice for many knowledge workers, contact out your existing PBXs and you’re not
centre agents and customer service functions, while for obliged to use Microsoft Calling Plans. In 3. Boost Productivity with Microsoft Teams
others, working in the office remains essential. The real fact, for most organisations, especially the Easy Way
challenge for today’s IT managers is to develop successful those with multiple sites and legacy In times of rapid change, hard-pressed
hybrid workplace strategies to secure business continuity, requirements such as analog devices, the IT managers may not have the expertise
while ensuring that employees remain productive wherever best approach is a migration strategy that or the budget to plan, build and manage
they’re located. Any such strategy has to be cost-effective, seamlessly integrates Microsoft Teams with the infrastructure for a successful
secure and agile. Microsoft Teams ticks all these boxes – and their existing setup and service provider. Microsoft Teams deployment. Adopting
then some.
Andy Elliot AudioCodes has a proven track record in a subscription-based managed service is
helping organisations successfully migrate a great solution since it frees them up to
VP Global Marketing
to Microsoft Teams. focus on other, more important, priorities.
AudioCodes
To really hit the productivity heights, AudioCodes Live for Microsoft Teams is
you also need to make the right device an innovative portfolio of managed services
choices. Try thinking in terms of user for simplifying the migration to Microsoft
personas to match the right device to each Teams voice calling, offering Direct Routing
employee. For example, some users might as a Service, user management and even
audiocodes.com find a headset to be ideal, while others on-site integration with legacy equipment.
might work better with a more familiar You can also add AudioCodes business
deskphone with handsfree audio and one phones, meeting room devices, compliance
GET IN TOUCH touch access to collaboration calls. One size recording, conversational IVR and meeting
never fits all. productivity solutions to your monthly
subscription too.
Meetings in the hybrid workplace are also
different, with smaller groups in huddle
rooms engaged in video calls with remote
8
Hybrid Work as the
Way of the Future
If the past few years have showed us anything, it’s that
a business needs to be prepared for anything, and
that migrating their organization to a Cloud telephony
network is the way of the new hybrid work future.
With employees leaving their jobs to find other remote
work solutions, and giant tech companies moving
toward a hybrid work from home environment,
organizations are starting to realize that to survive, they
need to empower their employees with a work from
home or hybrid solution that is secure, reliable, and
to a cloud ecosystem is on its own difficult iPILOT – An All-encompassing
flexible so that their business can stay strong, protected,
but add on top of that the management Communications Solution in a
and resilient. Organizations are realizing the value of
of a cloud ecosystem and overwhelming single Dashboard
empowering their employees with strong tools that can
security threats that come afterwards.
help them grow their team in dynamic ways which can
Not to mention the loss of visibility control This is where iPILOT by NUWAVE comes
also affect company growth and allow them not just to
over your network, as migrating to a cloud in. Whether you need to manage Zoom or
survive but thrive in an everchanging
environment usually depends on the carrier Microsoft Teams, or migrate from DR to OC
work environment.
or 3rd party for any sort of management in Microsoft Teams, iPILOT provides a single
changes. This all results in a lot of resources platform where you can manage your entire
Challenges in the Telecomm Market
and capital most organizations cannot Cloud Voice ecosystem.
spend or need to wait until their next fiscal
Mark Bunnell Organizations are struggling to find a work from office/
year to spend. iPILOT – a single pane of glass platform
Chief Operations Officer work from home balance, and are looking for solutions,
to manage migration needs. Full lifecycle
whether that is through Zoom or Microsoft Teams.
Nuwave There is a lot of confusion in the market, support across the entire estate for
This comes with its own issues though, as migration
with organizations struggling to balance communications, i.e. Deploy/Manage/
one solution over another and in some Support via Tenant management, voice
cases, attempting to manage multiple management or on-demand capacity with
systems on a location-based ecosystem. In MACD support for the entire stack.
other words, an organization may split their
Team up, with employees in Dallas choosing With easy user provisioning, change
nuwave.com Zoom, while employees in their New York adoption, hardware/headset purchases
campus preferring Microsoft Teams. inside the platform with global
availability and stock, bring your own
GET IN TOUCH This results in a lot of work for this carrier integrations, call recordings, and
organization’s IT Team and puts a lot of survivability/call-forwarding features, iPILOT
stress on working with third parties to get is truly becoming an all-in-one, on demand
organized in 2022. solution for anything Cloud UC.
10
Microsoft Teams Cloud Microsoft is constantly updating its vast
list of partners, with new capabilities
see a rise in vendors offering both
UCaaS and CCaaS services within the
which allow vendors to assist their Microsoft Teams ecosystem.
Voice & Direct Routing customers in a more seamless
transition to the cloud. Some of the Cloud Voice and Direct Routing
trends impacting the Microsoft Teams Tomorrow: Looking Ahead
approach to cloud voice include:
Sponsored by Microsoft’s decision to keep its
• Increased SBC opportunities: environment as flexible and open as
As companies continue to worry about possible for other partners and vendors
Responsible for helping to transform Microsoft Teams from the security of their communications means today’s communication providers
in a hybrid environment, Microsoft’s have a wide range of ways to join forces
a collaborative tool to a full UCaaS solution, cloud voice and
number of SBC vendors for direct with a market-leading technology
direct routing are crucial to many Teams investments. routing is growing. SBC solution provider. As companies continue to
providers are beginning to make the transition into the cloud,
Microsoft has always taken a flexible approach to its voice strategy with the Teams
partner with Microsoft to provide maintaining the use of an easy-to-use
collaboration tool package.
their security solutions as a “SaaS” ecosystem like the Microsoft tech stack
offering, streamlining migration will help to keep migration issues to
Teams users can access everything from built-in business phone services offered
pathways between Teams’ calling and a minimum.
by Microsoft to a Microsoft Teams voice SKU, available in 33 markets. The most
collaboration components.
popular solution for voice in Microsoft Teams, of course, continues to be direct
We’re sure to see more brands taking
routing. Direct routing technology ensures companies can build the ultimate
• Operator Connect: advantage of the flexibility of the
Microsoft Teams investment, using the business calling capabilities of their existing
Operator Connect was officially direct routing and cloud voice features
phone system vendor.
introduced in 2021 as an alternative to available from Microsoft.
the direct routing option for business
The Trends Driving Cloud Voice and Direct Routing in 2022
leaders. This solution enables
customers to directly configure
Direct Routing and Operator Connect provide companies with a multitude of
services from various providers like
ways to get involved with the Microsoft Teams ecosystem as a partner provider. As
T-Mobile, BT, and Verizon. The platform
Microsoft Teams emerges as one of the most popular UCaaS tools for the age of
allows companies to use a PTSN via
hybrid work and post-pandemic communications, many communication leaders
a managed service model, rather than
are taking advantage of these functionalities.
handling things manually with direct NEWS
routing. Demand for this service is
likely to increase in the years ahead.
REVIEWS
• Full Communication systems
via Teams:
With a wide range of solutions for DIRECTORY
business voice via direct routing and
operator connect, companies can also
begin to offer more comprehensive
cloud environments for end-to-end
communications. This could mean we
12
Your Contact Center Is
Wasting Time And Money
- Here’s How To Stop It
I’m sure your business has had it’s share of challenges in the
past years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic organizations were
urged to take some short cuts in their digital transformation.
Especially in customer touch points. Working from home
is here to stay, according to several recent studies. So, how
do you handle the ever increasing number of dialogues in
this new era? Adding more agents to the workforce is not
sustainable. It will kill productivity and eventually your
entire business.
supply chain and logistics to eliminate any Add Intelligence And Maximize
waste and maximize profit. But what if the Digital Dexterity
We Need A Shift Of Paradigm
perishable product is Time itself? How do you
optimally manage time, when thinking of it Our enterprise-wide vision on customer
Maintaining or even enhancing productivity is a key objective
as both your most valuable and your least dialogues goes way beyond the contact
for many enterprises. But throwing more bodies at the
renewable asset? center. In fact, we have proven in many global
problem will only increase your amount of responsibility
customers that the way forward for enterprise
and budget requirements. It will not enhance the
We need to make every minute count for communication is not growing the contact
customer experience, nor will it boost profitability. Business
customers as well as for the business. Managing center. It is not even about bringing random AI
communications in enterprises need a dramatic shift of
your dialogues as a warehouse of precious solutions to the front office. The way forward
paradigm. Increasing the number of contact center seats will
time is about technology that enables human is about taking contact center capabilities to
not solve our capacity problems in the long run.
agents, AI bots and the Internet of Things to the entire organization and adding intelligence
help the customer together. This will increase to your communications. A native Microsoft
We need to embrace the principle of reducing unnecessary
Hans Kramer employee productivity and satisfaction. And Teams Contact Center can do that.
steps and treat communications just as precisely as supply
Chief Marketing Officer also drive exceptional service experiences,
chain processes. Think about a business dealing in perishable
Anywhere365 customer loyalty and profitability. The right technology does not just automate
products. It requires the utmost care in streamlining the
simple actions, but will also influence the
Get Back Time In Your Dialogues digital dexterity of people. Making a huge
impact on your warehouse of time requires an
How would you like to get back time in your intuitive communications and collaboration
enterprise dialogues? Close your eyes for a environment, like Microsoft Teams. But
moment. Can you even imagine what that integrations with CRM and other data systems
anywhere365.io would look like? I am not just talking about are just as essential. The breech block is full
saving time, or expanding your customer funnel tracking and reporting on all dialogues.
service team. I am talking about really creating Because customer experiences don’t always
GET IN TOUCH more breathing space for your existing begin or end in the contact center.
workforce by adding productivity to your
warehouse of time. This will enhance the
accuracy and speed of service for customers,
tackle issues in capacity planning and create
unparalleled service experiences.
14
Embracing Hybrid Life with
Jabra Solutions Certified for
Microsoft Teams
We’re at a pivotal moment of change, with the shift to
hybrid work likely to be the biggest permanent shift in
work culture for a generation. In Jabra’s 2021 Hybrid Ways
of Working Global Report, Jabra addresses this change,
enabling the current and future workforce with headsets
certified for Microsoft Teams to help everyone hear, and be
heard, no matter where work takes them.
As humans we all thrive on close connections, and Jabra
And when you’re in meetings, professional 3 reasons to choose a certified, professional
has developed cutting-edge solutions to help people
certified devices can help you minimize device:
communicate and collaborate more effectively – to keep
virtual meeting fatigue. Recent research
those human connections as close as possible.
shows that meeting fatigue is a real and 1. Technical standards. Each certified device
ongoing issue for people. The less time meets an exacting professional-grade
Jabra devices are enhanced with official Microsoft Teams
spent on setup or troubleshooting, the standard, with integration to the Microsoft
certification for smooth deployment and quick and easy
more time you’ll have to concentrate on Teams platform baked into its DNA.
adoption. By including professional, certified Jabra devices
what’s important to you, allowing you to stay
as part of a Microsoft Teams deployment, the overall
engaged and involved. 2. Performance. All Microsoft-certified Jabra
user experience is enhanced, leading users to adopt the
devices bear the Microsoft Teams badge,
Microsoft Teams platform easily.
Jabra devices have an integrated Teams to show Microsoft’s stamp of approval that
button which launches the Microsoft Teams Jabra has met the specific performance
Microsoft Teams-certified solutions means teams can
app with a simple tap of the button, allowing criteria, and to give you full confidence in
work effectively wherever they choose. From home offices
Holger Reisinger and hot desks to meeting rooms and on the frontline –
you to easily review voicemails, return missed your investment.
SVP calls and jump straight into meetings – even if
wherever work takes you, and however you choose to work,
they’ve already started. It’s really maximizing 3. Support. Unlike non-certified devices, if
Jabra Jabra offers a Microsoft Teams-certified device to fit
efficiency with minimum effort. you experience any issues or need any extra
your needs.
help, you can rely on the combined customer
Jabra devices also meet Microsoft’s open support of both Jabra and Microsoft to
office requirements which require the highest resolve any issues.
standard of microphone quality, giving the
ultimate reassurance of headset performance Jabra is a world-leading audio and video
jabra.com in any open office environment. brand creating intelligent headsets and
communication tools to help professionals
What’s more, Jabra professional solutions give work productively. The work from anywhere
GET IN TOUCH you access to the latest firmware updates mentality has been a fundamental part of
and improvements, including those related Jabra’s corporate culture for years, making
to inter-operability, so those using Microsoft us well-placed to support hybrid working
Teams certified devices can benefit from an challenges now and in the future.
even better experience over time.
16
Taking Microsoft Teams
from Good to Great
It’s hard to overstate the meteoric rise of Microsoft Teams in
the last two years.
In a recent research commissioned by 8x8, 92% of UK public
sector organisations were found to be using Teams as a way
of boosting productivity and collaboration.1 As even casual
observers will be aware, Teams is also the number one app of
its kind among private sector organisations.
While the pandemic played a central role in accelerating
the adoption of Microsoft Teams, the product itself clearly
provides what organisations need to fast track their digital
Completing the jigsaw: embedded voice centre applications, including IVR, inbound
transformation journey, facilitate flexible working and improve
calling for Teams and outbound contact centre, workforce
the experience of customers and employees.
Because of this, more and more companies optimisation, call screen synchronisation
are using 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams to and comprehensive analytics. 8x8 Voice for
That said, few organisations are truly accessing
supercharge their Teams experience. How does Microsoft Teams also offers native integrations
Teams’ potential
it work? By enabling them to make and receive with 35 major business apps, including
The same research also points out that Teams is still
global external voice calls through their familiar leading CRM software, thus enabling deeper
overwhelmingly used for internal collaboration only, with a
Teams interface. synchronisation, the logging of call information
firm emphasis on video meetings and internal messaging.
and more.
8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams uses cloud-based
As such, organisations need multiple applications to meet
direct routing to connect users to the relevant A fully unified communications experience
their wider communication needs, which include external
public telephone networks. It also eliminates The enhanced experience of 8x8 Voice for
voice calling. This all adds considerable complexity, often in
Andy Rawll the technical and administrative complexities of Microsoft Teams enables users to playback
the form of extensive on-premise equipment, while promoting
Senior Product SIP trunks, end-user software and on-premises call recordings, share instant messages, create
an unnecessarily fractured user experience.
equipment, since the call-making function is faxes and access voicemails in Teams – all
Marketing Manager
fully embedded in your desktop, mobile or without switching apps.
8x8
web-based Teams app.
The upshot? Your organisation enjoys all the
A better quality call experience benefits of a global enterprise communication
In addition to 8x8’s award-winning call quality, solution, without the cost or hassle of
users of 8x8 Voice for Microsoft Teams enjoy managing a complex infrastructure, and
8x8.com a full range of advanced call features and a
range of cost-effective call plans, including
without complicating your Teams
user experience.
unlimited local and international calls for up to
GET IN TOUCH 48 countries. All this comes in addition to the Learn more about 8x8 Voice for
in-built Teams-to-Teams calling capability. Microsoft Teams
The option to integrate contact centre 1
The Public Sector Communications Challenge (8x8 Future
Clients can upgrade the capabilities of of Communications Research Series)
Teams with a full complement of 8x8 contact
18Microsoft Teams Contact Because Microsoft doesn’t have landscape, companies can ensure their
Centre and Analytics
the heritage and experience most employees remain aligned, informed,
companies are looking for in the contact and empowered.
centre, the company allows teams to
create a contact centre through Teams Contact Centre and Analytics:
with a “Teams certified” vendor. It’s even Looking Ahead
Sponsored by
possible to build intelligent analytics
and extra CX tools into the Microsoft As companies continue their shift to the
Already making waves as one of the world’s biggest solutions Teams ecosystem. Trends influencing cloud and workplaces become more
the contact centre and analytics distributed, Microsoft Teams contact
for collaboration and a leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant environment in Teams this year include: centres and analytical tools will become
for UCaaS, Microsoft Teams is now making its way into the increasingly valuable. The perfect
contact centre. • Teams certification: solution for combining UCaaS and
The popularity of Teams represents a CCaaS in many business environments,
Perfectly suited for aligning teams in a hybrid environment, Teams represents fantastic opportunity for CX leaders to a Microsoft Teams contact centre, can
a powerful tool for the contact centre of tomorrow. Increasingly, companies take their strategy to the next lead to a more collaborative CX team.
recognise the need for a collaborative central space for their CX agents, which is level with Teams. Many vendors are
what Teams can offer. now earning Teams certification for At the same time, access to in-depth
everything from customer analytics analytics built into the contact centre
Thanks to the flexibility of the Microsoft environment, companies can build their tools to complete omnichannel and UCaaS environment allows for
entire UCaaS and CCaaS environment into one cloud-based ecosystem with the contact centre environments. better end-to-end insights to empower
help of the right vendor. As the rapid adoption of the cloud for all kinds of business better customer and employee
processes continues, the demand for contact centre and analytics tools in Teams • Agent experience: experience.We might even see more
will also increase. The increasing demand for great companies creating specialist AI fraud
employee experiences makes a detection bots and add-ons for the
The Trends Driving Contact Centre and Analytics in 2022 Microsoft Teams contact centre so Microsoft Teams environment.
compelling. By building the contact
Microsoft Teams has rapidly emerged as the central “hub” for anywhere work in centre on top of the collaboration tools
the last couple of years. Capable of combining teams and integrating with a range your employees already use, you can
of essential tools, the environment ensures employees can stay engaged and provide them with a more convenient
productive wherever they are. environment for getting work done.
Microsoft Teams contact centres NEWS
also pave the way to access features
like Viva for tracking
employee engagement.
REVIEWS
• Hybrid teams:
Rising demands for hybrid team
DIRECTORY
environments are transforming
tools like Microsoft Teams into the
new work hub. With a contact centre
environment built into the Teams
20Hybrid work: Meeting
Business and Employee Needs
The way we work has changed significantly
From being at the office every day to being secluded at the
home office – how we work has been completely disrupted.
What we do, and how we do it, are key to our professional
fulfilment, and while the shift initially took a toll on the
business, it has had an even bigger impact on employees.
Motivating your workforce without impacting the business,
live group chat, audio, and video calls, Ready for hybrid work
while addressing evolving customer and employee
and meetings help team members As hybrid work veterans, we’re happy to offer
expectations is essential. However, businesses need to adopt
gather more efficiently than asynchronous two customisable approaches to a true
the model that works best for them. It might be a full or partial
communications such as emails. hybrid workplace:
return to the office, fully remote, or a hybrid model, which
is a combination of in-office and remote work. While we are
ALE connected communications ensure: • Rainbow™ by Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise:
seeing an increase in the adoption of the hybrid work model
Designed with user flexibility and security in
there can be challenges. Following are some things
• Call continuity across the organisation with mind, this application, available on all
to consider:
an instant connection, a consistent contacts popular platforms, combines
directory, and escalation to conference – on communications, collaboration, and hybrid
• Equip your staff with the right tools: Alcatel-Lucent
any device – to bolster first call resolution. telephony services wherever you decide
Enterprise, together with their Business Partners, can
to work.
help audit, and adapt existing communications systems,
• Easy-to-use communications with human
applications, and devices, to equip employees with the right
interaction including high-quality voice, • Rainbow Office powered by RingCentral:
solution to support their job, freeing businesses up to
group chat with “@” mentions, gifs, voice This Unified Communications as a Service
focus on strategic, financial, and operational aspects of
Toni Galo transformation and business growth.
messages, and escalation to video. (UCaaS) solution provides all the above
including traffic and telephony services from
Cloud Marketing Manager
• Screen sharing, remote desktop control, the cloud. Collaborate from anywhere – by
Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise • Keep your staff connected: Communications are vital to
and large file sharing • Secure access for phone, message, and video. Rainbow Office
maintaining efficiency and team spirit while staying in
external contacts. is complemented with ALE market-leading
lockstep with the organisation. Voice communications,
communications and networking products.
Security is key
Cybersecurity and access control are ALE provides communications and
essential. You must consider how to; access collaboration solutions for each employee
resources from different devices and profile, wherever they work. From desk
al-enterprise.com
locations; protect organisation, employee, phones for the digital age to softphones,
and customer data; and, ensure the solution as well as cloud-based team collaboration
GET IN TOUCH is compliant. At ALE we tailor security, services and an omnichannel contact centre
compliance, and privacy to your industry with: solution, we provide the solutions that
HIPAA compliance, GDPR, PCI, HDS, ENS, fit your needs. And we leverage existing
AgID, among others. communications system to create the right
hybrid digital workplace for your business.
22Supercharge your Teams into a
Full Voice Platform
Microsoft Teams, the unified communications and
collaboration platform that’s integrated with Office 365,
has seen massive adoption rates starting in 2020, spurred
by the pandemic. In fact, in March of that year, there were
44 million daily active users and that number jumped 70%
to 75 million the very next month.
The basic idea of Teams is to combine chat, video
meetings, file storage, collaboration, and more, all in one
service that’s integrated with the Office 365 productivity
suite and includes extensions to integrate with other Voice considerations video conferencing, and collaboration features
non-Microsoft products. There are a range of plans with robust enterprise voice capabilities
available, from free to enterprise, offering businesses All Microsoft Teams plans enable you to to deliver a comprehensive, unified
of any size an option that’s right for their budget and make online audio and video calls. The phone communications and collaboration platform.
needs. Of course, the specific features available to you system enables you to make and receive calls
will depend on the plan you select, but the overall range from people external to your business but BCM One offers a Voice Enabled Teams
of capabilities includes meetings and calling, chat and requires a Microsoft calling plan. But what if solution for every scenario, so no matter what
collaboration, productivity apps and services, security and you already have an existing phone system existing phone system you are currently using,
compliance, administration and support. and want to connect it to Teams? Or what if you can supercharge Microsoft Teams with
your needs aren’t met with any of the available added capabilities and features.
Microsoft Teams makes it easier to collaborate, eliminating Teams capabilities including the Microsoft
the hassle of switching back and forth (and even calling plans, which are expensive, limited, and BCM One: Your comprehensive Microsoft
Michael Hawkins duplicating efforts) between different apps. And it lets leave the support up to you? Teams partner
Director of you work from wherever you are, on whichever device you
Solutions Engineering want to use — for the most part. Transform Microsoft Teams into a highly BCM One’s offering is unique. We have
BCM One customized, unified collaboration platform expertise in providing both Microsoft solutions
with enterprise-grade voice capabilities and UCaaS hosted voice/PBX solutions. We
are a Microsoft Gold Partner with a dedicated
You can solve these challenges and more Microsoft team with a wealth experience
with Voice Enabled Teams from BCM One, to make your transition seamless. We also
bcmone.com
which fills the voice and service gaps with offer our own UCaaS/hosted voice solution
UCaaS or SIP, giving you reliable, flexible, and with a dedicated UCaaS team. With BCM
affordable options to build out your voice One, you get the best of both worlds and can
capabilities on the Teams platform and scale streamline your vendor management with one
GET IN TOUCH
your communications network. provider. BCM One Voice Enabled Teams helps
protect your existing investments and avoid
Voice Enabled Teams supercharges Microsoft unnecessary additional purchases.
Teams by augmenting basic chat,
24Microsoft Teams However, many companies are also Security and Compliance:
Security and Compliance continuing to leverage certified contact
centre vendors and direct routing
providers alongside Microsoft Teams to
Looking Ahead
As new regulations and security
build a comprehensive environment for guidelines for communications are
communication and collaboration. These imposed worldwide, the number of
vendors also need to deliver their own solutions offered to keep Microsoft
security mechanisms to support modern Teams instances secure will increase.
As workplaces and communication tools evolve, security and teams. Some of the trends driving Not only is Microsoft known for investing
compliance will remain an essential consideration for any security and compliance in Microsoft in the latest tools for everything from
technology buyer. Teams include: voice biometrics to AI fraud analysis, but
the vendors working alongside Microsoft
Now more than ever, companies face more risks from a security and compliance • Artificial Intelligence: can be just as innovative.
perspective, with more employees working in distributed environments and more AI can be a powerful tool for protecting
potential vulnerabilities to consider. companies in different environments. We’re likely to see a more significant
The right AI assistants built into your number of vendors offering Microsoft
Microsoft itself is well-known for taking a comprehensive approach to security, Microsoft Teams ecosystem can help Teams solutions drawing attention
with specialist solutions for schools, hospitals, and government agencies. However, track potentially fraudulent calls or to their strong focus on encryption,
companies investing in a Teams ecosystem will need to consider the strategies of improve the quality of your reporting security, and support for hybrid teams.
any vendors they may also be leveraging for Direct Routing or Operator Connect. and recording strategies for auditing We might even see more companies
and compliance purposes. creating specialist AI fraud detection
The Trends Driving Security and Compliance in 2022 bots and add-ons for the Microsoft
• SBC technology: Teams environment.
Ever since the shift to hybrid work began, Microsoft has been working hard to Microsoft has been adding more SBC
position Teams as the ultimate solution for safely and effectively connecting partners to allow companies access
employees. The Microsoft Teams environment is equipped with powerful tools for to more secure ways of connecting
security and compliance, from comprehensive access controls for administrators hybrid employees to the same shared
to encryption. ecosystem for omnichannel and multi-
channel communications.
• User control: NEWS
Vendors offering communication
and contact centre tools aligned with
Microsoft Teams increasingly give REVIEWS
users more control over who should
have access to what data and tools
within the technology. With some DIRECTORY
Direct Routing providers, it’s even
possible to consider data sovereignty
and how data is stored.
26Buzzeasy Contact Center for
Microsoft Teams – A Seamless,
Cloud-based Solution
The Microsoft Teams ecosystem has millions of daily
active users and is currently among the fastest-growing
apps in the world.
Though interest in Microsoft Teams has been growing
since the beginning, the demand for this technology
has increased drastically over the last few years with the
pandemic and a shift to remote or hybrid workforce.
During the pandemic, Teams became a haven for center opportunities within Teams. customer’s experience. Extensive insights
collaboration and communication as businesses, schools, The environment enables access to a and analytics make it easy to track the
and governments worked to quickly adapt to constantly comprehensive omnichannel contact customer journey in a digital
changing situations. Even as things are stabilizing center full of different features and environment and manage each
now, Microsoft Teams promises to be the ultimate integrating everything from email and conversation comprehensively.
environment for customer experience management. WhatsApp connectivity to voice, SMS,
That’s why Buzzeasy Contact Center for Teams was and webchat. With tools like supervisor insight and
developed to bring a seamless experience for your performance monitoring, Buzzeasy makes it
contact center agents. What’s more, our intelligent, compliant, easy to empower, encourage, and motivate
and secure environment can adapt to suit the hybrid workforce. You can leverage
With Buzzeasy and Microsoft Teams, companies can the needs of all kinds of businesses, no conversation monitoring or agent coaching
finally leverage all the benefits Microsoft Teams has matter your industry. in real-time across any channel to ensure
to offer. your agents have the tools they need to
Expand the Value of your be successful. Well-trained and supported
Dr. Gustavo E Unlocking Endless Opportunities Teams Investment agents are key to costly employee turnover,
Perez-Lopez high customer retention, and call center
Product Manager Teams represented a natural solution for collaboration With Microsoft Teams and Buzzeasy, operational efficiency.
Buzzeasy in a digital environment because they were already companies from all backgrounds can
invested in the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. With Teams, you instantly unlock the value of an ultra- Our position as a long-standing Microsoft
can provide a consistent experience for employees across flexible, ultra-collaborative approach to partner has allowed us to create a Microsoft
any channel and empower teams with a flexible, easy-to- the contact center. By leveraging an API- Teams contact center environment which
use landscape for sharing knowledge, ideas, and insights. based architecture, Buzzeasy adapts to suit leverages the best Microsoft has to offer
buzzeasy.com
Since excellent employee experiences are a crucial the needs of any business, connecting to with the benefits of an ever-evolving cloud
precursor for stronger customer experiences, it makes critical apps like Salesforce and ecosystem.
sense to leverage the value of Teams in the UCaaS and Microsoft Dynamics.
CCaaS space. You’ve already discovered what Microsoft
GET IN TOUCH
Companies can access the latest Teams can do for your UCaaS environment.
With an extensive track record deploying Microsoft technology to deliver smart voice and Now find out what’s possible when you
Unified Communications platforms, Buzzeasy digital routing across multiple channels, extend the power of your investment
leads the way to more innovative, flexible contact leveraging bots and AI to improve the with Buzzeasy.
28Callroute – Redefining
Enterprise Telephony
For years SIP trunking has been about lines and minutes
connectivity, replacing the traditional telephone lines
(analogue and ISDN) used for connecting on-premise
equipment, such as PBXs, up to the PSTN. However, the
COVID pandemic has very quicky brought about a huge
shift in the market. We’ve seen businesses leapfrog
adopting SIP trunking in favour of fully hosted cloud
PBX type services and dispense with PSTN connectivity
to physical offices altogether. The adoption of cloud
type telephony accelerated significantly during the
with PBXs delivering that unique with a significant overhead in the form of
pandemic given the requirements of a remote working
functionality that can’t be replicated costly professional service fees. Callroute’s
workforce. The clear winner from this was Microsoft,
from the cloud. Maybe there is an array of concept is to disrupt this and turn what
given their ownership of the desktop: remote workers
analogue end points, be it on the factory has traditionally been considered a project
embraced Teams as their collaboration client of choice.
floor, guest rooms in hotels, lift intercoms, into a cloud self service offer. Our view
For many businesses it just made sense to bring all
door entry systems, the list goes on… And is simple, Callroute hosts your phone
elements of collaboration (with PSTN calling being one
with over half of businesses still relying on numbers and empowers the businesses’
method) into a single client for voice, video and chat.
the classic communications technology IT function to assign them to the service
This gave birth to the numerous offerings in the market
as their primary method of liaising with of their choice in seconds. In a few clicks
to bring the PSTN to Microsoft Teams (direct routing).
customers this legacy infrastructure is not users can be migrated from an on-premise
something that can easily be ripped out PBX extension to Teams, numbers can be
What demands does hybrid working put
in a big bang type approach in favour of mapped to generic SIP phones or analogue
on telephony?
Ewan Haig migrating telephony to the cloud. end points. Build hunt or ring groups
CEO across the different silos, it’s all just a few
With workers now returning to a physical office part
So, what exactly is the way forward for clicks away.
Callroute of the time, it’s not just brought about the concept of
businesses? Well, it turns out that the
hybrid working, but the need for hybrid telephony. On
interoperability between this legacy The new era of SIP trunking has arrived.
premise telephony still has its place in many businesses,
equipment and online collaboration Callroute aims to connect your phone
platforms isn’t as complex and expensive numbers and trunks to the telephony
as it once was. environment of your choice in a simple,
easy and intuitive way - and what’s more
callroute.com Unify your communications
with Callroute
it’s all SaaS-based with no long-term
contracts or commitments. We also
charge per trunk vs per user so potentially
GET IN TOUCH The market is still dominated by specialist enabling significant cost savings. Welcome
Microsoft partners that will provide to the new era of SIP trunking the Callroute
solutions with dedicated SBCs or cloud set way. Just sign up and pay as you go.
ups, but unfortunately, they normally come
30CallTower:
Microsoft Teams Solutions
CallTower delivers a comprehensive Microsoft Teams
turnkey solution globally, in over 100 countries and 6000
cities worldwide. Combine powerful voice enablement
with contact center, productivity tools and network
support to unleash the full power of a modern and
enterprise-grade Teams suite. CallTower has a one-stop-
shop Microsoft Teams portfolio, with the security, stability
and scalability to meet any customer need and robust
project management and 24/7 support to keep services
running smooth: OPERATOR CONNECT FOR MICROSOFT the unique and evolving requirements of
TEAMS contractors holding, or processing DoD
CALLTOWER’S MICROSOFT TEAMS CALLING PLANS Operator Connect allows Microsoft Teams controlled unclassified information (CUI),
CallTower delivers an integrated Microsoft Teams administrators to open the “Operators” Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification
experience with global calling plans empowered by a tab in the Teams admin center to connect (CMMC), or subject to International Traffic in
US-based client services team, ensuring a personalized calling services, acquire phone numbers, Arms Regulations (ITAR).
implementation, adoption, training and support strategy. and assign users. Operators, such as
CallTower has been voice enabling Microsoft solutions for CallTower, will provide technical support WHY CALLTOWER FOR MICROSOFT
years. As a Microsoft Gold Partner providing cloud voice and manage the voice network and TEAMS?
solutions, our monitoring and management services infrastructure. Operators can also enable
ensure the highest quality user experience. Globally, PSTN voice services in regions currently • International Reach – over 100 countries
CallTower is one of very few organizations certified to unavailable through Microsoft Calling Plans. and 6000 cities worldwide
provide voice with Microsoft Teams. Implementation of voice services can be
online in a matter of hours. • Emergency Services in over 300 countries
Kade Herbert MICROSOFT TEAMS DIRECT ROUTING
Marketing CallTower delivers missing key Microsoft Teams UCaaS GCC HIGH • White Glove Implementation with Porting
feature gaps and functionality that is not available CallTower is the only proven voice provider
Content Strategist
through other providers. CallTower’s Direct Routing delivering cloud-based Direct Routing in • Multiple Contact Center Solutions
CallTower ensures the ability to leverage preferred rates and unlocks GCC High since 2019 to support Microsoft
the full potential of a Microsoft Teams Phone System. 365 GCC High (MSFT 365 GCCH) for • Re-Route phone calls during Microsoft
Microsoft Teams Direct Routing will keep you connected government contractors that work with outages
calltower.com
with your team via chat, text, calls and meetings in private the Department of Defense. Now, those
or small group conversations or with guest access to organizations leveraging Microsoft 365 • Text messaging and CRM integration
extend collaboration. Expose your team to all applications GCC High environments can add voice
that are part of the Microsoft 365 software stack from and audio conferencing to their systems • Live training and 24/7 Support
GET IN TOUCH
within Teams. CallTower will port between any PBX to with Microsoft Teams Direct Routing from
CallTower’s Teams Direct Routing and guide you with CallTower. Chats and team calls are now • Mass Emergency Communication
deployment, resource planning, technical readiness, live easier as users can directly communicate
training and adoption to ensure success. with others who are not a part of the same • 100% Georedundant in Private Cloud
workplace. Microsoft 365 GCC High meets Environment
32GUEST BLOG
Firstly, Microsoft is increasing its focus in
this area. The addition of Operator Connect,
a new program allowing businesses to
provision telephony services from third
parties for Teams users, promises to
accelerate growth.
Microsoft have already certified more than
twenty third party operators, but there are
Teams Telephony Boom to Come
dozens on the waiting list. Cavell Group’s
2021 Service Provider survey revealed that
Patrick Watson
more than 40% of service providers globally
Senior Analyst
were planning to enable their services via
The uptake of Teams telephony is on the rise with multiple factors impacting forecasts, Cavell Group
Operator Connect. So that could mean
which will see Microsoft Teams become the world’s most popular softphone.
hundreds of the world’s leading telcos and
service providers pushing their services
Forecasts show that markets globally are beginning to enter an accelerated growth phase
through Operator Connect in the future. Not
of Teams telephony with user numbers set to soar.
a bad way for Microsoft to get the industry to
help it rise to the top of the telephony tree.
With the rising popularity of digital channels classics and the new age giants of instant are not as utilised as they once were, with
and asynchronous mediums you might be messaging and video? The answer is the Then there is general growth. The Teams users defaulting to collaboration hubs for
forgiven for believing the hype that telephony collaboration hub, the most popular example active user base has been growing by around their communication requirements. Adding
is dead, or at least dying. The truth is far of which is Microsoft Teams. 1.3% each month since the summer of 2021. telephony into Teams might represent a
from it. That is nearly three million extra users shrewd alternative to refreshing
Collaboration hubs marry the old with the every 30 days. This growth rate might be existing systems.
Voice and telephony remain as the new, offering a central interface for users to expected to slow, but still working at the 5%
cornerstones of most business communication communicate via their preferred channel. telephony enablement figure that’s an extra These factors are likely to accelerate Teams
ecosystems. Cavell Group’s 2021 Enterprise Microsoft Teams does not include telephony 150 thousand new telephony users deployed telephony adoption and the 5% enablement
Insight Report - a study of more than two capabaility as standard, it needs to be month by month. rate is likely to rise significantly over the
thousand businesses across North America enabled as an add-on. next two years. Couple that with the general
and Western Europe - showed that voice Finally, there is the pandemic return effect. growth of Teams and a telephony boom is on
communication, alongside the perennial So far, its uptake within the overall Teams Millions of users are going to return to the the cards.
email, was still the most popular medium used user base seems surprisingly low. Less than office and be faced with the same old phone
for both internal and external communication. 5% of Teams’ 270+ million monthly active systems that were in place pre-pandemic. Cavell Group forecast that by 2026 there may
users have external telephony enabled, but Will they use them? Many business be more than thirty million Microsoft Teams
So where is the best example of the that is about to change. There are key factors technology leaders are probably going to telephony enabled users worldwide, a
intersection between those communication at play which will see these numbers soar. realise that the systems currently in place boom indeed.
34Feature Rich, Reliable and Cost-
Effective SBC’s are Key to
MS-Teams Direct Routing Take Up
With the talk of hybrid work coming in the next year, more
businesses will be entering into a deeper relationship
with Microsoft.
One area in which the capabilities and features within
Teams have grown is the telephony that can be routed into
the platform, eliminating the need for desk phones with
the headset becoming the favoured way employees answer allows businesses to make their own Challenger of the status quo
their phone. decisions when it comes to how their
calling infrastructure is routed, as and The Orchid Link solution offers a genuine
But unless you can invest in the technical capabilities to fully when they need to make changes, such and trustworthy alternative to the large SBC
integrate your communications into Teams, you will need as connecting a new employee that has providers adding that the service provider’s
external help to achieve your Direct Routing ambitions. recently joined the company. fast and flexible nature can better serve
their end customers.
In come Cataleya with Orchid Link, their software-only The solution is built on strong analytic
Direct Routing-certified SBC solution challenges the feedback with built-in real-time quality “With Microsoft Teams recently announcing
established brands dominating the marketplace. of service and voice fraud detection. The hundreds of million daily active users, it’s
analytics produce reports with Mean clear that it is going to be a platform that we
Feature Richness Opinion Scores (MOS) and R-factor quality will be discussing for years to come.
scores and check for eight different types
Orchid Link allows the customer to create logical SBC of call anomalies including Wangiri or FAS “More businesses are exploring ways to run
instances for which access permissions can be granted to amongst others. all their communications through Teams
Andreas Hipp telephony provider customers, so they can manage some of and Direct Routing is a big enabler of that.
CEO their own activities themselves. In addition, Orchid Link comes with a full Orchid Link’s Direct Routing accreditation
Cataleya suite of service management features proves that businesses can assess their
With this, Hosted PBX or UC providers can grant access to such as real-time credit management by options when starting their journey to
individual enterprise clients SBC partitions. This flexibility connecting to an Online Charging System introduce calling to Teams, and do not have
(OCS), or enabling Text to Speech (TTS) to use the systems provided by the large
services. and well-known vendors who often come
with a substantial price tag.
Orchid Link customers will also enjoy the
cataleya.com full Calaleya support service around the “Orchid Link gives businesses another
clock, with offices in the UK, USA, India option, offering the same basic functionality,
and Singapore; there is a contact in every multiple features, quality service and a
GET IN TOUCH
time zone. Another strength of Cataleya is CAPEX or OPEX payment structure that
their responsiveness and speedy delivery removes any barrier to adoption a business
of feature requests and integration may have.”
requirements in an affordable manner.
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