To say the least, IP services have taken the potential of communications to a whole different level. The GSM phones are being replaced with the IP phones – in fact, IP itself is merging with several other technologies making possible the provision of better services. In an economy such as Pakistan which is pitching a lot of its service-capacity to the international markets in the form of a BPO magnet, a strong, redundant and feature-rich infrastructure is critical in allowing businesses to do what they do best: service the customer.
Having that goal in mind, companies are always on the lookout for better sources of communications and better connectivity, which can, in turn, have a positive impact on the business. Unified Wireless Communication is one such concept that can cater to the growing demand. However in order to better understand how this works, you need to take a closer look at what Unified Wireless Communications is all about.
A Unified Wired and Wireless Network Solution refers to a solution that, cost-effectively, addresses the wireless network security, deployment, management and control issues that an enterprise faces. It achieves this by combining the best elements of wireless and wired networking to deliver secure, scalable wireless networks with a low total cost of ownership. It is a communication portal which unifies access to a wide range of solid communication applications such as IM, e-mail, voice, chat, conferencing and collaboration tools. Perhaps the more succinct definition is that Unified Communications helps you manage all the communication coming in and going out of your network.
Parallel to UC, is the development of communications-enabled business processes, which inject communications capabilities into business operations in order to reduce human error or system delay associated with workflow. It is anticipated that UC will be the key end-user interface that merges different communication platforms upon which communications-enabled processes are delivered to, managing large amounts of traffic.
Take Trakker as an example. Operational in Pakistan since April 2000, Trakker initiated the concept of vehicle and fleet management services to the country. Its entire business relies on servicing customers over the phone, in a time-sensitive, usually high pressure situation. Running on Cisco’s Call Center Solution, Trakker now has been able to tweak its response time to the customer and have more success over its communications network that it was having previously.
“Trakker has been able to be so effective with their existing customers it has so far that they have recently initiated plans to expand their network. They are increasing the number of agents by 100% to service the growing number of customers.” says Humayun Akhlaq, Regional Sales Manager at Cisco Pakistan. “The expansion requires the robust network to allow for the expansion to happen, which is where we come into play once again.”
Because Trakker works so closely with the team on the ground in Cisco Pakistan, they are able to lay down communications plans which connect offices and sites that are thousands of miles away from each other. “Remote locations and distances are challenges that a Cisco network allows you to overcome.” comments Humayun.
Unified Communications includes all forms of call and multimedia and cross-media message-management utilities that are controlled by an individual user to make the business communication more effective. This includes any enterprise, informational or transactional application, process that follows a human user and uses a single, content-independent personal messaging channel for contact access.
UC, in essence, is the merger of all communication technologies – a much broader approach than strictly telephony integration. UC encompasses several core markets such as, voicemail, PBXs, e-mail and calendaring, Instant Messaging, conferencing and collaboration. The goal of UC is to allow individuals the opportunity to communicate via differing modes of communication, through different media and different devices to anyone, anywhere, at any time.
So it’s offering you more than just a fancy looking phone – it offers you the chance to link your incoming phone call, with an active phone directory, which is further linked to your customer records in an existing CRM system in your company, that will allow you to retrieve your customers latest interaction and history with your company, before you even pick up the phone. “This was the kind of solution that Trakker needed to have in place – something we were successful in providing.” explains Humayun.
Unified Communication Networks have the potential to dramatically simplify and improve enterprise communications, get you closer with your customer, as well as improve business agility. By integrating various forms of communications, such as voice, video, instant messaging, conferencing, presence and voicemail, individuals can more effectively control and manage their inbound and outbound communications sessions.
“Cisco enables large organizations to plan their Unified Communication Strategies, working closely with business to integrate wired, wireless, and mobile devices to serve workers wherever they are.” comments Dr Aamir Matin, General Manager Cisco Systems in Pakistan. In addition to launching Unified Communications 6.0, Cisco is moving onto a host of related products and augmentations that include a Unified Wireless IP Phone and Unified MeetingPlace 6.0 for flash-based Web conferencing.
“It’s so much more than just the network deployment. Once you have the network in place, based on whatever your requirements are, you can execute a comprehensive communications strategy. And more companies are doing this right here in Pakistan.” says Dr Matin.
GulAhmed Textile Mills has taken the initiative to integrate IP telephony into the very heart of its infrastructure. GulAhmed Textile Mills first deployed Cisco’s IP Telephony back in 2002, and the demand for the network usage has grown 150%. Today, Gul Ahmed is upgrading its voice and security infrastructure with the deployment of Cisco’s Unified Communications Strategy.
“The IPT network that was initially setup with 500 IP phones back in 2002 has expanded to 1900 phones today. The network is imperative to the functioning of GulAhmed and connects toll-free extension dialing between workforce across all units and a single operator for all incoming and outgoing calls to and from all units.” explain Majid Noor Khan, Director IT at Gul Ahmed.
The campus has been provided a permutation of fiber and wireless to connect all units together with a Call Manager Cluster used to allocate the load of IPT traffic. The network also uses multiple Cisco Firewalls for secure connectivity to the outside world. “While we need to be connected, it is also our prerogative to maintain the integrity of the data that transfers through our systems.” continues Majid.
Unified Communication can greatly influence the whole processes of business and communication within several industries in Pakistan. The Government sector, Healthcare, Education, Public Utilities just to name a few, could benefit by integrating the data they have on-hand, with IP Traffic that could be generated on their networks. Perhaps the biggest concern that companies have is the cost factor. While it is not imperative of every company to have one, the ones that will benefit, will get the returns in manifold. If you’re looking at costs and return on your investment, then you need to have a fair idea of what you want. If there is a real need to have these solutions in your organization, then chances are, you already have an idea of the benefit it will bring to your customers and internal staff. And that just means you already have your return somewhat chalked out.
The deployment of UC is not expensive if you consider the following two aspects: the amount by which the deployment will increase the efficiency of your business and two, the percentage of more business you will be able to generate because of that.” says Humayun Akhlaq, Regional Sales Manager at Cisco in Pakistan. “Once you get a grasp on how the technology will help your business grow, the duration for you to get a return back on your investment, will automatically make the investment very affordable. It is exciting to see an increasing number of local companies going global, using Cisco UC technology to bridge the gap and become more competitive in the global marketplace.”
Today, your business has to be as robust and as progressive as your infrastructure. If the right solution can help your network to expand so quickly, your business will certainly reap the benefits of the growth.
