UC Today was granted exclusive interviews with four prominent analysts at Enterprise Connect 2022.
We hear from Jon Arnold, Principal at J Arnold & Associates, about speech technology, collaboration, and the Metaverse.
Zeus Kerravala, Principal Analyst at ZK Research, speaks about remote working tools, AI in UCaaS, and VR in collaboration.
Irwin Lazar, President and Principal Analyst at Metrigy, talks to us about security in collaboration, UJET and Google, and the future of work.
Melissa Swartz, Founder of Swartz Consulting, speaks about the present and future of CX and the convergence of UCaaS and CCaaS.
1. Jon Arnold on the Evolution of Collaboration – Enterprise Connect 2022
Talking Points:
1) Where speech technology is going in the enterprise?
2) How is collaboration going to evolve?
3) How far away are we from the Metaverse?
Jon Arnold speaks to us about speech technology and its central role in the evolution of collaboration. Arnold also shares his views on the Metaverse, saying computational power isn’t strong enough to support widespread implementation. The pandemic, a major driving force behind the Metaverse, is disappearing. Nevertheless, it is only a question of time before the Metaverse becomes an everyday reality.
“The digital natives are driving the workforce now. They’re comfortable with these experiences and ways of doing things, and what they do in their personal lives, they want to do in their work world too. That’s what’s going to make it happen, so I think [the matverse] will become demand-driven sooner than later.” – Jon Arnold, Principal at J Arnold & Associates
2. Zeus Kerravala on Composable Solutions – Enterprise Connect 2022
Talking Points:
1) How are we going to reach the next phase of ‘composability’?
2) How can a company set about achieving composability?
3) How does composability connect with distributed cloud?
Zeus Kerravala shares with us his ideas of how and why we should be aiming for composability. This is one of the next big movements in the world of UC and beyond. We also hear how it ties in with distributed cloud, streamlining the solutions many companies require. Kerravala gives the example of a security company having specific needs which generalized cloud solutions are over-providing for.
“Composability brings the democratization of communications so it’s usable by everybody without having to go through a lot of work… Think of the traditional application being 80% and then composability addressing the rest of the world.” – Zeus Kerravala, Principal Analyst at ZK Research
Kerravala spoke recently about the release of Vonage’s Interactive Broadcast with Experience Composer.
3. “25-30% of People Going to Continue Working from Home’ – Irwin Lazar at Enterprise Connect 2022
Talking Points:
1) What do you see from a security point of view in the collaboration landscape?
2) What is Metrigy’s take on the recent news regarding UJET and Google?
3) What does the future of work mean to Metrigy?
Irwin Lazar speaks to UC Today about security challenges in collaboration. He views the relationship between Google and UJET as a signal that Google is still building out its portfolio within the UC space. Lazat talks about hybrid versus office working, vendors betting on which will be the most popular route for companies.
“There is this realisation that we need to get serious about how we secure the applications, and we need to do so in a way that doesn’t limit what employees are able to do to communicate and collaborate.” – Irwin Lazar, President and Principal Analyst at Metrigy
Lazar also commented on the importance of automation for enterprises with workers in different locations, following a Kurmi-commissioned survey of almost 500 organisations.
4. Melissa Swartz – ‘Customer Experience has Really Come to the Forefront – UC Today News
Talking Points
1) CX and CCaaS presence at Enterprise Connect
2) The convergence of UCaaS & CCaaS
3) Predictions on the future of CX
Melissa Swartz believes that customer experience is driving CX and CCaaS. As businesses speed up their digital engagement initiatives, customer experience has come to the forefront. She explains that many vendors are now blending UCaaS and CCaaS platforms, making a much more efficient set-up for some customers. Swartz also spoke about the challenges of CX as compared to remote working.
“I think that it’s easier to solve how to make people work remotely than it is to solve how to improve customer experience. I think [customer experience is] a longer journey [than remote working], and we’re going to see this at the forefront for a while.” – Melissa Swartz, Founder of Swartz Consulting
All four analysts we spoke to were also judges at the UC Awards 2021.
