Well, Valentine’s Day has just been and gone, and here at UC Today, we’re still celebrating our love of the Unified Communications, Collaboration, and Experience environments.
Over the last week or so, there have been a number of exciting announcements in the industry, including big reveals from Avaya Engage 2020, as well as reports on flexible workers and the tech issues that may have been holding them back up to now.
If you’ve been too busy planning your big date night to check out the latest news in the industry, here are some of the stories that you can’t afford to miss from the last seven days.
Rounding Up Avaya ENGAGE 2020
One of the marketplace leaders in communication and collaboration solutions, Avaya, recently held their annual “ENGAGE” event this year. The theme of the conference was centred around transformation, which makes a lot of sense when you consider the meaningful changes that Avaya has been making lately.
Some of the biggest updates revealed at the ENGAGE event included an introduction to new partner solutions to help Avaya take its solutions to the market. Additionally, Avaya also announced an upcoming CCaaS product for 2020, designed to give companies access to the power of pure cloud in the contact centre. The future for Avaya certainly looks bright.
Giving a Voice to Microsoft with VoIPcloud
Microsoft might have one of the most popular collaboration tools in the world with Microsoft Teams – but the company has always had limitations when it comes to voice. According to the Managing Director of VoIPcloud, Mark Whitehead, Microsoft’s issues with voice are beginning to become more of a problem for companies that want to use Teams as the central component of their communication and collaboration landscape.
Fortunately, VoIPcloud is here to help. The UK supplier offers an IP telephony platform that has been offering tools to take companies beyond the dial tone with Microsoft Teams for more than a year. VoIPcloud is aiming to provide Teams users with the tools they need for an incredible communication stack.
Migrating from Skype for Business to Microsoft Teams
If you’ve been using a specific collaboration or communication tool for quite some time now, then it can be difficult to even imagine switching to something else. Unfortunately for those who are uncomfortable with change, Microsoft will be migrating all customers from Skype for Business into Microsoft Teams eventually. That means that if you don’t have a strategy for the transition, now is the time to get one.
Rob Scott joins us in a video with leaders from across the UCC landscape to talk about how you can move comfortably into Microsoft Teams, and ensure that you’re ready for the future.
The NHS Must Embrace New Communications Says StarLeaf
StarLeaf recently revealed some interesting insights into the healthcare landscape. According to this pioneer of seamless collaboration solutions, the NHS trusts that are located throughout the UK today could be in serious trouble if they refuse to update their communication strategy. Around 80% of these trusts currently use video conferencing to stay connected. However, 56% of the trusts don’t have any training in place to help people adopt the technology.
StarLeaf’s research indicates that not only does the NHS need to be more open to new forms of communication that exist outside of voice conversations, but the group requires to provide more training too. A lack of training could easily lead to issues like shadow IT.
Flexible Workers Struggle with Tech
More than ever before, employees around the world are beginning to discover the benefits of working remotely, from offices and home spaces outside of their nine-to-five workspaces. However, according to a report conducted by 99&One, many remote workers are struggling to access the full advantages of a mobile lifestyle, because of problems with technology.
Employees state that they’re commonly overloaded with technology that they haven’t had a chance to properly adapt. However, employees that were given training and support to help them make the most of new technology were 56% happier in their jobs. Here are 99&One’s insights into how employers can support the new remote workforce.
Which are your favourite stories from this week? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below, and remember to check out the UC Summit if you haven’t already! There’s still plenty of time to climb your way to the top of our summit, with countless amazing learning experiences to explore.
