RingCentral and Vodafone Upgrade Platform to Enhance Mobile

RingCentral and Vodafone have upgraded their shared collaboration and calling platform to enhance the experience of mobile users.

The two vendors have introduced updates to their Vodafone Business Unified Communications (VBUC) platform, powered by Vodafone’s mobile network and RingCentral’s mobile applications, which provide users with a unified experience for making calls, sending messages, and launching HD quality video meetings. The intention is to seamlessly turn a user’s iOS or Android device into an extension of their office.

Yves Desmet, Senior Vice President, International Service Providers, RingCentral, commented:

At RingCentral we are focused on bringing people the best communications capabilities across team messaging, video meetings, and a cloud phone system. We are delighted to go one step further with our partnership with Vodafone, bringing to the market a powerful differentiated solution which puts mobile at heart of the user experience. VBUC new capabilities will enable customers to work anywhere on any device, simplifying the way they communicate to answer most of today’s hybrid work concerns.”

The application of a Unified Directory system enables users to easily connect and collaborate with colleagues across the business, including those without a VBUC license.

While this service was launched last year for large-scale enterprise businesses, the platform has also been expanded to suit the requirement of SMBs.

The upgraded solutions intend to streamline businesses’ adaptation to hybrid and remote working, allowing them to adjust to employees communicating on the go and from any device. It will also enable organizations to replace outdated fixed telephone systems without excessive red tape, especially those preparing for the ISDN and PTSN networks to shut down in 2025.

Claire Harris, Head of Small, Medium and Enterprise, Vodafone UK, said: “At Vodafone, we are committed to providing businesses with access to market-leading communication solutions, powered by our award-winning network.

“These new enhancements effectively turn employee mobile devices into a true and complete extension of the office, which is positive news for those who work remotely, are constantly on the go or constantly have connectivity issues with their broadband – which ultimately affects business efficiency and productivity.”

Motivated by Hybrid Working ‘Bugbears’

The new enhancements to the VBUC were inspired by Vodafone and RingCentral’s research into the most prominent hybrid working “bugbears”, with around 2000 employees across different-sized businesses surveyed.

There were various technology-related issues, the most frequently cited of which was broadband connectivity (25 percent). Tech not working properly (23 percent) and video calls freezing (15 percent), or dropping out entirely (11 percent), were also mentioned.

There were also bugbears related to the social and cultural side of hybrid working. Missing “office banter” scored high (23 percent), while family members walking in on video calls (20 percent) and feeling of loneliness (16 percent) were also cited.

The overarching inference was that employees wanted to feel connected to the organisation regardless of whether working on-premises or remotely while feeling empowered by the tools provided.

RingCentral Having a Busy 2023

RingCentral has had a productive 2023 so far. At Enterprise Connect last month, it launched the generative AI platform RingSense that RingCentral says will allow businesses to turn conversation data into powerful insights. The first offering in the RingSense portfolio is RingSense for Sales, which assesses interactions between salespeople and potential customers to provide insights and performance metrics.

RingCentral also won the deployment of its UCaaS and CCaaS platform services for the human resources firm MMC. Installing RingCentral’s business cloud system saw the vendor replace MMC’s on-premise legacy communications services.

RingSense wasn’t RingCentral’s first dabbling in AI either. The vendor introduced a real-time guidance AI-powered agent solution for contact centre agents and managers in its App Gallery, granting over 400,000 enterprise customers using RingCentral’s enterprise cloud communications and contact centre system immediate access to telesales service Balto and its AI-powered real-time consultation.