August 13, 2021
How has the pandemic disrupted voice technologies?
What is UCaaS and CCaaS?
UCaaS, or unified communications as a service, and CCaaS, contact center as a service, are business communication technologies. They consolidate businesses’ communication tools and applications — voice, video, chat, voicemail, fax, call forwarding and routing into one unified cloud-based platform. Because they are cloud-based, businesses and employers can access their voice applications from anywhere, on any device. It allow organizations to be freed from needing their own on-premise infrastructure, as everything can be accessed through the internet.What is the difference between CPaaS and UCaaS?
CPaaS, or communication platform as a service, is a cloud-based platform customizable by IT teams using SKD and API integrations. Unlike UCaaS, which is deployed ready to go with a full set of features, CPaaS requires organizations to develop their communication stack from the ground up. Because it isn’t deployed fully ready, organizations are able to personalize and develop CPaaS to meet their exact business or security needs and integrate with existing business apps.
The differences between the two has narrowed over the years, as UCaaS providers have added additional features, integrations, and APIs for building proprietary applications, making UCaaS more in the realm of CPaaS.
On-Premise PBX vs. UCaaS
PBX, or private branch exchange, is a private telephone network operating on a company’s internal, on-premise telephone network. It requires a lot of equipment to be set up and needs to be maintained by an organization’s IT department. Depending on the size of an organization, a PBX solution might also require extensive planning and engineering with trunking and peering needed. Additionally, any updates or additional features that are needed with an on-premise PBX solution must be installed and maintained by the organization itself, requiring additional planning and resources.
With UCaaS, organizations have less required of them with equipment needed, updating, adding features, and maintenance. Because it is cloud-based, the provider, not the organization, is responsible for updates, maintenance, and features. Additionally, these features can be immediate because they are application and cloud based and can be pushed to all users without the need of IT departments.
UCaaS means businesses don't pay upfront with a purchase cycle or invest heavily in CAPEX for equipment and updates.
A cloud-based, voice-as-a-service option lets you purchase voice technology on demand, anytime or anywhere you need it. There is no upfront payment needed for equipment — only ongoing, predictable costs based on consumption (OPEX).
To sum up, voice as a service allows costs to be more transparent, predictable, and affordable. You don’t have to worry about surprise fees or expensive equipment updates.
Why move to UCaaS or CCaaS?
There are many benefits of a unified, cloud based voice solution, including:- Reduced Costs: UCaaS solutions offer on-demand, predictable costs based on user demand and consumption — a pay-as-you-go model. Compare this to legacy systems, where businesses must pay for the initial costs and complexities of purchasing, maintaining, and upgrading separate phone and collaboration systems where there can be disruptive, hard-to-predict maintenance costs.
- Business Continuity: Because UCaaS voice technology resides in the cloud, your infrastructure will still function during power outages, storms, fires, server theft, or other disasters.
- Seamless, unified collaboration: Cloud-based voice solutions let you collaborate, on any device, combining voice, video, and messaging into one platform. This unified platform creates an environment where productivity can flourish.
- Greater agility and productivity: IT staff is freed from day-to-day operations and maintenance with UCaaS. No need to worry about on-premise PBX solutions, installing updates, or keeping track of that closet rack of legacy equipment. Your best UCaaS providers handle support and updates, offering you a “set it and forget it” assurance around voice and collaboration tools.
- Easy compliance and security: Data security is more important than ever. Your UCaaS provider leverages the latest professional network monitoring and threat prevention measures, so your teams can be confident your data is protected at all times, with the proper regulations and compliance measures followed.
What are the benefits of UCaaS?
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the need for businesses to switch from capital-intensive on-premise PBX (private branch exchange) solutions to cloud-based solutions (VoIP or UCaaS). Here are four main benefits driving businesses to move to UCaaS:- The need to allow employees to work from anywhere: The New Normal means remote and hybrid work. If the pandemic showed us anything, it was that allowing employees to work from anywhere did not reduce productivity or harm business operations. If anything, it highlighted the need for businesses to deploy technologies that allowed employees to collaborate and communicate from anywhere. This suggests enterprise networks and applications, securely available everywhere employees are, on any device, 24/7.
- The need to meet workforces’ expectations for tools: The pandemic taught us that resilient employees are the lifeblood of any business, crucial to success. This has prompted businesses to reexamine how they attract, retain, and manage their workforce, who expect the tools and technology to be as sophisticated as the apps and services they use to communicate with friends and family. Old, legacy PBX technology cannot meet these expectations — and will not attract or retain top talent.
- The need for technological advancements to reduce and control costs: Legacy, on-premise PBX systems are unacceptably expensive to buy and maintain. They require large capital expenditures for equipment and pile on expensive complexity for maintenance. Someone must be on-site to install updates and add features. It leaves you vulnerable to high fees for quick fixes, and long periods of downtime if the break/fix person cannot come until “maybe Tuesday?”
Cloud-based voice solutions, on the other hand, transform and simplify the entire process by adding greater accessibility and cost control. As UCaaS is software- and cloud-based, new features can be added from anywhere, at anytime. It requires no on-premise equipment to host, as it is all in the cloud, and can be accessed and updated from anywhere, on all devices, with ease.
Customized cloud-based voice solutions offer more technological advancements that align with the needs of the New Normal’s workforce and workplace.
- The need to move from CAPEX to OPEX: The technological advancements made in voice technology no longer require businesses to pay upfront with a purchase cycle or invest heavily in CAPEX for equipment and updates.
A cloud-based, voice-as-a-service option lets you purchase voice technology on-demand, anytime or anywhere you need it. There is no upfront payment needed for equipment, replaced by ongoing, predictable costs based on consumption (OPEX).
Furthermore, voice as a service allows costs to be more transparent, predictable, and affordable. You don’t have to worry about surprise fees or expensive equipment updates.
The Best UCaaS Providers
With so many UCaaS providers available to businesses, it can be difficult to determine which is best for you. The options available make working with UCaaS experts necessary to select the best providers for your business objectives and goals.
Spearhead works with over 4,000 clients of all sizes, so you'll be matched with best-for-you vendors. Having deployed over 80,000 UCaaS instances, Spearhead has the capabilities and knowledge to make sure your enterprise will take full advantage of new technologies.
