Enterprise-level Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is no longer the future, it is the standard of today. We are no longer talking about early adopters and unknown tech. We are talking about maximizing the value that organizations can gain from this modern, adaptable, expandable communications solution. This year we expect the incredible growth we’ve seen in the hosted market to continue as UCaaS solution providers add new functionality to enhance the current functionality.
Our partners at West, a global leader in UC solutions, suggest four trends they expect to see in enterprise VoIP in 2018:
- Mobile UC: Expanded Mobile Integration and UC Functionality – Over the past year, the popularity and diversity of mobile app usage has expanded significantly with the introduction of 5G technology and embedded or integrated apps across mobile devices. Apps mobilize the office and give users a richer VoIP and Unified Communications (UC) experience. Going forward, smartphones will only be able to truly replace traditional phone systems when they can replicate all of their functionality. Trends to look for will include enhanced team collaboration, content sharing and additional meeting support. These expansions are a natural result of the rising number of Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) adoptions.Another enterprise VoIP trend related to mobile UC is something Apple calls “Continuity.” Continuity is defined as the ability to start a task on one device and have it carryover seamlessly across other devices. For instance, a task can start with the ability to take a call on a desk handset and then transfer it over to a mobile device, while keeping the call live. It is now being expanded to include real-time continuity for other UC implementations such as chat, conferencing, video and content sharing.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Advancements in VoIP Operations – AI is a cool trend in and of itself, but it can also be used in a myriad of ways to enhance enterprise VoIP systems. For instance, AI might be used to seek out and automatically repair quality of service (QoS) issues caused by network issues or latency. This technology could heal the network before human involvement is required.It’s possible that AI will also be developed to improve unified communications applications such as analyzing speech patterns in voice conversations and emails in real-time. This analysis could then generate important insights into business trends and sales data, resulting in improved marketing efforts and better customer service. This kind of AI technology is currently in the prototype stage as telecom developers continue to test its implementation possibilities.Finally, AI is also enhancing the capabilities of call answering via voice assistants. Improved language-processing AI technology in voice assistants – such as Alexa, Cortana and Siri – use AI to learn from their customer interactions. These assistants are gaining experience for improved interpretations of customer requests. In an enterprise VoIP application, voice bots could handle FAQ-type inquiries for customer service agents, enabling quicker issue handling and freeing up live agents to resolve escalated issues.
- R.I.P POTS (Plain Old Telephone Systems)- With the aging infrastructure of traditional copper landlines, many telecom companies are choosing to either replace them with fiber cabling or simply abandon them to focus on and invest in more wireless and internet-based (VoIP) phone networks.Telecom industry data estimates nearly 42 million business users will be subscribed to VoIP services in 2018 — which is almost double the number of VoIP implementations from four years ago. As the need for digital voice, video and data sharing among enterprises increases, so does the rate of enterprise VoIP deployments, and POTS no longer possesses the technology to meet these needs.
- Internet of Things (IoT) and VoIP – In 2018, mobile phones are expected to be surpassed in numbers by IoT devices. And by 2020, around 26 billion objects will be connected to one another over the Internet according to estimates by Siemens. With device connectivity across the Internet now in the zettabytes, enterprise VoIP will play an important role in controlling IoT office automation.VoIP-enabled phones and other devices will become common tools in the enterprise to perform activities such as reserving desk space for mobile employees or booking space for trade shows. And in that reserved space, employees could use interfacing IoT mobile apps to control and customize the lighting and setup of their workspace – and maybe even to control the coffee maker!
Corporate Technologies Group can build your ideal Hosted Phone solution
CTG has been in the voice and data technology business for 18 years. We’ve deployed hundreds of hosted phone service installations through countless technology providers. Not all hosted VoIP Phone Systems are equal and their client experience and capabilities across the board are vastly different from pre-installation evaluation, to training, to reporting and features. At Corporate Technologies Group, Inc. we know what problems can be solved by what phone companies and technology when it comes to Hosted Phone Services.
To learn more about if your environment is ready for Hosted VoIP, check out our VoIP Readiness Checklist at for more information.
