The business of greatly reducing business telephony costs by routing calls via the internet has tantalised many businesses for some time.

However, the real attraction of Internet Protocol (IP) telephone technology is the myriad of business applications that flow from a converged network and the flexibility, investment protection, and intelligent customer-handling techniques that they provide.

Until recently most businesses have happily sat on the fence... On the one hand those newly "converted" organisations have trumpeted the cost reductions, lower total cost of ownership (TCO), higher return on investment (ROI) and increased productivity resulting from recently acquired converged infrastructure.

On the other, legacy telephony providers have continued to cultivate apprehension and doubt about these new communication options.

But over the past year IP telephony and convergence have become accepted technologies. The rate of uptake has increased steadily as previously sceptical businesses have realised that these solutions are not "too good to be true". Communication is continuously evolving to become more cost-effective, easier to manage and better customised to enhance business processes. Convergence as we now know it is simply the next step in this continuous cycle.

Many companies that have investigated moving to converged IP networks have found the cost savings alone are a valid justification for the investment.

The premise is simple enough. Combine the voice and data calls within a company on the same network using the ubiquitous nature of the underlying IP technology.

You immediately reduce cabling and maintenance expenses, increase productivity and ROI, reduce TCO and enjoy spinoffs such as toll bypass. There is the potential to save a great chunk of a company's communications costs.

Recent research reveals the driver for organisations to start ripping out their standard PBXs is the potential for value-added applications. These are applications that are much simpler than those enabled by regular tele- phony systems, or totally new ones such as user registration that enables phone users to be identifiable and fully functional regardless of the handset they're using.

It is mainly the flexibility, investment protection and intelligent customer-handling techniques that are commanding the attention of corporate telecoms managers and proving to be the catalyst to repositioning networks with a long-term view.

IP telephony is only the first stage towards the enhanced functionality and improved productivity that network convergence provides. But it is the wake-up call that is forcing organisations to plan their networks with a long term view.



What applications run on a converged network?

Customer management systems that first allowed call centres to see the identity of the customer calling by linking the incoming phone number to a client database have opened the door to far more sophisticated systems that can be linked with online services such as banking.

Today's desktop IP handsets function just like a small client device. Making changes, moving or adding seats is made easy by simply unplugging and repositioning a phone on the network or by using a graphic user interface (GUI) control. Levels of security, to allow users to make changes, can be assigned to individual staff members, or the parameters can be controlled centrally.

Integrating voice calls into the IP environment and providing high-performance handsets allows companies to deploy intelligent customer management applications. These link seamlessly with customer data over the network, to forward or divert calls with ease, and for call operators to log on to any phone, supporting remote and home working.

An IP-based contact centre need not be limited to one location. Call operators can work from home and temporary centres can be created in remote sites or in hotels - all enabled by IP telephony. One Numbering allows employees to have a single number that follows them wherever they may be; at their desk, mobile, fax or home. It is easily configured via a voice menu or GUI. This can increase efficiencies and, importantly, customer service.

Unified messaging provides flexible user options including display of company directories, screen dialling, the ability to record, store and forward calls, place received or missed calls within a directory, quick dialling and customisation to each user set up via phone or GUI. This application can significantly increase the productivity and efficiency of personnel.

Additional telephony applications include videoconferencing, operating the organisation's CCTV security on the same converged network and IP storage, which allows organisations to intelligently route storage traffic over the converged network and allow server-less back-ups.

Companies with large and critical contact centres can see tangible advantages in taking the convergence path rather than continuing to be tied to regular telephony systems which - although rich in features - promote little flexibility and are difficult and costly both to configure and to reconfigure.

This all sounds good so why isn't everyone on to it?

While many converged network implementations have been successful, there are organisations worldwide that have a converged network that doesn't deliver as promised. Some have continuous quality issues and are hugely expensive in time, productivity and capital. These failures are due to many factors including the integrator having a poor understanding of IP, lack of experience in installing the solutions or use of second-rate products that have limited functionality and scalability.

How important is your integration partner?

Kate Davidson, IBM marketing manager, believes the choice of integration partner is the most critical decision an IT manager can make. You are dealing with your company's lifeblood - its communications. "You need to trust these people implicitly and be confident that they are not using your project as a training ground," says Davidson.

IBM has provided IP telephony solutions for 13 local enterprise organisations and with over 10,000 handsets deployed is New Zealand's largest IP telephony integrator. Davidson explains IBM's philosophy: "We're not just a dial tone provider - our area of expertise is in everything IP. It is also in providing well-designed, intelligent and highly available infrastructures which are capable of running applications that support and enhance business processes. After all telephony is now just another application on a converged network - as is videoconferencing, unified messaging, IP storage, IP CCTV and the many other applications currently being developed worldwide."

"It is extremely important that you choose an integrator you can trust to advise you on the right technology solutions for your business purposes, that has a good record of installing and maintaining your infrastructure and is willing to support your staff to the level appropriate to your needs."

January 2003
By Tony McDrury