Richard Conn March 12, 2021 By now, you’re well versed in what it’s like to work from home. Remote working has been adopted worldwide and, like it or not, it’s here to stay. As more enterprises realise the benefits of a remote workforce, more job roles are being offered with flexible or even fully-remote working environments.
But what have we learnt since we unattached ourselves from our office desk? And how can technology boost enterprise productivity, creating more jobs to do at home? It’s simple. Communication technology has made it possible for us to work collaboratively from different locations.
The global adoption of this type of technology, in industries from hospitality to Enterprise Ecommerce, suggests that remote working is here to stay. 27% of the average population expect to use video conferencing software more often. Even after the outbreak ends.
These figures are great. They tell us that, despite everything that is going on in the world, we have managed to make something work. Remote working is no longer seen as a distraction or an excuse to slack off. Thanks to the available technology, employees can be just as productive from home as they were in the office. There is no barrier getting in the way of 24/7 communication.
Unified Communication (UC) has made it easier for businesses to boost enterprise productivity by allowing teams to collaborate more effectively. 5G and SD-WAN have revolutionised Unified Communication as a Service (UCaaS), making it accessible worldwide. If you are looking for a solution that will help your employees work together, boost productivity and improve performance, you are looking for UCaaS.
What is Unified Communication as a Service?
Gone are the days of switching between different apps and systems to allow your team to video chat, message and share files. Unified communication as a service brings all of the software together to create the ultimate collaboration platform.
UC incorporates:
- Message
- Voice call
- Video call
- Team collaboration
- Video conferencing
- File sharing
- And more!
One service allows you to host a video call with multiple people inside and outside of your organisation, the definition of teleconferencing. Within that same service your team can share, edit and approve working files, instant message each other and keep up with their colleagues workload. Unified communication is the key to effectively running a remote workforce and boosting productivity.
Collaboration and communication has been among the biggest struggles with working remotely. That’s understandable. While you might know everything that your team are getting up to, outside of the office environment there is little time for cross-department communication. This may be more important to businesses that deliver a unique brand experience because often multiple departments work together to make it happen.
Another one of the top concerns is being in a different timezone than teammates, with 10% of people stating this as an issue. With UCaaS in place, your colleagues wouldn’t have to worry about any of these issues. By incorporating communication and collaboration software in one service, your team can work better together from wherever they are in the world.
The Benefits of Unified Communications as a Service
Having discovered what UCaaS is, you have probably already listed several benefits of this kind of service in your head. Obviously, it’s a great way to improve communication and collaboration at work. But there’s more…
Reduced Costs
Utilising unified communications as a service means saying goodbye to all of the software solutions you’ve been using. Your video calling, instant messaging, file sharing, and collaboration tools can all go. This, of course, saves you a lot of money in the long run. One service means one payment, easy.
It is far more cost-effective to use UCaaS than it is to pay for multiple services that deliver the same results. Have a look at your current outgoings to work out how much you could save by switching to a unified communications provider.
Better Performance
Having everyone’s workflow in one place is a surefire way to improve performance. Not only can you see what everyone is working on, but you can collaborate and work effectively together. The difference between communication and collaboration is simple – collaboration produces better results every time.
One thing we all miss from the office environment is collaboration. Those conversations that increased productivity and led to different people bouncing ideas off each other until the entire team reached the same conclusion on projects like digital marketing strategies for small businesses or packaging designs for future product launches.
Yes, you could have video meetings but are you really going to call a meeting every time an idea pops in your head? UCaaS gives you space for ideas, allowing teams to work collaboratively.
Enhanced User Experience
The switch to remote working hasn’t been all fun and games. Some people have struggled with loneliness or equipment issues. Others have thrived, making the most of the benefits that working from home offers.
With so many benefits, businesses should make an effort to provide a user experience that makes remote working easy. Unified communication makes everyone’s lives easier. All of the systems that you need, available on one service – name a better user experience than that?
Increased Productivity
Last but not least, unified communications as a service boosts enterprise productivity. There are no minutes wasted waiting for different systems to load. Better yet, being able to see what everyone else is working on pushes people to meet deadlines.
It’s as close to an office environment as you can get online. Colleagues can track projects that they’re not working on. They can chip in with their own advice using integrated communication technology. Being able to watch each others’ workloads makes it easy to delegate tasks and get them done faster.
While the work produced is bound to be better, businesses will notice increased productivity. If productivity is a concern, you need to look at your communication and collaboration systems. UCaaS will keep your team connected. And, for a fast, agile and scalable IT system take a look at some hybrid cloud solutions.
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