Unified Communications ProductivityUnified Communications Productivity

Here's the PDF of Blair's and Nancy's report on UC productivity (they'll be discussing that report during our webinar next Wednesday). Mostly what I think the report does is provide empirical data points to back up what most people have thought they knew all along about how users would use UC.

Here's the PDF of Blair's and Nancy's report on UC productivity (they'll be discussing that report during our webinar next Wednesday). Mostly what I think the report does is provide empirical data points to back up what most people have thought they knew all along about how users would use UC.Blair and Nancy find, for example, that people spend much more time on email than talking on the phone, yet they still consider voice communications critical. Awhile back, the notion that people spend more time on email than voice was being used as an argument for why voice was going to wither away, but the UCStrategies report demonstrates why this was always a fallacy. Blair and Nancy explain in detail how the survey respondents say they use the different communications channels at their disposal.

Likewise, the report finds that just about everyone who has click-to-call uses it, but it's not considered particularly critical. It's there, it's convenient, they use it.

One of the great things Blair and Nancy do, and it's one of the great things that Marty Parker and the others at UCStrategies have done as they study this market, is they delve into specific job-function scenarios for how the technology gets used. The new report offers commentary from users who work in HR, sales, executive management, tech support and marketing, detailing specific ways they use UC functionality in carrying out their tasks. That level of detail should help enterprises understand a little more of what to expect when they start deploying UC themselves.

The issue of ROI was beyond the scope of Blair's and Nancy's study, but it is of course key to the whole future of the UC market. All these benefits are great, and you'd take them if they came for free--but of course they don't. So how much are you willing to spend for them?

As I say, Blair and Nancy aren't setting out to answer that question, but they offer some useful guideposts, especially when they discuss remote work. They include comments from several enterprises indicating the value of being able to work remotely while being more tightly bound to the organization. One respondent in particular highlighted the ability to open up the talent pool when you can virtualize the workforce. This is another area where the contact center can potentially lead the way for the wider knowledge-worker base.

I encourage you to read the UCStrategies report by Blair Pleasant and Nancy Jamison, and to attend the VoiceCon Webinar next Wednesday. Blair and Nancy have, as we used to say at BCR, advanced the discussion.