How Unified Communications Is Powering Hybrid Work Environments
The pandemic ushered a new era in the workforce, proving that remote teams could be a reality without losing productivity or collaborative benefits. The key to that success? Cloud solutions – and particularly, unified communications.
Even as many remote workers are returning to the office, survey results from CCS Insight have demonstrated that hybrid work options are central to attracting and retaining talent. With over 600 participants in the survey representing workers from American and European companies, more than 90% of respondents said that they want to retain the option to work remotely. More than one quarter (27%) prefer to be remote all the time.
Most workers prefer a more balanced approach, with 62% saying they would like a permanent hybrid work environment.
Findings from Gartner support these survey results, with forecasts estimating that the number of workers will have doubled to two-thirds of all workers by 2023.
Where Unified Communications Comes In
The widespread adoption of remote and hybrid work teams is increasing the demand for and use of more flexible communications tools. CCS Insight’s results showed that regular voice calls are down 20% compared to pre-pandemic levels. And it’s not just a simple switch to video conferencing solutions. The answer is a bit more complicated.
The lines of communication formats are blurring. Nearly a quarter of respondents for CCS Insight’s survey said that they expect to use their desk phones less in the next 12 months, favoring apps that offer both voice-only and video communications.
Companies are addressing the need for work-from-anywhere, consistent communications experiences with unified communications. Available in a cloud-hosted version, unified communications as a service offers a feature-rich solution with a variety of communications formats and the ability to utilize the application from anywhere with a reliable internet connection.
Integration With CPaaS
Whereas unified communications as a service (UCaaS) offers collaborative benefits and faster decision-making, many companies are integrating it with communications platform as a service (CPaaS), which offers more customer-facing benefits. This technology allows contact centers to embed their communications technology with buttons that directly access critical information, such as order status, invoice information, or inventory levels.
Both of these technologies offer companies a way to equip their teams for hybrid work, closing gaps in communication between team members and between customer service representatives and customers. They each offer features that streamline communication and infuse conversations with ready information to serve both internal and external customers.
Like other cloud solutions, they also offer benefits like scalability, flexibility, and cost savings. They both rely on network performance to function well, so any investment in cloud communications should also come with testing of network resources to ensure a latency-free experience.
If your company is considering a communications upgrade to equip hybrid work, contact us at IT Broker.com. We can help you evaluate unified communications solutions to leverage the best possible technology for your immediate and long-term goals.