Software is not the solution for Unified Communications (UC) and Collaboration, but it is an important element. The solution is to make sure that the ends justify the means. Our demands for accessible, collaborative and engaging experiences are at an all-time high. so whether you decide to employ Microsoft Lync, Avaya, IBM, SAP, Oracle, Adobe, Google, Siemens, Mitel, ShoreTel, Aastra, NEC Alteva, Ringio, Smoothstone, CallTower, Cypress Communications, Interactive Intelligence, Zeacom, Esnatech, PanTerra Networks, eZuce,, Shared Technologies, Fonality – and other solutions built around either SIP Foundry or Asterisk or any combination of these and others (OMG!), the one thing that you want to make absolutely certain of is that when all is said and done that your audience is cheering – not complaining to your helpdesk.
Ushering in the next generation of communications without taking your end-users into deep consideration is a needless risk that many organizations take because of their belief that if it’s a good solution, they – your valued internal customers – will adapt to it. Why is it then that over 70% of all IT solutions either fail or are deemed unsuccessful? Is it because these IT solutions are bad? We don’t think so. As a matter of fact, our experience is that most IT suppliers are pretty darn good at what they do. The problem is that most of the solution is not up to them, it’s up to the designers and architects – and, most importantly, the C-suite, who are all too often more concerned with the technical rather than the human aspects of the solution. Ladies and gentlemen, let’s admit it once and for all: There is a gap in the system, and that gap is called the human interface – where man meets machine.
IT specialists will tell you that most end-users are considered to be shamelessly ignorant about the power and opportunities answering their every need right at their fingertips – if they would just… And that’s probably not going to end anytime soon. But isn’t it amazing (or is it just me?) that we’ve been saying that since computers started becoming ubiquitous?
When are we (you) going to realize that John Wayne is not going to arrive on the scene to say: Now jus’ hold on a darn tootin’ minute cowboy. We got us x thousand end-users types and they’re a workin’ at about a 28% percent efficiency rate – which means we’re losin’ out on 72% of their ‘potentiality’, and you’re talkin’ ‘bout buyin’ more tools, which ‘ill give ‘em far more interruptions and focus-stealers (the very real and existing down-side of UC). No sir-re-sir. That just won’t do friend. If you want your fancy-dancy software and hardware you’re gonna have to improve their brainware too – or the deal’s off kemosabee. WHERE IS THAT LEADER? Did he die off somewhere on the Great Plains? It’s not Wild Bill.
Bill Gates has said that the future of business communications rests on the magic of software, not just on the capabilities of hardware.[1]
(Knock, knock.) Excuse me Bill. But where do we end-users come in? Aren’t systems in some way dependent on us? I don’t mean to be a pain, but inn-ovation is only as good as the ovation it gets from the end-users right?
At Atrendia, we don’t believe in the magic of software or hardware, but we do believe in the magic of putting the right tool in the right hand for the right job.
I’m sure that Bill, Larry, Sam and all the others are all well-meaning folk (ok, I’ll kill the cowboy talk from here on out), but let’s face it, their job is to make their boards happy and that doesn’t always translate into user-friendliness. I’m truly not faulting them either because it’s actually up to you to make demands that, in turn, become the fodder of new innovative companies that fulfill those needs. That’s where we come in. But first I want to mention our technical partner, UniPlan.
The technical side of Unified Communications is extremely demanding in terms of keeping up with the latest innovations and solutions. That’s why we have chosen UniPlan to partner with us in this area. While Atrendia focuses on the human experience and making sure that it is in alignment with the high demands of your organization, we rely upon UniPlan to sift through the myriad of vendors and, in turn, their tools and solutions in order to come up with the appropriate solution to match the specific needs of your organization. UniPlan has a broad range of expertise focused 100% on UC challenges and solutions. There is simply no way for Atrendia to be both experts in human interaction with machines and be experts in all the latest technology because we have to choose sides. So we chose you. (the human, you)
Now that you know the best technical consultancy for UC, you can just contact UniPlan yourself. As a matter of fact, here’s their number: +45 2015 1568. But then you’ll be like most other companies who haven’t listened to what Stephen Covey when he said: Begin with the end in mind.
It is precisely this way of thinking that has greatly influenced our LEAN-based methodology, Atrendia Streaming Techniques (AST). The end that Covey is talking about is not your amazing UC solution; it’s the people you build it for and it’s the people we listen to and learn from when we, together with your strategic team, assist in developing the other side of the solution – the human side.
Nothing wows and delights valued internal customers like solutions that are all about them. So before you decide which voice, video conferencing, desktop sharing, instant messaging, unified messaging, email, etc. tools you want to unify, begin with the end in mind and call us. It will only set you back a cup of coffee – and maybe a danish.
