Implementation Partner(s)
One step removed from the technology itself are implementation partners. Just like most Customer Relations Management (CRM) and Accounting applications, rarely does the technology maker also do the implementation, but rather they have a channel of certified partners who can handle the deployment, including the onsite needs and connections that often need to be made. As much as we’d like to think we can just download an application, integrating a UC solution requires a lot of nuance and configuration. So once you have nailed down the technology platform that you like, you will need to vet the implementation partner as well. Often the perfect technology can become a nightmare if installed by the wrong partner.
Testing
Prior to committing to any one platform or technology you should be able to gain access to demonstration products/services/licenses that you can test out the platform. Given the critical nature that your communications platform has to your operation, you shouldn’t have to make a blind purchase. If you are being told you have to buy it to try it, then I would strongly recommend moving on. Any credible provider of UC technology would not only allow you, but likely implore you to try their solution. So test away and make sure the product matches the la
bel.
Deployment Plan
Once you know your requirements and you determine the product you want from the integrator that can get it done, make sure you have a plan for successfully deploying throughout the organization. This isn’t a one size fits all consideration. For a small company it may be a same day cutover, for a larger organization it may be phased in over months. But have a plan…UC is a strategic advantage for any organization if the right solution is matched with the right customer.
Daniel Newman serves as the Co-Founder and CEO of EC3, a quickly growing hosted IT and Communication service provider. Daniel is also widely published and active in the Social Media Community. He is the Author of the Amazon Best Selling Business Book “The Millennial CEO.” Daniel was recognized by the Huffington Post as one of the 100 Business and Leadership Accounts to Follow on Twitter. Newman is an Adjunct Professor of Management at North Central College. He attained his undergraduate degree in Marketing at Northern Illinois University and an Executive MBA from North Central College in Naperville, IL.
