Integrating VoIP into your business

Getting VoIP into your company can be an expensive, tricky undertaking or it can be a lark; it all depends on the equipment, provider, and equipment structure you choose.

Talk to your current provider. If you already have a PABX – and you probably do – a good place to start in the road to VoIP is to talk with your current provider and see what migration path they offer.

Choose your components. Most VoIP environments use a dedicated call management server to route calls, handle voicemails, and so on. Vendors typically offer a huge range of options, ranging from interactive voice response to call recording and quality monitoring.

Keep your phones. Just because you're adopting IP doesn't mean you have to throw out all your old equipment. You may not get the fancy screens of flash new IP phones, but you can certainly get call and management savings by simply replacing your PABX.

Integrate where you can. Your basic VoIP environment will get you up and running with calls, but the biggest value comes when you tie its functionality in with your environment. You'll need to consider how and where this integration will happen, with business units like contact centres often requiring far more complex links than others.

Rethink your WAN. One of the biggest problems with VoIP is bandwidth – so you need to make sure your system has enough. Your LAN is probably fast enough – 100Mbps is a good benchmark – but your WAN may well be a bottleneck that's going to cause problems. Be sure you consider the potential limitations your network will impose before going full-bore with VoIP.

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