As we march closer to 2021, we’re at a bit of a crossroads. Do companies batten down the hatches? Or do you regroup and make a clear plan for 2021 that pushes you to be more innovative and agile? At Carrier Solutions, we say the latter – go all in! Talk to your customers about their needs and build a plan that meets those! Identify possible scenarios based on what you believe will happen, and sketch out your best possible guesses on how different options or actions may impact the business.
Let’s get fired up
Now that you’ve had that pep talk, what should your strategy look like going forward? What moves can you make so your IT framework is 100% driving you towards your goals? Let’s dive into our top considerations for taking what we’ve learned from 2020 and putting those experiences to good-use for next year.
Don’t underestimate the power of voice and cloud solutions – The days of ‘one-size-fits-all’ voice and UCaaS solutions are long gone. Now dozens of enterprise-grade solutions consolidate uber-convenient communication features. This includes providing users with must-have tools, such as voice and telephony, web, audio, video conferencing, and text and instant messaging capabilities. A central hub and all of these tools give teams the ability to collaborate seamlessly and zero-in on delivering a high level of customer service. Overall, these tools can go a long way in eliminating roadblocks to productivity while lowering communication costs.
Another touchpoint in your 2021 plan should be finding ways to create high-levels of engagement with your customers. By beefing up your contact center and leveraging a cloud-based platform, you can make more personalized and meaningful connections with customers. A cloud-based contact center tool can help your company better manage customer service across all channels for a real omnichannel experience – voice, messaging, chat, social, email, and self-service. As companies re-evaluate 2021 plans and re-think costs associated with keeping everyone in the office at all times, UCaaS and CaaS will continue to make working from home more comfortable. Finding the right partner to evaluate your needs and assist with the design, network configuration, installation, training, and onboarding of either UCaaS or CCaaS cloud solutions will take the stress out of the migration and help you realize the most considerable ROI possible.
Go from cloud-ready to cloud-optimized – Chances are your organization is using several cloud solutions. It may be several SaaS applications, such as Salesforce, Office 365, or you’re relying on a cloud storage service for disaster recovery and backup. To be more competitive in 2020, leaning into cloud services should also be a top priority. A thorough plan can take your organization from cloud-ready to cloud-optimized – meaning enjoying lower hardware costs minimizing the cost and resources needed to maintain expensive computing infrastructure. For instance, are you launching a new mobile site? Need a robust test environment? Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) options give your organization access to on-demand computing resources. Teams can quickly and cost-effectively spin up resources to build a robust and secure test environment. Virtually limitless scalability and agility, along with the highest levels of security and compliance assurance, can get you the peace of mind you need. Or suppose your organization needs to find more efficient ways to support remote working. In that case, Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) gives your team the ability to access data and applications from anywhere, anytime, and from any device.
Don’t push the pause button in times of uncertainty
With all the challenges surrounding us, organizations need to identify where opportunities exist, determine how to pursue them, and figure out how your technology stack can help you meet your goals. Do you need a trusted IT advisor to help you cut through the clutter and complexity? Call or email us! At Carrier Solutions, we pride ourselves on answering the tough questions – from technical to business-oriented – and guiding customers to make smart technology decisions related to all cloud, telecom, and IT projects. Let’s do this together!