At PCS, we founded our company on the principle that business technology is our passion. Earlier this year, when the world’s largest gathering of experts and industry leaders gathered in Orlando, FL, at Enterprise Connect 2019 to discuss the latest trends and development for enterprise communication and collaboration, it was priority that several of our team members made plans to be there.
Our team makes an effort to witness and hear firsthand from tech-industry frontrunners what companies can expect from their investments in communications and collaboration systems, software and services. The following is a quick summary of some of the important trends to watch.
More Companies Launching to the Cloud
Years ago, many IT departments were starting to learn about a looming force lurking on the horizon known as “the cloud.” Today, cloud-based technology and applications are firmly rooted in the business landscape. In the area of communication and collaboration, the trend of an ever increasing home-based workforce is leading to the expansion of the cloud as the dominant force. The primary advantage that many businesses see in investing in cloud systems is that they enable them to focus more on serving customers rather than on supporting IT equipment.
The cloud now offers companies a way to prototype an idea, prove it out and then bring it to production. If offers scalable ways to accomplish communication and collaboration, while also enabling integration across the entire organization. Moving services to the cloud as opposed to maintaining the infrastructure in-house gives companies an advantage through increased flexibility, technology adoption and reliability.
With 50% of the nation’s workforce operating remotely by 2022 and a current increase of 36% of call centers in the cloud, the burgeoning trend to move applications to the cloud is becoming more apparent. The large cloud developers are still pushing the direction forward, but more companies are crowding this ever-shifting landscape.
What the Future Holds
One of the more exciting technologies that we hear more about is AI, Artificial Intelligence. The time is ripe for AI-driven technologies to revolutionize many industries on a global scale, but in communications and collaboration, artificial intelligence is already starting to make a significant impact. For example, AI is giving companies the ability to use chatbots to facilitate requests or answer questions without the need for a human to help make simple decisions.
Companies still seem a little unsure about jumping into the AI waters, but they are dipping their toes in to see what all of the fuss is about. As the technology matures, and developers help define more ROI-based uses for AI, it will continue to grow and become an integral part of the business world. As the significant cloud players like Google get involved with AI, the acceleration of this technology will only continue to intensify.
Challenges and Pitfalls
As has been the case in the past, when the rate of advancing technology begins to increase, the major challenge is to find ways to keep up with the rapid changes. Getting left behind due to making a wrong turn or failing to act is never desirable from a competitive standpoint.
Consultants with UC experience, serving as trusted advisors, play a critical role in:
- Guiding business leaders in planning for the future, ensuring ongoing success
- Identifying and managing pain points during transitional change
- Ensuring all business stakeholders are represented and aligned
- Aiding in organizational success and overall progress
Business Technology is our Passion!
Our focus at PCS is integrating business systems to enable efficient business processes. In line with what we learned at Enterprise Connect 2019, businesses are more concerned with the value that technology brings to the market. What results do technology investments bring to the company? Is it creating new revenue, improving workflow or cutting operation costs? For many businesses to fully adopt the new wave of technology, they need help with answering these questions.
The team of specialists at PCS focuses on helping companies identify which technology will benefit them the most. We are also experienced on assisting them in purchasing it, using it and customizing it to their specific needs. As the technologies continually evolve and converge, we dedicate ourselves to helping customers figure out how to use the cloud, AI and other similar tools to their full advantage.
