So we run a Mitel VoIP system internally, a subject of news in 2010 when it received an upgrade and a good illustration as to perhaps how poor, or no, publicity can sometimes be a bad thing!
The process was enacted in an honest fashion, a team of staff joined together to collectively create a customer focussed menu system which included audio information with often asked questions about our service, there is a selectable menu (which can be activated to override the audio information) and soon to be added (I hope) automated callback option.
In all honesty once the shock of the change subsided I have received few issues directly save a couple of glitches with the audio, it seemed more important that the existing customers (and in particular some of the corporate ones) weren’t being made to feel like they had to wade through yet more technology to speak to a human, and I empathise with them on that score, I do not like speaking to robots, being put in queues, listening to musak and so on.
But with the resources we have available to us it has to become a happy (??) medium, a load of extra handsets and people to operate them and we could provide that type of service, but the sheer cost and accommodation issues meant that the idea was simply not ever going to be entertained.
So, a modest investment followed and a vastly upgraded system has been developed.
I’m proud of it – it’s evolving into a major corporate level phone system, but the problem is adoption. We have a fantastically complicated system that will do literally 100s of snazzy tricks, but all we really do is to make and receive calls.
Recently I was sat at someone else’s desk, in a different site, and I found a feature code to route all calls from my phone to that one. You are probably thinking that isn’t really anything new, you could just setup a forward, and I would agree with you, but forwards are setup from the native handset, and I wasn’t there! So this other feature “I am here” means I can essentially program the forward from the remote phone. The only downside is that you can’t see anything useful on the CLID as it just displays “From 1234” but at least you can get your calls.
Moving forward I am planning to roll out the use of PRGs (Personal Ring Groups) so that individuals can have their internal extension and mobile number (other location or home number, etc) programmed up with in a ring group, but control each element of the group by a button press. Program up a button per element and you can quickly and easily shift your presence, disable the mobile when you arrive at the office so only your desk phone rings, and when you step away enable the mobile, and disable the desk phone so your mobile is the only thing that rings. Makes programming simple and avalaible and ensures you will be reached when you’re needed.
Overkill? Too much? Won’t get used? Doubt it, solutions delivered in a simplistic way are going to be easier for people to accept and (hopefully) easier for them to adopt, these guys (Mitel) have been there, seen it, and are providing us with solutions that have been tried and tested, so I want to share them, why wouldn’t I?