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Expert Insights: 2023 Unified Communications Predictions

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Today, unified communications (UC) technology is more than just IP phones and simple features like live chat. You’ll want to partner with a local provider who can help guide you toward the right mix of today’s solutions and evolve with you in the future.

TCI has been supporting the DC Metro Region for 40 years and we’re here to help. As we look toward the new year, we know many organizations will be modernizing their communications systems to streamline operations and keep employees and customers connected.

Our strategic technology partner, Mitel has weighed in on what UC will look like in 2023. Here are their predictions.

Generative AI will take off.

Generative AI can create content automatically. It has the potential to revolutionize certain aspects of business, specifically when it comes to content marketing and contact center communications.

The technology can improve the chatbot experience on websites and provide personalized content to customers based on their history. In the contact center, Generative AI can produce content for agent coaching. It can also document and summarize interactions between agents and customers, creating content that can be used for training and development.

Organizations and UC providers need to stay on top of the role Generative AI will begin to play and be able to incorporate the content produced by it into their UC technology stacks.

CISOs will focus on recruiting employees to play a bigger role in preventing attacks and securing edge devices.  

Phishing attacks rose in 2022 and organizations are concerned about unauthorized access or leaks of their proprietary information. Business leaders need to raise employee education and vigilance in avoiding ransomware, phishing, and other threats coming in email, texts, and social media.

Another challenge is securing a rapidly expanding universe of edge devices, both professional and personal. Most employees work on multiple devices, and you can’t protect what you don’t know about, so auditing and securing a widely dispersed infrastructure will be essential.

Mitel and TCI offer a software assurance (SWA) subscription that keeps your UC up to date on the latest software, security fixes, and compliance requirements.

A one-size-fits-all approach to delivering UC will no longer work. Organizations are demanding customized solutions.  

Customers have many communication technology choices today, and many use a mix of infrastructures. In 2023, the world’s business communications will occur across a panorama of on-prem, private cloud, hybrid, and UCaaS systems.

Currently, deployed on-premises solutions lead the pack, but Mitel’s survey found that over 40% of enterprises are combining their on-premises solutions with a cloud solution, and almost half are either evaluating or currently moving their on-premises communications to the cloud.

UC providers need to fully embrace Customer Lifecycle Management as organizations look for the right communications solution to deliver long-term value for both the customer and employee experience.

With so many choices regarding technologies and deployment options, organizations need more than just a drop-ship phone provider. They need a local partner who can support them on-site and guide them toward solutions that support shared workspaces, file and screen sharing, and a mobile-first design. Businesses are looking for a quick and sustainable ROI that empowers their customers to collaborate and complete tasks from anywhere.

Our local team of experts is ready to advise you on the best path forward as you implement your 2023 plans. Contact us at (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.

 

Act Fast… RingCentral Promotion for Mitel On-Premises Customers

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This offer expires December 31, 2022

Upgrade to the #1-rated cloud communications and collaboration solution – RingCentral MVP (Message. Video. Phone.) service – ranked as a market leader on the Gartner Magic Quadrant.

For existing Mitel on-premises customers moving to the cloud, you’ll receive:

  • 20% discount off RingCentral MVP service
  • 2 months free for a 2-year term or 3 months free for a 3-year term
  • May be eligible for free phones (up to 50)

Why is RingCentral MVP So Popular?

  • Unmatched SLA-backed reliability – 12 quarters at 99.999% uptime
  • Class-leading security / Advanced analytics and insights
  • Advanced team messaging, video meetings, and telephony features
  • 275+ integrations with mainstream business applications
  • Global footprint with local and toll-free in more than 110 countries

For more details and to take advantage of this limited-time offer, contact us today: (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.

 

Get to Know TCI’s Latest Cloud Communications Service… RingCentral MVP

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Our solutions line-up expanded earlier this year with Mitel’s rollout of RingCentral MVP cloud service. It’s become a popular option for organizations that are ready to transition to the cloud from their Mitel on-premises systems.

And, if your current cloud provider is falling short, MVP is ideal for anyone looking to streamline internal collaboration and better connect with their customers.

With integrated Messaging, Video Meetings, and Cloud PBX, RingCentral MVP offers:

  • A unified, collaborative hub for team messaging, video meetings, and telephony
  • Enterprise-grade security and unmatched reliability with a 99.999% uptime SLA
  • A global footprint in 100+ countries and localized in 15+ languages
  • 250+ out-of-the-box integrations with business apps and open APIs for custom needs
  • Simple and centralized web-based user and system administration
  • Advanced analytics and insights
  • Access from anywhere on your device of choice — desktop, tablet, or mobile.

Here’s more on each element of MVP — Message. Video. Phone — and how the service integrates with the Business Apps your team uses every day:

Message

  • Message colleagues and clients from your PC or mobile device. Invite guest users to collaborate for free.
  • Set a custom status to indicate your availability.
  • Create teams around projects, specific topics, and departments.
  • Assign tasks to individuals or project teams.
  • Share links and files with no size or storage limits.

Video

  • Join meetings easily — no downloads or plugins needed.
  • Enjoy HD audio and video, and screen share with up to 200 interactive video participants.
  • Easily schedule meetings with calendar integrations with Office 365 and Google Calendar.
  • Switch a live meeting between devices with one click.
  • Get in-meeting chat, virtual backgrounds, closed captioning, cloud recordings, and powerful background noise reduction technology for a great participant experience.

Phone

  • Use one business phone number for calling, business SMS, MMS, and fax, so your personal number stays private.
  • Customize settings such as business hours and greetings, and route incoming calls efficiently to specific departments with a multi-level auto attendant.
  • Manage active calls efficiently with advanced call controls to transfer, record, flip, or park the call.
  • Flip live calls between your desktop and cell or switch a call to video in just one click.

Integrations

  • Bring advanced communications functions into the productivity apps you use every day like Microsoft and Google.
  • Automate your sales cycle and enhance delivery and customer support through integrations with Salesforce, Zendesk, and ServiceNow.
  • Back up your communications data with RingCentral Archiver to your preferred cloud storage provider like Smarsh, Google Drive, Dropbox, and more.
  • Build custom integrations with open APIs to meet your business’s specific needs.

Bring your teams and customers together on the industry’s #1 business communications platform. Let’s talk about your business and how we can connect you to achieve more success. Contact TCI today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

Top 6 Benefits of RingCentral MVP for Mitel On-Prem Customers

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Cloud communications make it easier than ever to collaborate, connect, and work together effectively

To keep up in this new era of remote and hybrid work models, it’s imperative that organizations proactively adapt to this emergent way of communication and way of doing business.

Mitel and RingCentral have created a seamless cloud migration process specifically for Mitel on-prem customers, providing you with an effortless path to the cloud…

1. Easy Transition

RingCentral and Mitel worked together to ensure that your transition to RingCentral Message Video Phone (MVP) will be as smooth and hassle-free as possible. We’ve made the migration process simple for Mitel customers, with no disruptions at all to your business.

2. Improved Flexibility

RingCentral MVP’s integrated system allows you to seamlessly switch between various platforms, such as effortlessly going from your video call to your cell phone, without interrupting any communications. This makes remote work so much easier!

3. Superior Security and Privacy

Trust that your data is safe at every level with exceptional security, global reliability, and privacy. With dynamic end-to-end encryption, we empower our customers to do their best work – from anywhere and everywhere.

4. First-class Reliability

The importance of connectivity is at an all-time high during this age of remote and hybrid work environments. With reliability as a critical factor in productivity, RingCentral effectively shields you from ever having a dropped or poor connection.

5. Seamless Integrations

This cloud solution blends in smoothly with the business tools you already use every day. With its pre-built and custom integrations, MVP will make work significantly easier, boost productivity, automate workflows, and reduce the annoyances of daily tasks.

6. All-in-one Solution

By having a unified communications platform that does it all – message, video, and phone – on any device of your choice, RingCentral MVP’s single-solution approach eliminates the necessity of using multiple tools to get the job done.

Video: RingCentral MVP – Welcome to Simpler Communications [2:25 min.]

Better, Faster, Stronger

RingCentral MVP puts all your communication tools in a single hub on your desktop, making them effortlessly accessible, easy to manage, and enabling focused, effective collaboration for your teams – whether they work in the office, at home, or any place in between.

The TCI, RingCentral and Mitel partnership works harder so that you can work smarter.

NWEA – RingCentral Customer Success Story

It’s Time to Start Achieving Your Top Business Priorities

Take advantage of what RingCentral MVP has to offer and start seeing a difference in your quality of work today. With the simple transition from your current on-prem solution to RingCentral MVP, you will unleash the full potential of this easy, intuitive all-in-one tool with support from our dedicated teams, layered security, and a full force of advanced integrations.

Explore the possibilities of cloud communications… Contact TCI today: (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

Keeping Up with Data Security & Privacy Regulations… They’re Complex and Changing

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Because larger enterprises are highly visible, serve a large customer base, and typically have deep pockets, they need to adhere to the highest standards of compliance. But that becomes more challenging when policy and regulations are a moving target.

To avoid penalties for non-compliance, enterprises must thoroughly research the data privacy and security laws of each market they operate in before placing sensitive and critical data in the cloud. The more geographically distributed they are, the more research they need to do, and the more requirements they must comply with to avoid ending up on the wrong side of regulations.

The TCI and Mitel Solution

For example, TCI’s Mitel-powered solutions allow enterprises to deploy their unified collaboration and communication solutions in their data center, in a partner-managed data center, or via a dedicated instance private cloud environment that uses data center companies like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google, Azure – or any combination – to achieve compliance with local data privacy laws.

Selecting a serverless private cloud option using AWS, Google, or Azure enables the enterprise to keep control of its data without owning its hardware. This option also removes the complexity of maintaining hardware, simplifying management, and reducing costs. Finally, using the private cloud option increases flexibility to grow or reduce capacity, based on changing business needs.

Our customers can also leverage hybrid cloud scenarios, where the on-premises solution can be deployed using a private cloud in combination with cloud applications. This approach provides the ability to either remain on a current on-premises solution using dedicated hardware, use a private cloud while taking advantage of cloud applications, or migrate or expand a part of the business using a public cloud solution.

It’s All About Choices

When the stakes are high and complexity looms large, many enterprises are turning to TCI and Mitel. Talk with our experts about how to find the right communications solution deployment for each market and how to ensure they all work together.

Learn more about how TCI can help you successfully navigate the complex data security and privacy environment. Contact us today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

8 Reasons to Upgrade to RingCentral MVP

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As of June 30, 2020 no new contracts were accepted onto the MiCloud Connect platform. However, if you are currently a Mitel cloud customer considering an upgrade, replacement, or realignment of your current infrastructure, here are 8 reasons why making the change to RingCentral MVP is going to be good for your business in the long run.

1. More Flexibility

The RingCentral MVP platform complements our leading UC on-premises, subscription, and private cloud solutions. With RingCentral MVP, Mitel cloud customers now have more choice and flexibility in how they evolve their current communication and collaboration infrastructure to enhance efficiency, improve productivity, and deliver better customer service experiences.

2. Full-Featured Phones

RingCentral MVP rounds out its communication and collaboration options with full-featured phone capabilities built on a global calling footprint in over 44 countries, local and toll-free numbers across more than 110 countries, and customization settings in 17 languages. Mitel’s 6900 IP Phones are now officially certified with RingCentral’s MVP platform, making it easier for existing Mitel cloud customers to scale operations quickly with employees who can work from anywhere.

3. Seamless Integration

RingCentral MVP streamlines all communication and collaboration into a single, unified, collaborative, cloud-based hub for team messaging, HD video meetings, and telephony. This intuitive solution makes it easier for employees to work efficiently on mobile or desktop clients, so they can interact with each other, partners, and customers whenever they need to and from wherever they are.

4. Higher Capacity Video Conferencing

RingCentral MVP optimizes the virtual meeting room and makes it easier for you and your team to stay connected. Enjoy HD audio and video, and screen share with up to 200 interactive video participants. Easily schedule meetings with calendar integrations with Office 365 and Google Calendar. Get in-meeting chat, virtual backgrounds, closed captioning, cloud recordings, and powerful background noise reduction technology for a great participant experience.

5. More Powerful Messaging

Messaging is still one of the best ways to stay connected with team members when a video meeting is not needed. RingCentral MVP’s integrated messaging features make messaging a more powerful tool for all instant interactions:

  • Set a custom status to indicate availability.
  • Create teams around projects, specific topics, and departments.
  • Assign tasks to individuals or project teams.
  • Share links and files with no size or storage limits.

6. One Place for All Your Tools

Too many independent tools keep employees bogged down with managing technology rather than doing their jobs. RingCentral MVP eliminates communications silos and technology gaps with over 275 pre-built integrations and more than 500 open APIs you can leverage to enhance business applications and workflows.

7. Reliability

RingCentral MVP has a proven record of providing service to small, medium, and large businesses in a variety of industries. It’s a secure and reliable platform with 99.999% call service uptime. This ensures your communication system is always running whenever your employees need it.

8. Simplified Management

With so much riding on the capabilities and performance of your communication and collaboration system, it’s important to keep tabs on how it’s performing and how it’s being used. RingCentral MVP is delivered with a simple, centralized web-based user and system administration feature that makes it easier to structure rich analytics and real-time reporting.

You now have an opportunity to leverage the market-leading UCaaS capabilities you need to prepare your business for whatever the future may bring.

Talk to TCI today to make your transition seamless and get the features you need with no hassle or disruption to your business: (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

TCI Host Cloud Voice Service… Locally Designed, Deployed and Supported

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Our TCI Host Service is all about flexibility… Add new cloud-based tools to your existing business phone system, and when you’re ready, migrate your entire platform to the cloud to reduce your overall telecom costs.

Cloud communications isn’t an all-or-nothing endeavor

There are several deployment models to choose from depending on your business’s unique situation, and you can shift from one approach to another over time. Managing a multi-site business? TCI Host can bring your offices closer together.

Unified Messaging and Integrated Apps

With access to these Mitel-powered tools, your team’s work can be tackled on more devices from any location:

  • Integration with business applications from tech leaders like Microsoft and Google
  • Presence Tools
  • Softphone App on Mobile Devices
  • Unified Messaging
  • Remote control of desktops
  • Outlook client plug-in
  • Message retrieval from one synchronized message store

Powerful Collaboration Capabilities

Explore some of the Mitel-powered team building and conferencing tools your users can tap into with their mobile or desktop phones…

  • Virtual workspaces for team meetings, conversations, content review, and project management
  • Team Video Conferencing and Recording
  • Participant management
  • Desktop application sharing
  • Team and private chat
  • Web-based file sharing
  • Document management

In and Outbound Contact Center / Call Center

Whether you’re a small or big business, you can support omnichannel queues that let customers contact you the way they prefer. Track your customer contacts and get real-time metrics for informed decision-making and better team coaching.

  • Integrate with your CRM, like Salesforce, Microsoft, and others
  • Offer Live Agents, Web Chat, Email, Text Messaging / SMS
  • Monitor and respond to Social Media feeds (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
  • Automate and access Full Reporting on Your Customer Interactions
  • Improve Customer Experience
  • Become more efficient

Empower your people to serve your customers better

For a single, low monthly price, you can upgrade their old phones to advanced mobile-enabled, desktop phones and use Mitel’s award-winning capabilities to dramatically improve your Customer Experience.

Contact us today to schedule your TCI Host demo: (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

eBook: What Post-Pandemic Life May Look Like for Your Business

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Flexible Work from Home arrangements may not end for many organizations in our region.

Digital Transformation has become comfortable and familiar, and many employees have fully embraced remote working – even when their managers haven’t.

The business world is transforming and adapting with new technology. Video meetings, Digital proximity, and Hybrid workforces are here to stay, and it’s important to have a post-pandemic plan for your business too.

Check out Mitel’s eBook:
Life on the Other Side of the Pandemic

Change can be a challenge, but the good news is that TCI is here to help. When it comes to business communications, we make it easy.

We have decades of experience and the tools and technology that can bring your employees, teams, and business together.

Contact TCI today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

Schools, Non-Profits, Gov’t… Are You Exploiting Sourcewell’s Discounts for Telecom Solutions?

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Sourcewell is a municipal contracting government agency serving the public sector.

Who qualifies for Sourcewell membership?

  • Educational institutions – both public and private, including K to 12, special education districts, charter schools, and higher education/universities
  • Non-profits – including hospitals and nursing homes, rural power cooperatives, housing authorities, member associations, and groups
  • State and local government agencies – including cities, counties, water districts, and tribal nations

How does Sourcewell work?

First, Sourcewell goes out to competitive bid nationally on a wide range of products and services that would benefit their members. They then award the contract to the selected vendor. Sourcewell sets up the legal authority between vendor and member.

The member organizations then have access to the vendor’s services at Sourcewell, resulting in accolades like this from a school district:

“Sourcewell contracts have streamlined our purchasing process, saving our district thousands of dollars.”

Significant Discounts

Working with TCI as your local technology partner, Sourcewell members can purchase Mitel telecom solutions without issuing an RFP, including:

  • Public Cloud
  • Private Cloud and On-site Systems
  • Contact Center
  • Team Collaboration
  • Mass Notification
  • Business Phones
  • Devices and Accessories

Mitel is the exclusive Sourcewell telecommunications equipment vendor based on its record of innovation, product quality, customer service, pricing, and overall market leadership.

Simplified procurement and savings … More reasons to go with TCI and Mitel. Contact us today at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.

 

The Next Level of Cloud Voice Flexibility from Mitel & RingCentral… TCI Makes it Happen

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Our new strategic partnership with RingCentral makes it easier to leverage one of the best cloud-based UCaaS options available today. RingCentral Message Video Phone (MVP) is an all-in-one solution that can easily meet the changing needs of your workforce.

Upgrading to RingCentral provides everything you need to build a company culture that will position you for long-term success:

  • A unified, collaborative hub for all employees, regardless of where they are working
  • Higher capacity video conferencing, more powerful messaging, and full-featured telephony
  • Enterprise-grade security and unmatched reliability that delivers 99.999% uptime
  • Over 275 out-of-the-box integrations with business apps and open APIs
  • A modular system approach that can grow alongside your business
  • Analytics and real-time reporting that make tracking important metrics easier than ever
  • Seamless integration with any of your existing features

Special Offers for Existing Mitel Customers

For our existing Mitel customers looking to upgrade or replace their cloud technologies, there’s even more to be excited about. For a limited time, Mitel is offering up to three months free of RingCentral MVP. They’re also waiving early termination fees and offering free onboarding and implementation services. Make sure to ask us if you’re eligible for this special competitive pricing, but act fast – these offers end on June 30, 2022.

Your local TCI team will ensure a seamless upgrade experience, so you and your team will be up and running in no time. Contact us today: (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.