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Big Features for Your Small Business – Mitel adds SMB Controller for On-Prem, Big Business Capabilities

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We recognize that one size does NOT fit all!

That’s why TCI is excited to announce that Mitel has rolled out their new SMB Controller – it provides a full communications solution for small businesses with customized messaging, collaboration and contact center capabilities.

The MiVoice SMB controller is flexible to fit your organization, providing a full range of deployment and financing options. It’s ideal for the smaller customer or branch office that wants Enterprise-level features in a small business package for up to 150 users.

Advanced Enterprise-Level Communication Features

With MiVoice Business, you and your employees get embedded mobility to deliver greater freedom to communicate from wherever business takes you. It offers Unified Communications and collaboration with voice mail, unified messaging, and automated attendants. And it delivers excellent customer service with a fully integrated contact center solution.

Integrated Collaboration, Conferencing, and Customer Experience Solution

It’s easier to do business when your messaging, collaboration, and contact center capabilities are all part of an integrated communications solution like MiVoice Business.

With MiCollab and MiTeam Meetings, you get enterprise collaboration software and real-time video conferencing for locations across time zones and geographies that securely and swiftly power communications. And you can also integrate MiContact Center Business, to support a few call center agents or a thousand omnichannel agents.

Deployment Flexibility

You can deploy MiVoice Business on-premises, in a public cloud, or in a private cloud environment. You can also license the platform with either a traditional upfront CapEx purchase or with an OpEx subscription.

Large, small, or in between, MiVoice Business is designed to fit the unique needs of any size organization at each stage of growth.

Full Range of IP Desktop Devices and Accessories

When you’re on MiVoice Business, you can take advantage of a full range of IP desktop devices, accessories, and meeting room solutions that deliver advanced applications when and where you need them.

Why MiVoice Business?

  • Deep call control, collaboration, meetings with MiVoice Business and MiCollab
  • Advanced enterprise-level features comparable to those you have enjoyed with your current Mitel communications platform
  • Deployment flexibility: On-site, private cloud, public cloud (AWS /Azure)
  • In-office, hybrid or work-from-home options
  • Broad portfolio of IP phones, market-leading wireless SIP-DECT devices, and accessories for growth
  • OpEx option via monthly subscription
  • Smooth transition from your current Mitel communications platform to MiVoice Business

Let’s talk about an affordable way to provide enterprise-level tools for your small or mid-sized organization. Contact us today: (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.
 

Using Microsoft Teams? Mitel Offers No-Cost Integration with MiVoice Business + MiCollab

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As hybrid work continues to expand, and Unified Communications capabilities continue to evolve, more customers are looking to integrate their Mitel telephony solutions with their Microsoft infrastructure.

In an environment where Microsoft Teams has already been selected or installed, many customers are looking for a user experience that retains full access to Mitel’s powerful communications capabilities.

Mitel has announced an important update to its MiVoice Presence Sync service and Mitel Assistant:

  • Mitel telephony presence information is now visible in Teams, Outlook or anywhere Microsoft presence is visible.
  • Brings call history directly into the Mitel Assistant client, which is free to download.
  • Mitel Assistant in “Telephony Only Client” mode provides a simple easy-to-use user interface.
  • No extra investments in Microsoft licenses are required.

Mitel Assistant in tandem with the Mitel softphone provides a blended Mitel + Microsoft Teams environment:

  • Removes the need for customers to go to Microsoft E5 / Phone System License
  • No need to pay additional fees for your DID (Direct Inward Dial) number to be hosted by MS Teams
  • Integrated user experience
  • Will let your Microsoft Teams users know when another user is on a phone call

Mitel Call Server presence integration for MiVoice Business

For businesses using Microsoft Teams together with Mitel call control platforms, your users can be busy in the Microsoft Teams system (for instance when attending a meeting) as well as in the Mitel system (busy on a phone call).

Mitel now provides existing Microsoft users with Mitel Call Server presence information as part of Microsoft user presence information. This feature requires the Mitel customer to have a UCC License and Software Assurance (SWA) active on their Mitel call server system.

Once installed, users get access to the following:

  • Dialpad & Directory Search – Supports manual phone calls from the dialpad or you can search using the corporate directory or Outlook contacts to initiate phone calls. Mitel Assistant will show presence information for searched contacts so that the user can know whether a user is busy or free to take a phone call.
  • Call History – Gives users MiVoice access to Mitel Call History in a dedicated tab. The user can stay within the Microsoft Teams Client when initiating calls from the call history. The user will also see presence when originating from call history.
  • Speed Dial – Users can search the corporate directory or personal Outlook contacts and add the speed dials that will show up as contact cards including avatar pictures and phone number information. Mitel Assistant will also show presence information for Speed Dials.
  • Escalate chat to phone call – Mitel Assistant also offers the user the possibility to escalate a direct chat to a phone call by clicking on the Mitel Assistant icon at the bottom of the chat view.
  • Optimized Mitel Softphone – When initiating a phone call from Microsoft Teams using Mitel Assistant, the new optimized experience using the MiCollab Telephony Only Client mode has been developed to provide the user with a discrete call floater window, that can be used to control the call without leaving the application in focus (for instance Microsoft Teams). The user can choose to use the floater in a collapsed layout or expand it to access all mid-call features, including Mute, Dialpad, Audio device management, Hold, Conference & Transfer.
  • Desktop phone or softphone – Users can either control the Mitel desk phone or use the built-in softphone to use the computer audio for calling. If needed the user also has access to more MiCollab functionality by expanding the MiCollab tray bar icon with access to Dynamic Status, Call History, Visual Voice Mail, and Settings.

Let Mitel be your Voice in Teams. Easy Upgrade. Free to download.

Mitel Assistant can be found in the Mitel Software Download Center as well as in the Microsoft Teams Store and users can easily install it into their Microsoft Teams client. To get full customer value out of the solution, Mitel Assistant should be used together with MiCollab in Telephony Only client mode.

If you’re interested or have questions, just let us know. Contact your local TCI experts at (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.


Hospitality Loyalty Program for SX-200 ICP Customers

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You’ve trusted your property’s communications with Mitel for years…

We know how vital it is for you to provide the best guest experience while making it as efficient and smooth as possible for your staff to run their daily activities.

Whether you have a big hotel in a bustling city square or a series of cottages by a peaceful lake, having the latest communications and collaboration tools is essential to provide a positive guest experience.

Mitel’s new Hospitality Loyalty Program protects your current investment and enables you to benefit from incredible discounts when switching to Mitel’s flagship software platform for hospitality – MiVoice Business Hospitality Suite.

Contact TCI today for the details at (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.


Existing MiVoice Office 250 Customers… Act before June 30th to Arrange a Discounted Path to MiVoice Business

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Following Mitel’s end-of-lifecycle announcements about MiVoice Office 250, this migration program has been rolled out to provide existing Office 250 customers with a smooth transition to MiVoice Business.

Mitel is offering no-charge or discounted MiVoice Business licensing arrangements for MiVoice 250 customers. This program also supports the transfer of the remaining months of MiVoice Office 250 software assurance (SWA) to MiVoice Business SWA.

Mitel has evolved MiVoice Business to cater to the needs of any size organization and provides a full range of deployment and commercial options.

  • Mitel recently introduced a new SMB Controller to address the smaller customer or branch office segment for MiVoice Business, which offers Enterprise-level features in a small business package for up to 150 users. This is the perfect solution for customers previously on MiVoice Office 250.
  • MiVoice Business can be implemented as a one-time CapEx investment or you can choose a monthly subscription offering.
  • MiVoice Business can be deployed on-premises, in your private cloud, or in a public cloud (either AWS or Azure).

Contact us today for help with your buying and migration decisions: (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.


Mitel’s MiVoice Connect (formerly ShoreTel Connect Onsite) is Sunsetting. You Have Options

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MiVoice Connect and MiVoice Connect CallCenter – formerly ShoreTel Connect products – are slated to end production by Mitel at the end of 2024 and support will be discontinued at the end of 2030.

While this news means future change, you have time to make decisions on the best alternative for your organization.

  • Migrate to MiVoice Business: This is Mitel’s traditional voice solution, which can be deployed as an on-premises solution or a private cloud solution. MiVoice Business solutions can be supported as a CAPEX or OPEX arrangement and there are several cost-effective licensing options to support your migration.
  • Migrate to UCaaS: A cloud-based service option like TCI Host service or RingCentral MVP provides all-in-one communications. Get more details on the available promotions and capabilities to see if these monthly subscription plans make sense for you. 
  • Status Quo: You may decide not to make any changes at all. TCI will continue to support you. At some point, MiVoice Connect may not be compatible with new Microsoft operating systems, and we’ll be able to assist you at that time.

Please contact us if you have any questions, or are ready to explore your options. We’re at (703) 321-3030 or GetHelp@tcicomm.com.

 

MiVoice Customers: Mitel’s Complete Release 9 Platform Refresh Includes Improved Performance & Security

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TCI and Mitel are pleased to announce the arrival of MiVoice Business Release 9.0 – a suite of upgrades designed to facilitate a simplified process for the deployment of ongoing patches, security updates, and performance improvements. 9.0 also enables a retooled infrastructure ready to evolve your business to next-generation networks.

9.0 Highlights include…

  • A complete software refresh and move to native Linux, providing a common set of tools for software management, while enabling the integration of new services and enhanced security.
  • A new approach to updating individual software components rather than an entire software load. This will reduce maintenance time, allow faster response to potential future security issues, and provide added incentive for IT administrators to promptly implement updates.
  • Significantly enhanced system performance and serviceability.

Pre-Migration Audit

TCI’s local team of Mitel experts will be in touch to arrange time to discuss what a successful implementation can mean to the continued success of your business and answer any questions you may have. Our pre-migration audit has several objectives:

  • Discover any hardware that is unsupported
  • Identify any license changes that may be required
  • Prepare for a successful transition from VxWorks (the previous Operating System) to Linux
  • Review Mitel’s introduction of Server Manager to all platforms

Again, we’ll be in touch with our MiVoice clients to go over everything. If you’re ready to schedule your briefing now, please contact us at (703) 321-3030 or info@tcicomm.com.