There were several themes at this spring’s VoiceCon Orlando, but one that especially resonated with me was what I call “UC By and For the People.” Avaya’s Lou D’Ambrosio’s keynote address started off with the notion of the “Democratization of UC” (try saying unified communications democratization three times fast!). This theme was also echoed by Microsoft’s Gurdeep Sing Pall’s keynote, and was evident in various product announcements made at VoiceCon aimed at reducing the entry costs to UC.

D’Ambrosio’s main point was that UC should not be limited to the elite few but instead should be available to all workers. He used video as an example – telepresence versus quality video on the desktop. While telepresence is generally only available for the privileged few, video on the desktop is about democratization - it is more affordable, easier to govern and manage, and more available to the masses. Another way of democratizing UC is by providing inexpensive solutions that quickly deliver improved ROI. D’Ambrosio announced that Avaya introduced new UC solution packages that can provide UC for as little as 15 cents a day per employee. While I have some doubts as to whether a 15 cent offering is really feasible, since inevitably there will be additional capabilities and services not included in the packaged solutions that will cost extra, and these packages are aimed at just a certain subsegment of the market, the point is that vendors are working to provide UC solutions and bundles that make it easier to get started in UC, regardless of the size of the company or its financial resources.

Gurdeep Singh Pall also highlighted the theme of UC for the masses, noting that Microsoft is putting video in the hands of more workers with high definition video to the desktop. He compared Cisco’s telepresence system, which carries a hefty price tag, with Microsoft’s Roundtable and desktop video offerings, which cost a fraction of the price. While this is an unfair comparison as these products have different purposes and are aimed at different use cases, the point is that Microsoft’s approach makes video available to many more workers – again, democratizing UC, or video in this case. While it didn’t come across as clearly as Microsoft had intended, Singh Pall’s message was that Microsoft’s horizontal approach (as opposed to the vertical approach taken by Cisco and others) provides an open platform that can provide UC capabilities in a more vendor-independent, cost-effective manner. I never thought of Microsoft being the most open company in the world, but I do see Microsoft’s point in that a horizontal approach can help to lower costs and bring UC to the masses.

Speaking of the masses, Mike Rhodin of IBM discussed “unlocking the power of the people” via collaboration and the forming of communities that create virtual work places. IBM has been very active in the social software arena (a superset of social networking), and added community-oriented capabilities to Sametime. Rhodin noted that IBM is offering capabilities such as persistent group chat, the ability to instantly share information, location services, and so on, which all extend the company’s focus on collaboration and community. The company uses these and other collaborative technologies internally (IBM is great at “drinking its own champagne” – a more elegant way of saying “eating its own dog food”) and is a great example of how companies can use these technologies to identify, find, and share the expertise and knowledge of individuals throughout the organization, while creating new communities or enhancing existing communities to make employees more productive.

And we can’t forget Cisco, which also supported the theme of “UC By and For the People.” Sue Bostrom in her keynote (which she shared with John Chambers and Al Gore via telepresence) discussed “the network of ideas” and how the best ideas can come from any one person, noting that companies need open and secure platforms to enable anyone to participate in the sharing of knowledge throughout the organization. Stating that the second wave of the Internet involves collaboration and social networking, Cisco reiterated the theme of how productivity can be enhanced when people are given the tools to help them collaborate better. Of course these collaborative tools also help reduce carbon emissions by reducing travel. And what could be better for the masses than a healthier planet?

To me, the theme of this year’s VoiceCon Orlando can be summed up by a John Lennon song (as can many things in life) – Power to the People (right on!).