End User Insights: The REAL Value of Unified Messaging
Customers, partners, colleagues, just about everyone, expect – and demand - instant responsiveness. To enable this instant response, employees need to have access to the latest communications and personal productivity tools. One of these productivity tools is Unified Messaging (UM).
Unified messaging is the integration of voice, fax, and email messages into a single universal inbox. The message notification in UM, allows users to access any of these, anywhere, anytime, from any device or terminal, whether a telephone, smart phone, or PC. These UM solutions also provides a range of features such as, message management, screening/filtering, consolidated message notification, desktop/browser fax & voice mail retrieval, web-based messaging, and cross-media message response. IM also allows users to forward e-mails and faxes from the inbox to a local fax machine. And when needed, e-mail messages can be listened to over the phone.
UM makes it easy to access all your message types on the device of choice and in the medium you choose. Advanced features such as “Click-to-Call” will allow users to initiate a call with a click of the mouse, while “Contact Sender” enables users to simply return the sender of a message or call with a single mouse click. This drives responsiveness and improves worker productivity while reducing operating costs.
As enterprises embark on their Unified Communications journey, providing employees with tools to help manage and maximize communications and collaboration opportunities, UM will play a key role.
This Introduction is excerpted from Blair Pleasant, principal analyst of COMMfusion LLC recent white paper End User Insights: The REAL value of Unified Messaging. Download the complete white paper below.