Moving to VoIP while keeping your existing handsets – It can be done

IP Telephony is now a common place, well established technology. It offers companies a clear advantage over traditional phone systems and fits neatly into almost any growth strategy. The business case for the migration to VoIP is not only sound, it can be accomplished with the greatest of ease.

Many businesses are reluctant to migrate to VoIP; why is that?

A shared objection to transitioning to VoIP is the assessment of a company’s existing infrastructure. No matter if you implemented a new PBX six months or six years ago, there remains great value in most of your existing infrastructure. There is a misconception in today’s top enterprises that is not uncommon. Most believe an over haul is required and they are reluctant to dispose of handsets and wiring. With our help, migration to VoIP can be seamless while still incorporating most of your existing infrastructure.

Acquiring new handsets is just the first step in a series of financial transactions. an enterprise will face when migrating to a hosted or IP PBX system. New LAN (local area network) infrastructure, cabling, business disruption and time consuming retraining can effectively double / triple the cost over and above the cost of the handset. An estimated $20.6 billion will be wasted on IP screen phones over the next five years, according to a Gartner Research report.

End user implementation will be a major barrier due to the complex nature of new systems. Business owners need to keep in mind the cost and time involved in retraining the staff to deal with new handsets and future proof the user, so they don’t easily forget about the abundant features in the short term. Even the most technically modest person can be familiar with a new device but, may only use the most basic of functions. A basic user will shy away from the more complex features a new IP telephone have to offer.

Companies are always looking to minimize the expense and disruption of a “Rip and Replace” migration to a VoIP platform. One sure shot way would be with the Citel Portico™ Telephone VoIP Adapter (TVA™). This facilitates your company’s efforts to migrate to VoIP, while still using the telephones and wiring that are already in place. TVA™ can support analogue, P phone (Centrex) and digital (PBX).

TVA™ simplifies the migration process no matter if you’re going to a hosted IP platform with a service provider or managing an in house IP PBX, Citel makes the process as transparent as possible to the end users. We enable a new endpoint on the IP network using a Legacy PBX telephone making it unnecessary to replace the existing handsets.

For companies in older buildings, just the thought of redoing the cable is highly unfeasible and would deter them for a move to VoIP without a TVA™. The Portico™ TVA™ let’s companies re-use their existing phone wiring enabling them to receive all the benefits of a VoIP network.

A TVA solution provides extremely compelling economic reasons for a seamless migration to a unified communications platform. This makes it easy to justify an IP migration in the middle of a traditional PBX “buy cycle”. Enhanced cost savings, additional functionality, productivity enhancements and converged applications are now well within reach. For more information on our VoIP Migration products, please visit our website.