From a PBX Network to a Hosted VoIP System
THE PROJECT
We took Perlin Franco on board in 2017 in order to upgrade their entire onsite infrastructure. We wanted to move them to hosted email and upgrade their old PBX based network to our Hosted VoIP systems.
This case study will be based on the upgrade of the phone system from old PBX technology to a modern Hosted VoIP solution. The project had no deadlines as such but the old phone system was costing quite a lot of money each month in support fees and call charges.
Perlin Franco is a brand-new contract for us so not only did we need to migrate them smoothly to new platforms, we needed to understand them as a business. This means learning about the systems they have in place and the internal politics of the company.
THE COMPANY
Perlin Franco is an accountancy business based in London and they have been going for over 30 years. They comprise of about 30 people almost all in one location. They run lots of onsite software so have a heavy requirement for on-premise servers.
However, with good connectivity available onsite Hosted VoIP was an attractive solution for them. This gives them a brand-new phone system whilst saving them money.
What we started with
The first stage of the project is always a meeting with the customer, face to face if possible. We can discuss the pros and cons of all the various options this way without back and forth via email.
Our Hosted VoIP system is a fixed monthly price based on the number of handsets that you have. So it was easy to calculate that there would be a saving. They would save money but they also could make use of all the new features you get. Paul was interested in having an office phone at home, that would dial out from his office number. There was also a need for having click to dial software on the PC’s, which would’ve saved time.
Second Step
Once the decision to move to Hosted VoIP had been made. We needed to go through the requirements for the system. Which numbers would go where, which DDI would belong to who, the settings for the various hunt groups. We also had to take into account any auto attendants they want to set up. There are many more settings that need to be discussed. And like any project, the success is largely determined by the initial planning stages.
As modern phones get their power through the network cable a PoE switch was necessary. This would need installing before the go-live date. An audit of network points was also required to make sure that there were enough sockets for every single handset. These things are often overlooked and can cause a big issue on the day of the installation.
Lastly
Once a phone system map has been drawn up, the details of every aspect of the installation and ordered for handset can be placed. As soon as the hardware arrives at the Redsquid office a mutually agreeable installation date is scheduled. This date needs to be carefully considered when it comes to installing phone systems. The reason behind this is because in almost all cases there is a need to port the numbers from the old phone system to the new. The process of porting the numbers can be lengthy and out of control so we need to plan around this.
PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION
On the day of the installation, an engineer from Redsquid will be onsite for as long as necessary to make sure that the new phone system is installed to the customer’s satisfaction.
Often a large part of the installation is training the customer on how to use the new technology. For this reason, we always offer an additional (optional) day of training, where we will sit everyone down and teach them everything they need to know.
The phone system software also needed loading onto every computer and users being showed how to use it. This is one of the biggest benefits of a new phone system, being able to dial from your PC and transfer calls using the software.
At the end of the day, the engineer checked with both Paul and Aarti that everything was working as expected and the project is complete.
Are you thinking of moving your communications to a Hosted VoIP system?
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