Why I Love My VoIP System:

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a technology that allows an organization to converge its voice network with its data network. It is technology that’s been around for some time and, in fact, most of the small business owner’s that I speak with already have a VoIP network.

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From an architectural standpoint, a VoIP phone system makes good sense: why build two networks if you only need one? But instead of spending a lot of time writing about all of the organizational benefits of VoIP technology, I am going to spend a little time describing three of the features that I personally find most valuable:

One Touch dialing:

I spend a tremendous amount of time talking with people on the telephone.  Before my company implemented a VoIP phone system I would sometimes have to dial the same person several times because I miss dialed the telephone number.  With our VoIP system, I can dial anyone in my CRM system by clicking a telephone icon next to the contact’s phone number.   One touch dialing saves me a lot of time and assures that I get the phone number right every time, assuming the telephone number is entered correctly into my CRM system.  (Data quality will probably be another topic for another blog posting at another time.)

Soft phone:

VoIP technology turns the phone system into a software application.  The handset that sits on my desk is far less like a telephone and far more like a computer.  The handset routes calls and accesses my voicemail just like an analog handset can.  But the VoIP handset can work from anywhere I have an Internet connection.  If I wanted to, I could simply unplug the VoIP handset and move to any desk in the office.

I frequently work away from the office and need a way of connecting to my VoIP system when I am not sitting at my desk. Carrying around a bulky office phone is inconvenient and not much of a solution. Instead of using a handset, I have a piece of software loaded on my laptop called a soft phone.  This software turns my laptop into a mobile office phone.  The soft phone application allows me to maintain an in-office presence from anywhere that I have an internet connection. I can then pair my laptop with any Bluetooth headset and I am able to make and receive calls from my work extension.

Voicemail routing:

You’d think that with anywhere any time access to the phone system a guy like me would never miss a phone call.  I only wish that were true!  I do spend a lot of my time on the telephone; however, I also spend a lot of my time meeting in person with people.  During these times, when I am not available to take telephone calls, the VoIP system will automatically route my caller to my voicemail. This is familiar to anyone who has used voicemail in the past. However, the VoIP voicemail system shines because after the voicemail has been left, the system converts the message to an audio file and forwards it to my e-mail in box.  I receive the email on my BlackBerry and am able to listen to the voicemail at my earliest convenience.

These benefits are just a few of many that I see on a daily basis.  VOIP phone systems are highly specialized software applications that require a great deal of expertise to deploy and utilize properly. Endsight partners with trustworthy phone system providers to meet this requirement for our clients.  If you are interested in looking into your options for phone systems, send me a quick note and I would be happy to help you find a good phone system and partner for you work with. You can email me at jclause@endsight.net

Make sure you have a handle on your IT resources

2009 has been a tumultuous year for the small-business Owner. Cutbacks and spending freezes from our customers have forced many of us to make some very difficult decisions with regards to employee retention.

Some of us have been forced to lay off some really good people as we attempt to reduce our cost structures, collect on outstanding receivables and most importantly find new revenue.

I came across a recent article by Roger Grimes entitled “Do you have a handle on your managed resources?” The article is really geared towards a larger IT department but I think it sheds some light on a new challenge that the small-business owner needs to consider.

From a computer infrastructure perspective each employee must exist as a user on the network. In addition to being assigned a physical workstation, that user needs the workstation to be assigned as a resource on the network. Each user and resource are then granted permissions and assigned to groups based on their job roles.

For example, you hire a new controller, and want to give him or her a workstation with access to email, shared files and your accounting data.

To accomplish that on the network your controller is created as a network users in your network directory. He or she is then assigned a workstation as a resource. The controller is granted permission to access email, shared files and your small businesses accounting system as a member of the finance group.

Proper maintenance of this directory is essential to maintaining a secure, reliable computing environment. As new employees start and others move on, this directory must be updated to avoid risks to security. (stale accounts give malicious hackers great opportunities to exploit your network)

This is a difficult process to maintain under normal circumstances, but for the last nine months our business environment has been chaotic. It’s a good bet that network directory maintenance has taken a backseat to far more pressing issues. But it should be addressed and the sooner the better.

Roger’s article is a pretty easy read and it should help provide some direction for those of you that feel like you can take care of this issue by yourself. But as Roger related his story, it’s really easy to delete items from the directory and cause a catastrophe. (Follow this link to read the specific example) So if you’re going to attempt to do this yourself you need to know that you might delete something that could take your entire network down.

At Endsight, we’ve developed add move and change policies that we’ve baked into our internal systems and procedures. Our team does this all the time and we can guarantee our work. If you need help with this issue or with any other aspects of managing your computer network please feel free to contact us.