The product also features fully integrated, presence-enabled contact centre functionality and is designed to help businesses deploy UC to reduce communication costs, improve customer service levels and maintain a competitive edge – even in the midst of the global economic climate.
The OpenScape Office UC application on HiPath 3000 can scale up to a maximum user base of 384, increasing the scope of SMBs that will be able to make use of easy-to-use voice and conferencing services, presence, mobility, voicemail, messaging and contact centre capabilities. By incorporating OpenScape Office into Siemens’ HiPath 3000 platform, UC can now be deployed across Internet Protocol (IP), TDM and analog environments, giving Siemens’ customers more flexibility in migrating to UC.
“With this latest launch, we are bringing enterprise-class functionality to a broader range of customers. Unified communications is no longer just for SMBs with IP environments,” said Leon Mangan, Sales Director, Indirect Channel, Siemens Enterprise Communications. “For our existing installed base of approximately 500,000 HiPath 3000 customers we can now offer a simple and affordable software upgrade to UC with little or no capital expenditure required. For prospective customers wishing to improve their existing communications infrastructure, we can provide an open, standards-based and cost-effective path to UC.”
SMBs face a number of hidden communications costs, as highlighted in a recent Siemens report. OpenScape Office on the HiPath 3000 platform utilises the capabilities of unified communications to address the communications challenges facing SMBs. Key features include:
• Integrated presence to tackle problems associated with inefficient coordination and waiting for information, by enabling individuals to easily view co-worker availability for a phone call or an adhoc teleconference
• Contact centre functionality, including call routing capability, allowing SMBs to deliver better levels of customer service, resolve a higher number of calls first time and reduce the number of customer complaints
• A reduction in unwanted calls that hamper employee productivity through AutoAttendant and Call Journal functions
• OpenScape Office includes mobility features that break down barriers to collaboration, making it possible for employees to work and collaborate, whether at the office or from a remote location
“We’ve worked with Siemens technology for a number of years. This latest version of HiPath 3000 is significantly different from our previous telephone infrastructure, but we are delighted with the additional benefits that the new generation equipment brings,” said Richard Monk, Managing Director, MG Owners Club Ltd. “The integrated call centre works very well and the support we’ve received in terms of training has really helped improve productivity and efficiency in our office.”
“Our strong relationship with Siemens, coupled with the breadth of functionality available in this latest version of HiPath 3000, was a strong incentive to offer this product to our customers,” says Roy Carter, Managing Director, Datasharp. “The ability to implement UC in non-IP environments is a real reason to not only approach our existing customer base with a genuinely new proposition but also to speak with organisations who may not be willing or able to consider some UC solutions. One key factor is the increased number of users that HiPath 3000 can now accommodate, meaning there is opportunity to work with a larger number of end users who may not have the low cost, high performance service that HiPath 3000 offers. Innovation is possible, even during a downturn.”
By using Digital Channel - Siemens' web and email marketing tool for partners - Go Forward accredited resellers will be able to easily use an online cost cutting calculator to work out the hidden costs of communications for SMBs and to promote the benefits of OpenScape Office and unified communications to customers and prospects.
Inherent to its Open Communications strategy is Siemens’ commitment to providing its customers with standards-business communications. This promise ensures companies can mitigate risk and maintain lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) when deploying unified communications. In addition, Siemens’ OpenPath migration approach enables customers to migrate to UC at their own pace and within virtually any existing communications environment.