Communications Control
Communications control requires conferencing tools. There's nothing new about these - audio conferencing has been a core phone system feature for decades. But if you ask most users if they can set up a four party conference call, you'll get a two-word answer. Usually accompanied by a chuckle. So what has changed? It's simple: usability.
Audio, video and web conferencing tools are now highly intuitive and integrated with scheduling tools like Microsoft Outlook. AV hardware has never been better in price/performance terms either; for more information, see the audio & video conferencing section.
Audio conferencing software means that teams of people can communicate easily and instantly. These calls can escalate to a video conference at the touch of a button or at the click of a mouse. Conferences can be scheduled (e.g. prearranged in advance), recurring (e.g. a regular team meeting) or ad hoc (e.g. on the fly in exceptional circumstances). If you can schedule a meeting in Outlook or check voicemails on the phone, you now have the necessary skills to use conferencing every day.
Web conferencing extends the capability to any user - employee or third party - with a web browser. Web conferences can be small and interactive or large and one-way (like a webinar). The tools themselves are just as simple. They can be software that is bought, like Microsoft Live Meeting, or a subscription-based service such as Cisco WebEx. Or they can be fully integrated with your IP telephone system. The options are various; it's Charterhouse's job to put the best solution together for you.
