18 June 2008
Most organisations remain confused about the precise definition and benefits to be derived from unified communications (UC), a new report from Forrester has revealed.
According to vnunet.com, more than half of respondents to a Forrester survey admitted that they were not sure about the value of UC, while just one in ten claimed to have actually deployed the platform.
Ellen Daley, analyst at Forrester, told the website that there has been a 21 per cent increase in the number of UC pilots launched by enterprises since the beginning of 2007, but that no corresponding increase in the number of firms buying UC solutions had yet appeared.
"A lot of people are talking about it, a lot more are tipping their toe in, but at the same time they are not sure about the value," she said.
A recent report by Gartner concluded that organisations considering installing UC systems should do so to increase business agility and workforce mobility, rather than in order to reduce costs.
Looking at 300 organisations, the analyst found that increased employee collaboration, productivity, and improved customer services are the most important benefits of unified communications witnessed by early adopters.<br/>
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