Carrying Your Office Phone On Your Mobile With VoIP

The communication system used in any business – no matter the size or industry verticals – has to cater to multiple, different use cases at the same time.

This is one of the reasons VoIP is becoming popular as it integrates different communication channels (voice, chat, audio/video, voicemail, Internet fax and so on) into one toolset that works on the same data network being used for other applications as well.

Another reason for the rising VoIP adoption is the mobile revolution. Employees are no longer restricted or tied down to a single desk or location when it comes to getting work done.

Business processes don’t stop simply because a couple of workers or project teams are not on location. Even a medium-sized organization has to coordinate with suppliers, distributors and partners scattered across the country or the globe.

Mobile access is essential to VoIP

Any business that switches to hosted VoIP needs to consider mobile access. While there are many consumer facing mobile VoIP apps (Viber, WhatsApp and others), the situation is different when it comes to the enterprise.

Employees generally have a work number assigned to them for which they need a separate device (in more traditional, analog setups).

With VoIP, depending on the vendor abilities, mobile access can be configured on the employee’s’ personal device via an app. This essentially means that employees are connected even while traveling, working on project locations or when collaborating with partners and clients.

Your office phone everywhere

With an enterprise, mobile access can be configured in many different ways. Some companies issue specific work approved devices with the appropriate security controls to employees that need them.

Others opt for allowing employees to bring their personal phones to the office and use it for work related purposes. VoIP providers can cater to all these different setups appropriately.

Preapproved work devices

Not every company allows BYOD as it poses a significant security threat. However it can be cumbersome for an employee to carry around two devices in every situation.

Through the online dashboard, employees can easily configure incoming calls to be routed to one phone or the other or both depending upon rules (time of day/week/month, location etc.) It ensures that employees do not miss any calls because the work device stopped functioning, the battery is dead or some other circumstance beyond their control.

BYOD

In the case of BYOD, there is no separate device for the employee to carry and they can make work-related calls and messages on their personal phone.

In such cases, providers usually have a mobile app that can be installed on the phone. The mobile app can be configured to adhere to the company’s network and security policies so that the risk is minimized.

Whatever be the internal organizational setup, a good VoIP vendor should be able to provision mobile access appropriately. However it is essential for the company to inquire about mobility and customer support before committing to a particular vendor as the way it is implemented, maintained and charged for can vary substantially.