Business Innovation Homepage > Human Factors

As the workforce becomes more mobile, getting hold of people when you need them can become increasingly difficult. At the same time, there are more options than ever for communications and collaboration. Unified messaging technology addresses both of these trends, providing a way to more effectively and efficiently reach people regardless of their location or preferred method of communicating.

Unified messaging systems integrate different modes of communication, such as e-mail, voicemail, fax, instant messaging and video, into a single message store that can be accessed from various devices. Users have a single in-box from which they can access all their messages from devices that include mobile phones, laptops and PDAs.

Efficiency of communications is one of the biggest potential benefits of the technology. “As companies extend their operations to more locations [and] add satellite and mobile workers, keeping in constant touch with their employees is becoming a hard task,” says Masha Khmartseva, senior analyst at The Radicati Group Inc.

To make this task easier, Khmartseva says, vendors are not only offering an integrated interface for all messages, but simplifying the process of reaching users by integrating their products with corporate directories such as Active Directory, individual contact lists, and calendars and scheduling information. With this capability, “users are able to respond quickly and efficiently to messages,” she says. M ost vendors and service providers that offer unified messaging technology are including it as part of their “unified communications” solutions, Khmartseva says.

As messaging applications and devices become increasingly widespread and diverse, the need to view all messages in a single mailbox becomes critical to ensuring efficiency and productivity, Khmartseva says. Unified communications and messaging enables users to think more about the content of a message they want to send, rather than worry about the type of device or application they should use to send the message — and whether it will reach the recipient in time, she says.

Among the key challenges of a unified communications implementation are the lack of perceived return on investment (ROI), Khmartseva says. Because the products can encompass a number of technologies, capabilities and features, she says, it’s often difficult to come up with a model to test their effectiveness and devise a clear ROI resulting from their implementation. For many companies on tight budgets, it’s virtually impossible to get financing for a project that can’t justify its costs in terms of sound financial ROI, she says.

Other potential challenges include integration with existing communications systems and the fact that the technology is still relatively new.

Vendors including Cisco, IBM, Nortel and Avaya offer unified messaging capabilities.

Cisco’s Unity unified messaging system includes a voice and unified messaging platform. The system’s unified messaging with Microsoft Exchange or IBM Lotus Domino allows users to access e-mail, voice and fax messages from a single in-box at any time, from any location and on any device.

IBM’s Converged Communications Services unified messaging offering has messaging platforms that consolidate voice, e-mail and fax messages in a single in-box that can be accessed at any time and from any place by phone or Web browser. Unified messaging platforms can fully integrate with existing installations of Lotus Notes or Microsoft Exchange environments.

Nortel provides a product called CallPilot, which offers voice/fax messaging and integrated unified messaging capabilities. The product provides access to e-mail, faxes and voicemail from any touchtone phone, desktop PC e-mail client, browser-enabled PC, or mobile e-mail-enabled device. It can be used in client environments including Outlook, Lotus Notes, Novell GroupWise and Internet mail clients.

Avaya offers Modular Messaging, an IP-based voice and fax messaging platform. Messages are accessible any time and anywhere from devices that include phones, fax machines or PC graphical user interfaces. Features include voice and fax messaging, IP Integration with Avaya Communication Manager, and flexible message storage options.

Click here for more Human Factors articles