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How to Procure a Voice Solution

This isn't a discussion about what to procure. There are plenty of offerings, brands, and options to explore. This is about procurement options - brands and technologies aside. It isn't as simple as "cash or charge?"--how to procure it can be nearly as complex as what to procure. Admittedly, it does sound a bit crazy, but the industry is offering more choices and options than ever before.Traditional The most traditional of all the approaches is to buy a system. There is no shortage of vendors to select from. Most manufacturers offer multiple products, each with myriad options. Some are bundled with servers, some are software only. This allows the customer to potentially purchase/finance the servers separately or re-use existing servers. The traditional models are cash or lease. If leasing is selected it can be a capital lease ($1 buy-out) or operating (expense) lease (fair market value). Some firms offer fairly innovative operating lease programs that bundle in maintenance, dealer services, and act more like a rental program.

The capital vs. operating debate is generally more for the CFO more than CIO. Various tax and cash situations will favor one over the other. Some government incentive programs allow accelerated depreciation which favor capital purchases. Best left to the CFO.

Hosted Hosted voice allows a business to procure per-seat services in the form of a virtual phone system. VoIP and broadband networks enable the solution and shifts in attitudes are driving its popularity. Once again, there is no shortage of providers to choose from, each with slightly different bundles. No need to limit the options to local providers either--VoIP is generally distance insensitive (at least within a continent).

To compare the cost of hosted with the cost of purchase requires some normalization. Hosted generally includes usage charges, but not access charges; equipment purchase prices rarely include either. Software assurance and hardware maintenance is usually billed separately on purchases, but included in the monthly charges on hosted. The perfectionist will also want to factor computer room space, a factor for power consumption, and potentially human administrative costs associated with premise based equipment.

Hosted is almost always an expense purchase instead of capital. However, endpoints are a different matter. Endpoints are sometimes bundled in a hosted offering, but usually sold or leased separately. Or, go with soft phones, but remember headsets can be more expensive than IP phones. If softphones are purchased, they too can be financed. Webcams should also be considered in the equation.

Hosted voice is one form of cloud communications, but there are others. The cloud can be positioned for all, some, or overflow calls. Common UC applications such as audio and web conferencing could be purchased with a phone system or obtained through cloud services. The same applies for call center solutions, messaging, IVRs, and video conferencing applications. Or, the cloud could be utilized for overflow situations. Traditionally, phone systems were sized for the busiest hour of the busiest day--that might mean lots of unused capacity in normal operations. Instead a system could be sized for normal usage, with overflow traffic directed to a cloud service.

Not long ago, organizations factored in premise capacity for various ad hoc projects. But the cloud is emerging as a highly cost effective way to implement unque applications. For example, a medical practice might desire an automated appointment-reminder application. Before, the only way to do this involved a system that accessed the onsite scheduler and dialed patients over medical office phone infrastructure. Today, a cloud service might be more a more effective solution, using web APIs to access the practice application. The trend separates telecom infrastructure from custom applications--regardless if the infrastructure is premise or hosted voice.

Subscription Telecom systems migrated to software solutions, and software is usually sold as a license. But in telecom, a license isn't all that effective without software assurance which ensures updates and upgrades. So rather than pay for a license once and assurance annually, new licensing subscription programs bundle the license with assurance into a single subscription. Some are long term subscriptions (year or multi-year) and some are short term to accommodate business fluctuations such as seasonal bursts. Subscriptions don't include hardware. This creates the opportunity for creative accounting regarding capital and expense.

Virtual A virtual solution is available from a handful of carriers that enable the customer to obtain some PBX-like features with nothing but a phone number. These services deliver features via the phone number instead of the phone device. Calls can be transferred and screened, features include click to dial, voicemail, and many more--all regardless of the type of actual phones used (existing system, POTS, cellular, residential, etc.). It is another form of cloud services, but one more level of abstraction by virtualizing actual phone service (aka dialtone). It is considered expense dollars, but has the added "benefit" of setting a bring-your-own infrastructure (phone) environment which further reduces costs.

That about covers today's procurement options. Check with your tax advisor for actual tax advice and check your CIO for hypertension. The unfortunate reality is all of these options can be combined in almost anyway.