UC’s Image Problem
There’s no denying that UC can be confusing and that it isn’t easy to define. We’ve talked about that before. The definition is actually in the eye of the beholder, as pointed out by Brent Kelley of Wainhouse Research in an article he posted on No Jitter. Because of this, UC will take on many different shapes and forms to fit the needs of each business culture, which of course will vary depending on industry, size, philosophy, etc.
Of course, there are some truisms related to UC. For me, the first requirement is that UC allows for the business to make, in advance, certain decisions regarding collaboration, messaging and call control. The second is that mobility has to play in some form. Yep, that means I am not sure you can define something as “UC” just because it makes your desk phone and computer/soft-phone work well together. Wireless is just as critical to a UC solution…and maybe even more so given the way wireless devices are used.
Kelley’s article also shares some interesting survey results that indicate the enterprise perspective of UC. The results can be interpreted a number of ways, depending on how you define UC, but it indicates that UC has a way to go before it will be as popular as Twitter or Facebook, or the next social media craze. Maybe if we gave UC a more catchy name … Bobble? Twaddle? YouCee? … it might push it to its proper place at the top of the list.
Any suggestions?
-Steve
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SubscribeTags: Bobble, Brent Kelly, Facebook, No Jitter, Twaddle, Twitter, UC, Wainhouse Research, YouCee
August 11th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
I think it’s simply a matter of packaging. Like you said, there’s no simple, consumer friendly way to make Unified Communication easy to understand and easier to set up… well, there isn’t until I get my way! In my opinion, the definition of unified communication means that messages can flow from one person to another regardless of each of those people likes to stay in touch.