The communications industry has drastically changed requiring businesses to communicate in new ways. Because of this, it’s become more difficult for some companies to keep up. So how can your business invest in the appropriate technology to keep up with the changes and win a competitive advantage?

This was the topic of discussion at a recent panel discussion titled “Revolutionizing Communications for the Connected Business” at ITEXPO 2014, in which panelists Michelle Accardi-Petersen, CMO Star2Star Communications, Joseph Barnas, Director Channels Collab9, Arthur Chang, President and CEO PanTerra Networks and Bernie McGroder, Vice President of Sales Engineering, MegaPath, Inc discussed how businesses can grow with the help of technology, as they look to drive revenue, reduce costs and ultimately gain competitive advantage.

Communications technology – such as unified communications, VoIP, mobile and video – has become integral for companies wanting to boost productivity and gain a competitive advantage. According to the panel, in order to be considered a truly “connected business” you need the capabilities to communicate anytime, anywhere, on any device, with any employee.

“It’s all about integrating communications seamlessly into other business processes so you can close the deal,” said Arthur Chang, President and CEO PanTerra Networks. For IT departments, resources are limited yet available communications technology can fill in the gaps and provide your businesses all of its communication needs in an integrated format that’s flexible and scalable. However, as panelists agree, companies must partner with a vendor that is reliable, high-quality, secure and scalable. 

As for vendors, it’s important to sit down with the customer because at the end of the day you have to deliver the solution that enhances the company’s business and its productivity. You have to dig around and learn about the business before you can deliver the right technology, said Barnas of Collab9. Moreover, it’s really important for people to have a truly unified solution, so they can have true communications that will lead to actionable business results. It’s how you bring them together that really matters, stressed Accardi-Petersen, CMO Star2Star Communications.

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