Salesmanship Helps Bottler Sell Unified Communications

Computerworld — Unified communications systems haven't caught on as much as expected, and although IT managers report some solid productivity benefits, rolling out such new technologies may require IT to engage in a bit of salesmanship with end users.

Case in point is a $1 million unified communications

A case in point is a $1 million unified communications and voice-over-IP rollout at Raleigh, N.C.-based Pepsi Bottling Ventures -- an initiative started in 2009 that has affected 3,000 employees at 30 locations.

"In a project like this, you implement the UC research pieces, clearly, however you have to put on the marketing hat and drum up excitement," says Pepsi Bottling's director of research, Tommy Alexander, who began overseeing the project at its inception in 2009. "A bit of salesmanship is involved for sure" to get full end-user participation, he adds. "To get the benefit out of a UC system requires full participation."

The bottler

The bottler and its systems integrator, Dimension Data, even created a marketing campaign to let end users know that something big was coming. The campaign used the slogan "A new flavor of communication,'' which Alexander says helped "build up some suspense" for the unified communications rollout.

Most end users don't understand what unified communications systems are, much less the benefits they offer, which is why some marketing from IT was needed.

General rule

"As a general rule, UC is for all that not understood very so then by many end users today -- ranging from CEOs on down," notes Rich Costello, an analyst at IDC. "On the positive side, there is anyway you look at it more understanding about UC research and applications among the IT and telecom types who are charged with assessing, implementing and explaining it to the employees, like Mr. Alexander. This situation truly makes the challenge to educate tough for IT people, both from the 'how to use it' and 'how can we justify it' perspectives."

For Pepsi Bottling Ventures, Dimension Data implemented VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technologies from Cisco along with Microsoft's Office Communications Server.

The particular unified communications technologies that Pepsi Bottling Ventures deployed include instant messaging, a click-to-dial system, desktop videoconferencing and unified voice-mail capabilities.