Tuesday, March 4, 2008

A Case For Call Accounting: Cost Savings Still Prime Motivator For VoIP Migration

There has been great fanfare about the advent of unified communications and presence based applications that enable business processes. However, telecom spend is still overwhelmingly driven by cost savings.

When asked what business problem they are trying to solve, 32 percent of large-enterprise respondents to a recent Yankee Group survey say "lowering the overall cost of voice and data networking" is the objective. Survey respondents say domestic long distance calling, international long-distance and local telephony connections are the three areas that would deliver the highest cost savings.

A recent study by the Aberdeen Group supports these finding. "The telecommunications spending area is so wrought with inefficiency, in fact, most enterprises don't know how much they spend on telecom services, never mind how they can best manage those budgets."
These survey results highlight the critical need for all encompassing total communication management software (TCMS) solutions that can provide concise metrics about calling patterns and comparative analysis of various plans. The migration to IP can be fraught with danger unless a measured approach is taken in analyzing current and projected infrastructure.

Call accounting remains the centerpiece of every successful enterprise that is looking to manage, transition or implement new communication technologies whether TDM, IP or a hybrid solution. The data from a key system, PBX, iPBX or VoIP communication servers and gateways is collected and massaged by the call accounting software . The system usually attaches additional information such as subscriber name and transaction cost to the activity record (or more commonly call detail record (CDR)).

It is true, traditional call accounting systems may no longer cut the mustard. You will need to have a comprehensive solution that integrates communication statistics under one umbrella. When researching call accounting software, you will need to focus on a vendor that provides an end-to-end total communication management software. Sophisticated communication management systems will catch billing errors, identify network bottlenecks, highlight misuse and abuse and suggest the provisioning of additional resources for more effectively management communication facilities.

RSI (www.telecost.com) is recognized as an industry leader in the field of total communication management software. The communication management product portfolio includes tailored integration to the most popular switching and network manufactures. RSI has been granted Nortel Developer Partner status with recognition for its core portfolio as Compatible Products. RSI is a Cisco Technology Partner, Siemens HiPath Ready Standard certified, Avaya DeveloperConnect Member, Mitel MiSN Member, Adtran Complementary Solutions Provider, ShoreTel Technology Partner, NEC Univerge Partner and Alcatel Applications Partner.
Rito Salomone is President of Resource Software International Ltd.(RSI). RSI is internationally recognized as a leader in communication management solutions. To contact the author, email rsalomone@telecost.com or visit the website at http://www.telecost.com.

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