(Almost) Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About UCaaS but Were Afraid to Ask

Are you perplexed by the ever-changing quagmire of acronyms for the many cloud-based communication technologies out there? In our increasingly mobile world, communication must be effective, global, and available through multiple technologies effortlessly. That’s where UCaaS or “Unified Communications as a Service” comes in.  

That’s a lot to unpack for an opening paragraph, but let’s dive in. 

You are most likely familiar with SaaS (Software as a Service) such as Salesforce, Office 365, and the like. UCaaS is essentially the cloud-based communications version of the same concept. Where SaaS replaced physical software installed on the network or computer using a disc or discs (remember those?) UCaaS enables businesses to replace costly legacy on-premise PBX phone systems with a modern cloud-based business communications system.  

If you happen to be a multi-location enterprise, or are planning to expand or even moving locations, UCaaS is a dream come true. Maintaining and administering phone systems at multiple locations — especially where there are PBX hardware and phones from different vendors at the various locations — can present an IT management nightmare. But, by having the entire phone system in the cloud, UCaaS enables any IT person to manage the phone system from any location. This means you save the cost and headache of sending an IT person with telephony experience to remote locations to perform maintenance or make simple changes, such as adding numbers and provisioning new employees. Plus, it can eliminate calls to a local service provider which saves invaluable time and costs. Simply put, UCaaS will enable you to quickly turn up a new business location, manage MPLS or other business exchange line connectivity between sites. 

And UCaaS is gaining in popularity, especially over this past year with so many previously office-based workers moving to a remote work environment. UCaaS facilitated “business as usual” by enabling remote workers to have access to voicemail, fax, email, and all other company communications as if they’re working in the office. 

To summarize: UCaaS integrates all your business communications into a single solution that includes voice, online faxing, text, web meetings, audio and video conferencing, voicemail, and other Unified Communication features. This all-in-one service integrates seamlessly with cloud-based and back-office business applications and saves costs while delivering the synergy of linking various modes of communication. UC eliminates the management, unwieldy billing, and cost tracking associated with multiple vendors.