professional services success story office relocation...
TRANSCRIPT
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES SUCCESS STORY
Office Relocation Prompts IP Telephony Move for Ferrier Hodgson
CHALLENGE:
• FacedwithanagingPBXsystemandthedecisiontorelocatetonewoffices,FerrierHodgsondecidedtoswitchtoascalableunifiedcommunicationssystem.
SOLUTION:
• ShoreTelprovidedthefirmwithShoreTelVoiceSwitches,ShoreTelIPPhonesandShoreTelDirectorforsystemmanagement.Thesolutionwasrolledoutto105usersatFerrierHodgson’snewoffices.
BENEFITS:
• TheShoreTelsystemallowsmoreemployeestoworkfromotherlocations,suchasclientsites,andusethesamerobustfeaturesasiftheyweresittingatthecorporateoffice.
• TheShoreTelUCsystemscaleseasily,whichmeansFerrierHodgsoncancontinuetoaddusersasthecompanygrows.
• WithShoreTel’sleast-costrouting,FerrierHodgsonissavingoninterstatecalls,withcallcostsbetweenitsofficesbeingcompletelyfree.
• BecauseofShoreTel’srichfeaturesetandeachofuse,employeeproductivityhasskyrocketed.
WhenleadinginsolvencyspecialistFerrierHodgsonrelocatedtonewofficesincentralSydney,arefreshofitsPBXsystemtovoiceoverIP(VoIP)seemedliketherightcall.Foryears,thecompanyhadleasedaSamsungPABXsystemandFerrier’sITmanager,MustafaMohabbat,feltthatitwastimetomakethetransitiontoaleading-edgeIPtelephonytechnologyplatform.
Mr.Mohabbatwantedanewsystemthatwouldrequireminimaltimeformaintenanceandadministration,reducethenumberofcallstoincorrectnumbersandimprovecallroutingthroughouthisorganization.Also,hewantedasystemthatwaseasyandefficienttodeploy,wouldreducecablingcosts,andwouldeasilyscaleashisbusinesscontinuestogrow.
‘VoIPisthewaytelephonyisheading–Ididn’tsimplywanttorelocatetheoldsystem,whichwascomingtotheendofitslease.Wefeltitwouldbemorecost-effectivetomovetoaVoIPphonesystemaspartofournewofficesystems,”Mr.Mohabbatsaid.“Themostcompellingissueformewasourneedforasystemthatofferedanupgradepathforthefuture,”headded.
Withthehelpofintegrationspecialist,PTSCommunications,Ferrier
HodgsonconductedanintensivereviewandevaluatedcomprehensivedemonstrationsofIPtelephonysystemsfromShoreTel,SamsungandAvaya.Attheendofthisevaluationperiod,FerrierHodgsonselectedtheShoreTelIPUnifiedCommunications(UC)system.NigelSinclair,PTSCommunicationsdirector,saidthatthemainconcernofstaffatFerrierHodgsoninmovingtoanIPsolutionwasvoicequality.
“TheaudioqualityoftheShoreTelUCsystemduringthedemonstrationwasastandout.ThisfeaturealonesettheShoreTelofferingapartfromSamsungandAvaya,”hesaid.
ITstaffwerealsoconcernedwithfuturescalabilityandeaseofuse:“TheSamsungsystemwetestedstillreliedonaPABXattheback-endandwaslimitedinitsfuture,whilewithAvaya,thehandsetsweren’tthatgreatandthesoftwarewasabitcumbersome,”saidMr.Mohabbat.
An Expandable and Cost- Effective SolutionFerrierHodgsonalsoengagedPTSCommunicationstodeploytheShoreTelUCsystem.ThesolutionincludedaShoreTelE1voiceswitch,whichinterfaces
InsolvencyfirmcreditsShoreTelUCsystemformobileworkforceproductivitygains.
ShoreTel and Ferrier Hodgson Success Story PAGE 2
overanISDNnetworktoitsserviceproviderPrimus,andtwoShoreTel120voiceswitches,whicharecapableofsupportingupto240IPtelephones.ShoreTel560and230handsetswerealsorolledoutto105usersatthecompany’snewoffices.
“OneoftheprimaryreasonstomovetoVoIPwastheabilitytorolloutthesolutionacrossseveralsitesinthefutureandhavethecapabilitytoestablishphoneconnectionsforstaffwhentheywereworkingoffsite,”Mr.Mohabbatsaid.
Beingaproviderofcorporaterecovery,advisoryandforensicservices,FerrierHodgsonhasafleetof“roaming”staffwhooftenworkwithclientsexternally.
“Ifforanyreasonourstaffneedstoestablishasiteelsewhere,thesystemallowsthemtocreateaconnectionbacktotheheadofficehereandhavetheirownphoneextensionupandrunningwithinseconds,”Mr.Mohabbatsaid.
ThiscapabilityispossiblethankstotheOfficeAnywherefeatureoftheShoreTelCallManagerdesktopsoftware,whichenablesremoteworkerstomakecallsfromalaptopanywhereintheworldoncetheyestablishaconnectionbacktoFerrier’sSydneyoffice.
“Employeescananswerandtransfercallsasiftheywereattheirdesks,”Mr.Mohabbatsaid.“Thisisacompellingfeatureandsomethingwecanaddtowheneverrequired.Also,youcansetusersupatdifferentsitesanduseVPNlinksthatarealreadyinplace.Allofasudden,callcostsbetweenofficesbecomefree,andcallsinterstateareonlythecostofalocalcallbecauseweuseleast-costrouting.Inthefuture,thecostofcallswillbefarcheaper.”
FerrierHodgsonalsosavedoncablingcostsbymovingtoIPtelephony.Insteadofhavingextracablesforvoice,thecompanysimplypiggybackedontothedatanetworkcabling,eliminatingtheneedforextratelephonecables.
ShoreTelCallManagersoftwarealsoprovidesinformationaboutincomingcallsandcallhistoryandenablesuserstotypeinacallrecipient’snameandmakethecallusingaPCwithouteverhavingtotouchthehandset.
Thecompletephonesystemcanbemanagedusingthebrowser-basedadministrationinterface,ShoreTelDirector,fromanywhereonthenetwork.
Attheserver,theShoreTelDirectorsoftwareenablesMr.Mohabbattocreateusergroups,accountforeverycallandcapturethecostofthecall,providinggreatvisibilityofallaspectsofthevoiceinfrastructure.FerrierHodgsonpurchased108extensionlicences,98mailboxlicencesforvoicemail,andonelicencefortheoperatoratreception.ShoreTelDirectorhelpsreducemaintenancecostsandallowsMr.Mohabbattomanagethesystementirelyin-house,carryingoutmoves,adds,orchangesquicklyandeasily.
Ease of Installation and AdministrationTheeaseofadministrationoftheShoreTelUCsystemimpressedMr.Mohabbat.“DeployingtheShoreTelUCsystemwasaseasyassimplyplacinghandsetsondesks,connectingthem,doingabitofconfigurationandupitwent.Thehardestthingistypingpeople’snamesintothesystem,”hesaidjokingly.“ComparedtoatraditionalPABX,implementationwasacinch.ItwasamatterofpluggingintheShoreTelUCsystem,turningitonandawayitwent.”
ForMr.Mohabbat’sITstaff,thesystem’seaseofmanagementhashelpedreducetimespentonsystemadministration.“Theadministrationsideofthesystemiseasy.Thesoftwarewasrolledouttoclientsiteswithminimaleffort.WeconfigureditcentrallyusingaWebinterface.Inaddition,allthephonescannowbecontrolledcentrallyandwehaveanupgradepathshouldweneedtoexpandintootheroffices.”hesaid.
Return on Investment (ROI)Inaddition,thecompanyhasalreadyseenareturnoninvestment.“Productivityhasincreasedasyoucanspecifywhatyouwanttodowithallofyourcalls.Userscanchangetheirpreferences–ringtones,routingofmessagesetc.–towherevertheyarelocated,”Mr.Mohabbatsaid.“Userscanbeaddedordeletedbyusinternallyandwithaminimumoffuss.
“The audio quality of the
ShoreTel system during
the demonstration was
a standout. This feature
alone set the ShoreTel
offering apart from
Samsung and Avaya,”
Mustafa MohabbatITManagerFerrierHodgson
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ShoreTel is a provider of business communication solutions whose brilliantly simple unified communications platforms, applications and mobile UC solutions promise a new rhythm of workforce engagement and collaboration. With costly complexity eliminated by design from its award winning, all-in-one IP phone system, UC and contact center solution, and its industry leading hosted business phone system, workers enjoy a freedom and self-reliance that other providers can’t match. Users have full control to engage and collaborate, no matter the time, place or device, for the lowest cost and demand on IT resources in the industry. ShoreTel is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, and has regional offices and partners worldwide. For more information, visit shoretel.com or shoretelsky.com
WiththeShoreTelUCsystem,usershavecontrolovertheirtelephonyandcanmakeanychangesthemselves.”
OtherShoreTelfeaturesarehelpingstaffatFerrierHodgsonimproveproductivity.Forexample,manualdiallingofnumbersisnolongerneeded.EmployeescanautomaticallydialoutusingaPCwiththeclickofabutton.Callscanbedirectedtothecorrectlocationnow,savingtime.
“TheTotalCostofOwnershipandtheROIwerejustifiedbythefactthatITstaffcanmanagethesystemin-house,”addedMr.SinclairofPTSCommunications.“IntegrationwiththeFerrierHodgsonbillingsoftwareandunifiedmessaging,whichisplanned,willfurtherincreaseROI,”headded.
Into the FutureMr.MohabbatisalreadyconsideringrollingouttheShoreTelUCsystemthroughoutFerrierHodgson’sofficesacrossAustralia,andpotentiallyintoAsia.ThecompanyhasofficesinChina,HongKong,India,Indonesia,Japan,Malaysia,PhilippinesandSingapore.
“AsPABXsystemsatourofficesacrosstheworldcomeoutofleaseandthereisabusinesscaseforit,thenShoreTelwillbeexploredfurthertoreplacethosesystemsaswell,”saidMr.Mohabbat.
About Ferrier HodgsonEstablishedin1976,FerrierHodgsonisAsiaPacific’smostwidelyrecognisedandhighlyrespectedproviderofturnaround,reconstructionandforensicsservices.TheFerrierHodgsonGrouphasover40partnersand300staffandofficesinallmajorAustraliancapitalcities,China,HongKong,India,Indonesia,Japan,Malaysia,PhilippinesandSingapore.Inaddition,ouraffiliationwiththeworld’sforemostriskconsultingcompany,Kroll,ensuresFerrierHodgsoncanbeonthegroundseamlesslyandquicklyinallmajorinternationalmarketstocombineglobalexpertisewithstronglocalknowledge.Visit:http://www.ferrierhodgson.com.
About PTS CommunicationsPTScommunicationshasmorethanadecadeofexperienceintheprovisionofofficetechnologywitharangeoftelephonesystemsandaccessoriestosuitavarietyofbusinesssizes.PTSprovidessolutionswithahighleveloftechnology,whichareeasytouseandextremelyreliable.PTSCommunicationssupplyandserviceproductsanywhereinSydney.Visit:http://www.ptscommunications.com.au.
“Productivity has increased
because specifying what
you want incoming calls to
do and where they go is
easier. Users can change
the queues, the ringtone, all
their messages and route
everything to ensure calls go
to them wherever they are,”
Mustafa MohabbatITManagerFerrierHodgson