Description

We are migrating towards an integrated communications environment based on the Internet Protocol (IP) and related Internet technology. It embraces both wireline and wireless networks and covers all communications media: data, voice and video. The business case for this network of networks is compelling but vested interests have introduced fear, uncertainty and doubt in order to buy time while they catch up.

This book makes the business case for a business communications revolution and is written in the language of business, not that of technology. While there are numerous books and white papers that cover technology issues The Business Communications Revolution is the first to make the business case.

From the inside flap - part 1

The information and communications industry has been long on promises and short on delivery. Managers have not seen the return on investments they expected; they are sceptical about new developments, do not have big capex budgets, but at the same time the need to reduce overhead, boost productivity and improve competitiveness remains. Indeed, in the current economic climate it is particularly acute.

Andy Mattes and Bob Emmerson believe that IP Communications addresses all those issues, even though they appear to be irreconcilable. The business case is compelling, but no revolutionary changes are required. Organizations can migrate at their own pace towards a unified information and communications environment. Investments can be incremental. Legacy investments in PBXs, phones and cabling are protected. In addition, mainstream business processes such as CRM and ERP can be communications enabled. This indicates that IP Communications leverages a core asset: the organization's information and communications infrastructure.

In 21st Century Communications the authors reveal how voice and data infrastructures are converging, enabling communications costs to be dramatically reduced. This all-important initial step is followed by the implementation of real time applications that enable better, smarter ways of working and collaborating. This new environment embraces both wireline and wireless networks and covers all communications media: data, voice and video. It also facilitates the realization of ubiquitous computing and communications.

From the inside flap - part 2

The new, networked economy is very demanding in its own right. Service expectations are high but delivery is complicated by the economic climate in which businesses currently operate. Thus, there is a Catch 22 situation. Companies that don't deliver will go out of business, but this time around management is not going to rush out and buy new systems. However, despite recent problems in this sector, economic growth will come via advances in and widespread adoption of advanced networking technologies. The all-important difference is the fact that they will be deployed and employed in different ways to those of the recent past.

Important business issues that this book addresses include the dramatic rise in transaction costs and the fact that many point solutions are hitting performance walls because of recent changes in the economic order, which is service centric. Thus, the tasks for which those solutions were designed have changed significantly. These are not problems that can be fixed; instead they require a pragmatic makeover and the development of sound business strategies. This is not an easy task and mistakes will be costly. Moreover this is not something that management should delegate, hence the need for a book that talks the language of business and not that of technology.

The Authors

Andy Mattes is a Member of the Group Board of Siemens AG's Information Communication Networks (ICN) Group. In this capacity he is responsible for ICN's Enterprise Networks Business Unit's sales, marketing and manufacturing activities as well as regional responsibilities for Germany and Latin America. He was named to this position in January 2001. Andy joined Siemens in 1985 and has held various sales and management positions throughout Siemens AG. He can be reached at: andy@siemens.com

Bob Emmerson is an English national living in the Netherlands. He holds a degree in electronic engineering and mathematics from London University and now works as a freelance writer, part-time consultant and 'industry observer.' Bob writes about Information and Communications Technology for various technical and business publications. In addition he has produced three market reports for the Financial Times as well as a number of white papers. He can be reached at: b.emmerson@electric-words.org

Preface

Executive Summary

Chapter 1: Issues and explanations
The difference between regular telephony and that of IP telephony and the issues that arise when planning and making the transition are covered. The intrinsic flexibility of the new medium is explained as well as the new communications concepts that are enabled.

Chapter 2: It's all about applications
IP is enabling a totally new breed of synergistic, productivity-enhancing applications to be employed on phones, PCs and PDAs. This chapter also covers the shortcomings of today's point solutions and shows how communications portals are enabling smarter ways of working.

Chapter 3: Migration: the #1 issue
Migration is the only significant issue: how to realize the productivity and other benefits of IP Communications and at the same time protect the legacy investment in regular telephony systems, phones and cabling.

Chapter 4: Phones. PDAs, and their amazing new functionality
What is the look and feel of the new telephony interface; how do PCs enable easy use of advanced functionality and how do phones and PCs function as a single entity? In addition, this chapter examines the role of wireless communications in the office environment and 'hot spots'.

Chapter 5: Video enters the picture
This time the V in VoIP stands for Video. This is a relatively easy media type to add to a converged network, the key parameter being bandwidth, which is not an issue. Video is being used to enhance desktop meetings and facilitate the use of this medium for international conferences, thereby minimizing the need to travel and attend 'in person'.

Conclusions

Appendix A: VoIP Services
Appendix B: ROIs
Appendix C: Standards and ubiquity
Glossary of terms

Preface

The authors recognize the fact that the information and communications industry has been long on promises and short on delivery in recent years. Executives and managers have not seen the return on investments they expected, so they are naturally skeptical about new IT developments promising amazing ROIs. Yet at the same time the need to reduce overhead, boost productivity and improve competitiveness remains. In fact, in the current economic climate it is more important than ever. As we shall see in the executive summary, transaction costs represent well over 50% of GDP and the equivalent figure for the average enterprise is similar.

This is a difficult business circle to square. There is a clear need to leverage those investments, e.g. communications enable mainstream applications such as CRM and a growing recognition that the corporate network is a source of competitive advantage. But - and it is a very big but - budgets are limited. Incremental investments that make big differences are clearly a more attractive option than forklift upgrades, as are ways of reducing operating expenses. Yet at the same time management needs to look further ahead; short-term tactics need to be combined with a longer-term strategy in order to stay ahead of the game.

A few years ago the fear of being left behind resulted in hasty purchases of expensive systems such as CRM and ERP. Today management are taking their time and examining the business case for new developments in much greater detail. The cases may stand up individually but they must also contribute to the business strategy, so this is not an easy task and mistakes will be costly. Moreover this is not something that can be delegated.

....... continues. Read the full Preface (PDF: 42 Kb)

Reviews

"By focusing on real-life applications that are currently available (or available in the near future) the authors provide a realistic view of IP communications, looking at how and why enterprises will move to these new solutions. The book shows the value of IP communications and how companies can justify the migration - not based on the technology - but on how the technology can make companies more productive."  
- BLAIR PLEASANT, President and Principal Analyst, COMMfusion, Santa Rosa, CA

"The book presents a clearly-worded and cogently argued case for not only why but also how communications will revolutionize business in the future. It demonstrates that increasingly the complex world requires an increasingly sophisticated technological response to lower the cost of doing business. Readable and intelligent."
- MATTHEW MAY, Editor, Communications International

"In the book 21st Century Communications, Andy Mattes and Bob Emmerson peel back the layers of confusion that have been wrapped around the issue of IP telephony over the past several years and lay out a concise view of the applications and solutions that can be enabled by IP communications. The authors further highlight the impact of IP-enabled communications on personal as well as corporate productivity while managing to avoid the sensationalistic hype that has typified any discussion of IP telephony in the past."
- PAUL STOCKFORD, President and Chief Analyst, Saddletree Research, Arizona