Five Questions with Klaus Hillmann
Klaus Hillmann
Director of Converged Solutions for SOURCE
As a ten-year communications veteran, Klaus Hillmann is an industry expert with a vast knowledge of the latest and greatest communication technology. He holds an Avaya Certification on IP Telephony applications, as well as a certification on traditional PBX and call-center applications. Here?s his insight on today?s hot topics in telecom:
Where do you expect to see communications going in the next 10 years?
Software, Software, Software?Network T1?s replaced by SIP trunks?.SIP and Presence integration between your SIP desk phone, cell phone, email, and IM?.Mobility solutions?..Open Source software systems.
What are the top three questions regarding convergence that executives should ask themselves today?
1. Security ? will I be at risk?
2. How can convergence help me save money?
3. How can convergence help me to grow revenue?
In addition to VoIP, what other technologies do you foresee having a great impact
on the industry?
One of the interesting technologies making its way to the forefront is an Open Source system, such as Astrisk. With this technology, a customer can download the software code, load it on their server, then add the applications and integrations on their own. This type of system can be risky in that it requires a strong IT team of programmers internally or externally. The other option is to outsource the support to someone that has expertise in this type of technology.
From your perspective, what do you think other companies could be doing to improve
communications and satisfaction for customers?
First, know your customer. Use technology to get a 360-degree-view of your client.
Operate an efficient, secure and quality voice and data network. Secondly, make
it easy for people to do business with you. Companies now have two front doors,
their phone system and the Internet. Both of these will be equally vital in making
first impressions. If you don?t integrate your web, email and voice applications,
your competition will.
What is the biggest challenge facing contact centers today?
Differentiation and personalization. The technology is there to capture all you could ever want to know about a client, if they are willing to invest in that technology to improve the customer experience. Administrators must have a competitive advantage to maintain loyal customers.
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