The market for UC as a service is growing at a phenomenal pace.
As companies from every vertical recognise a demand for agile and versatile communication solutions, UCaaS has emerged as the ultimate solution for future-proof connections. Research published by the Synergy Research Group suggests that the UCaaS market is seeing an annual growth rate of 29% at present.
But what will be the catalyst necessary for continued growth in the years ahead?
As we move into 2019, are the underlying elements responsible for UCaaS' popularity changing, or are companies still in search of the same features and functionality? To get a better insight, I spoke to Rob Pickering, CEO for one of the most agile and disruptive companies in the Cloud Communications industry, IPCortex.
What's Driving Growth in the UCaaS Industry?
According to Global Market Insights, the market for Unified Communications will be worth $96 billion by 2023, and the demand for "as a service" deployments is growing just as rapidly. As the sector involves with new providers, increased consolidation and transformative trends, I was keen to find out whether Pickering considered features and functionality to be the leading driver for UCaaS purchases.
He told me: "There's a lot of UCaaS being sold. Much of which is on the strength of one feature over another, or on price. But we’re seeing many cases where end customers have struggled with implementation, processes, and adoption. I think that’s because deploying UCaaS isn’t just about installing some shiny new tools and telling the customers how to use them. It often involves significant cultural changes in an organisation to deploy those tools effectively."
According to Rob, implementing the latest tools and feature sets in the modern business isn't enough to drive true transformation today. Going forward, companies will be looking for UCaaS vendors and resellers that can give them both the right product, and the correct path to adoption.
The Demand to Serve Consumer Needs
IPCortex is a company that sells solutions through channel partners, with all deployment models available, including UCaaS (simple and multi-instance), on-premises, and hybrid. This company believes that the reseller community has a significant part to play in the continued growth of the UCaaS sector. Pickering told me that resellers capable of going the extra mile to show their customers how their technology can solve their problems will be the ones that come out on top.
“Having a reseller involved that understands soft implementation, planning requirements for the deployment, and about training and organisational implications is essential to achieving a successful deployment and long-lasting adoption. I think this is a big opportunity for differentiation among resellers."
According to Rob, while vendors are less likely to address the specific needs of each individual customer, resellers are in a unique position to offer an enhanced and more intimate customer experience. IPCortex feels that resellers will be essential to the future of UCaaS adoption because they provide companies with the trusted advisor they need during periods of digital transformation and new UC deployments. It's not just about ticking boxes; it's about delivering long-term value for end-customers and resellers alike.
