There’s no denying that the world has changed. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic forced millions of Americans indoors and changed the landscape of the economy and workforce, large and small businesses alike were actively exploring the technology and processes needed to empower their staff to do their jobs remotely.

This process was accelerated when multiple state governors gave shelter-in-place orders, and companies began shutting down offices to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and reduce the risk of infection for personnel. A robust and detailed strategy to enable remote meeting, collaboration, and productivity is now a requirement, not simply a bonus.

However, there exists a wide variety of teleconferencing solutions and platforms, each with their own interfaces, support structures, and proprietary features. Finding the right remote meeting solution for your business can be a daunting task. The decision can be made easier by clearly defining what your organization is looking for.

Requirements of the new digital workplace

When adopting a teleconferencing and remote meeting solution, enterprise leaders tend to seek a technology platform that satisfies both the needs of individual team members and the expectations of high-level stakeholders. This can apply to several use cases, including employees meeting in virtual conference rooms to share working materials, connect via audio and video, and collaborate closely.

Organizations with a concentration on sales and marketing also require simple and engaging methods for connecting with external clients, leads, and partners as they develop opportunities for new business. Meanwhile, trainers and mentors need tools that can reach and be accessible to a wide variety of audiences—after all, people learn better when they’re able to connect and engage on their own terms.

Additionally, many professionals in corporate communication spaces are seeking to make internal messaging more direct and captivating. They need a technology solution that allows them to build a CEO town hall or similar virtual event that can simultaneously be delivered to an entire corporate structure in real-time.

Organization leaders are facing the challenge of crafting a remote meeting solution that meets the needs of all of these use cases, as well as the challenge of making this solution operate reliably on any device—from smartphones to workstations. What they need is a persistent virtual meeting space that all members of the team can benefit from.

Creating collaboration with the cloud

Many enterprise-level businesses already employ cloud office products with built-in conferencing functions throughout their organizations, but some find themselves requiring an internal collaboration solution that delivers a consistent experience across different platforms.

At the same time, professionals responsible for external presentations are in need of a high degree of control and flexibility in terms of transitioning, question and answer management, and more. They’re also seeking reliable security measures and reliable audio and video quality to make their presentations as functional and effective as possible.

Trainers, meanwhile, can also benefit from a simple meeting product that can enable testing and learning even in cases of limited budgets and smaller scales. Webinars and other larger-scale online events are also gaining relevance as scalability and audience engagement become more important in business environments.

These endpoints can all be served by a cloud-based meeting solution. 

“By 2023, 50% of meetings will be facilitated by virtual concierges and advanced analytics. Through 2023, the cloud conferencing market will be the fastest-growing segment (by spend) of the overall unified communications (UC) market, growing at a compound annual rate of 7%.”

Gartner, Critical Capabilites for Meeting Solutions, Tom Eagle, Adam Present, Mike Fasciani, 8 October 2019

Let the experts at CBTS help your organization prepare for the cloud conferencing future with our suite of Cisco remote meeting solutions. For more information on what CBTS and Cisco can do to modernize and empower your workforce.  Click here to learn more about the meeting solutions CBTS offers.

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Continue reading: How to train your organization to use Microsoft Teams

How to leverage technology to work around the Coronavirus

By embracing collaboration technology, modern enterprises can begin to move away from traditional face-to-face meetings as the go-to tool for driving business operations. The teleconferencing trend shows no signs of slowing down, especially in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As reported cases of the novel Coronavirus grow in number and quarantine becomes necessary to safeguard employees, companies across multiple industries are leaning on video conferences and other collaboration technology more than ever. Effective use of these tools, however, is crucial for continuing business operations and avoiding costly downtime.

Tips to ensure remote work efficiency

Video meeting capabilities give modern organizations significant flexibility in times of crisis.

One approach that has successfully connected global workplaces is the “video first” approach, which emphasizes video conferencing as a reliable alternative for when in-person meetings aren’t feasible due to travel, remote offices, or illness. This strategy is rapidly catching on in the modern business world­; a survey by Deloitte found that 70 percent of respondents expect to use collaboration platforms more often in the near future.

Here are some helpful tips to follow when your teammates are working from home:

• Get everyone on the same page by using the same tools.
• Create online work spaces for projects to keep essential team members in the loop.
• Keep meeting documents, presentations, and notes in a shared place.
• Record meetings for people who are not able to attend.
• Turn your video on; it makes a difference.

The Right Tools for the Job

Many enterprise employees worldwide are being required or encouraged to stay home from the office to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19. Platforms such as Cisco Webex Meetings and Webex Teams can be critical for allowing these enterprises to maintain their day-to-day functionality and continue to serve their clients throughout a public health crisis. There is a wealth of options available for enterprises looking to empower their employees to work remotely without sacrificing collaboration or productivity. CBTS can implement the features you need, such as Call Forward All, Single Number Reach (SNR), and Voicemail to E-mail to keep your team engaged and performing at their best no matter their location.

Webex Meetings enables teams to coordinate their efforts even with miles between them. Anyone inside or outside your organization can quickly join a meeting from a smartphone, desktop, video room devices, or through their browser. Everyone can enjoy consistent meeting experiences and be fully engaged in the conference with minimal technical complexity. Webex Meetings removes the complexity of the video meeting experience—with crystal-clear audio and content sharing in the same session.

Cisco Webex Teams is an easy-to-use collaboration solution that keeps teams and departments connected anytime, anywhere.

• Start calls instantly, have high-quality video meetings with screen sharing at the touch of a button.
• Create secure virtual workspaces for every purpose.
• Include outside vendors or customers in collaborative spaces.
• Simplify day-to-day interactions with messaging and file sharing.
• Third-party app integrations for a seamless workflow.
• Increase productivity and engagement with real-time communications.
• Express your ideas on digital whiteboards and add colleagues at any time.

For more information on how CBTS can help your organization during the COVID-19 health crisis, check out our Contingency planning post or collaboration and meeting solutions page at CBTS.com.

Learn more about the workforce of the future from our recent webcast: Webcast recap: What does the workplace of the future look like?

Several collaboration technology platforms have emerged in recent years incorporating robust and secure voice, video, and content sharing functionality alongside its messaging.

Evaluating these different vendors and platforms goes far beyond researching the features and benefits of existing collaboration apps used inside the organization. The process also involves establishing user policies and formulating a plan for implementation and training.

Questions to ask when conducting research

Here are three questions companies need to ask when conducting their search:

1. How established is the collaboration company and its tools, and is security a top priority? The top companies in the space use a holistic approach to security and will employ experienced security personnel to identify and eliminate threats proactively.
2. How does the collaboration company support rollout and training? An experienced collaboration partner can help establish policies to reinforce your company’s security posture and simplify implementation across all functional teams.
3. Does the collaboration solution support end-to-end connectivity required by today’s agile workforce? Managing your hosted application environment requires a high-performance solution to support visibility across the organization, monitor security threats in real-time, and implement changes to address threats quickly.

Focus on security makes Cisco Webex a trusted collaboration technology

Cisco Webex® is a proven suite of applications enabling today’s global employees, virtual teams, and remote employees to work side-by-side to achieve objectives, as if in the same room. The security features built into Cisco Webex applications make it a trusted solution for corporations, institutions, and government agencies worldwide.

CBTS, a Cisco Webex Master Service Provider

Why hire a technology partner to manage implementation and ongoing support and maintenance of your collaboration solution? Because in-house teams working diligently to meet business goals for encouraging innovation through digital collaboration shouldn’t be burdened with ever-changing security and compliance responsibilities.

With CBTS as your technology partner, IT leaders can integrate new collaboration functionality into the corporate environment while continually addressing security concerns, no matter the location of distributed team members.

Learn more about the top goals of IT executives implementing collaboration technology and how CBTS can help.

While an increasing number of CIOs recognize the benefits of implementing standardized, corporate-wide collaboration tools, the top priority for most companies continues to be security.

Yet, the collaboration tools used extensively every day by employees contain some of your company’s most sensitive information, from customer data to logon credentials to details about a proprietary process or an innovation driving a new product offering.

In an environment where mobility is not only valued but mandatory, IT is still responsible for complying with mounting regulatory requirements, including safeguarding all information shared across collaboration platforms.

Collaboration suite vulnerability threats

Threats most often identified as arising from collaboration suite vulnerabilities include:

• Users accessing collaboration tools from the public Internet versus a secure VPN, opening up threats from web-based opportunists.
• Unauthorized individuals breaching logon credentials, allowing them to gather details for accessing proprietary company data, customer information, and even financial records.
• When limited encryption gives hackers an opening, making the organization vulnerable to considerable compliance risks.
• When code-related issues accidentally expose confidential data.
• Third-party integrations into collaboration tools.

To keep security risks to a minimum, enterprises must begin to reign in and consolidate the numerous collaboration tools used by different teams throughout the organization. CIOs can initiate the process by engaging stakeholders to determine functionality crucial to the lines of business, while carefully considering the diverse needs of corporate headquarters, branch, and remote users.

Focus on security makes Cisco Webex a trusted collaboration tool

Cisco Webex® is a proven suite of applications enabling today’s global employees, virtual teams, and remote employees to work side-by-side to achieve objectives, as if in the same room. The security features built into Cisco Webex applications make it a trusted solution for corporations, institutions, and government agencies worldwide.

Get more done with Cisco Webex. Learn how.

CBTS, a Cisco Webex Master Service Provider

Why hire a technology partner to manage implementation, ongoing support, and maintenance of your collaboration tools? Because in-house teams working diligently to meet business goals for encouraging innovation through digital collaboration shouldn’t be burdened with ever-changing security and compliance responsibilities.

With CBTS as your technology partner, IT leaders can integrate new collaboration functionality into the corporate environment while continually addressing security concerns, no matter the location of distributed team members.

Schedule a collaboration security assessment today.

Now, more than ever, enterprises recognize the positive impact of remote workers on the business and the value of secure collaboration technology to connect them, no matter their location, on any device.

Indeed, according to a recent, eye-opening study by Upwork, more than 63% of companies globally now employ remote workers, and over 48% regularly hire independent contractors, many of them on-demand. As a result of these more agile team structures, modern offices have become temporary anchor points for specialized, project-based services.

Secure collaboration balances risks and rewards

Modern corporations have discovered an agile workforce isn’t just a trend designed to keep today’s mobile, digitally connected employees engaged and happy, but a strategy that makes good business sense.

A distributed workforce can tackle project tasks around the clock, and the organization can benefit from talented people living in locations outside commuting distance to corporate headquarters or branch offices. Also, many of today’s flexible meeting rooms, offices, and co-working spaces provide an environment conducive to secure collaboration technology.

Still, many companies have not embraced the implementation of universal collaboration tools, risking security, and often struggling to keep their widely distributed teams aligned and on target with corporate initiatives. Without access to secure, virtual meeting spaces—integrating voice, messaging, video, and content sharing—suboptimal user experiences are common, with valuable meeting time wasted on technology setup or addressing issues with seemingly simple, collaborative functionality.

As a result, companies are collecting a variety of different collaboration and communications tools downloaded by their employees.

Although these apps give distributed workers the ability to share content and gather feedback needed to keep the momentum after a meeting, the sheer number of apps creates fragmentation. Content, contacts, and conversations get distributed across these various apps, and information either gets lost or becomes difficult to track down—hurdles CIOs and executive teams understand can slow operations and stall innovation.

Focus on security makes Cisco Webex a trusted collaboration platform

Cisco Webex® is a proven suite of applications enabling today’s global employees, virtual teams, and remote employees to work side-by-side to achieve objectives, as if in the same room. The security features built into Cisco Webex applications make it a trusted and secure collaboration solution for corporations, institutions, and government agencies worldwide.

Get more done with Cisco Webex. Learn how.

CBTS, a Cisco Webex Master Service Provider

Why hire a technology partner to manage implementation and ongoing support and maintenance of your collaboration solution? Because in-house teams working diligently to meet business goals for encouraging innovation through digital collaboration shouldn’t be burdened with ever-changing security and compliance responsibilities.

With CBTS as your technology partner, IT leaders can integrate new collaboration functionality into the corporate environment while continually addressing security concerns, no matter the location of distributed team members.

Schedule a collaboration security assessment today.

CBTS is pleased to introduce Cloud Calling, a complete cloud-based calling solution powered by Cisco.

Cloud Calling features

Cloud Calling is a comprehensive service with full cloud-PBX and mobility features. It enables organizations to expand and migrate an existing on-premise deployment into a cloud environment.

This cloud calling solution provides multisite capabilities and global reach for small, midmarket, and enterprise organizations while minimizing the complexity associated with moving into the cloud. It supports a wide range of Cisco IP Phones combined with the latest collaboration technologies–Webex Meetings and Webex Teams.

The CBTS Cloud Calling offering includes calling, meetings, and team collaboration under a single subscription model.

Collaborate efficiently with Cisco Webex Teams

Leverage Cisco Webex for meetings

Cisco Webex Meetings provides unmatched video quality and delivers a seamless meeting experience from any device, anywhere. Webex Meetings is offered as an integrated add-on to provide the world’s most popular and premium conferencing experience.

Receive world-class support

As part of our secure and scalable Cloud Calling offer, you receive:

• Global delivery and support. Ubiquitous services and functionality regardless of location. Ideal for multisite businesses.
• A cloud migration path. Augment on-premise PBX solutions and build a gradual cloud migration to easily scale your business.
• Extensive support. From onboarding, activation, through ongoing 24x7x365 monitoring, management, maintenance, and training our CBTS experts are here for your business.

 

 

 

 

Cloud Calling offers multiple benefits

A fully managed cloud calling solution platform helps you:

Work Globally
Our Cloud Calling offer is built to support multisite and global multi-national networking requirements.

Control Investment Costs
Reduce technology and operational cost and complexity, and gain a more agile, intuitive way to work.

Scale Up or Down
We offer flexible Cloud Calling solution deployments that scale to meet the needs of enterprises of every size.

Reduce Time to Onboard
Start using your new solution quickly and easily.

Remain competitive with CBTS

Cloud Calling by CBTS is the solution for any business that needs and wants to remain competitive in today’s ever-changing digital landscape.

CBTS couples vast technical expertise with flexible unified communications and collaboration solutions to drive successful business outcomes, mitigate risks, improve operational efficiency, and reduce costs for our clients.

“Our clients expect to use professional communications technology that easily integrates with their business applications and workflows. Cloud Calling provides the flexibility and value that will allow clients to communicate and collaborate more efficiently in order to drive business outcomes.

The addition of Cloud Calling, in combination with our existing portfolio of Unified Communications solutions, allows CBTS to fully meet the needs of organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 500 enterprises.”

Greg Samuels
Senior Director, Cisco Sales Practice
CBTS

Greg Samuels
Senior Director, Cisco Sales Practice
CBTS

Future-proof your business today with Cloud Calling by CBTS.

Businesses must adopt cloud computing in retail technologies to grow. Cloud computing in retail  technology ensures employees and customers can quickly and easily access the information they need from anywhere, at any time. The benefits include:

1. Faster customer information processing
2. An enhanced customer experience
3. Increased sales
4. Reduced costs
5. Improved network performance

Cloud computing in retail technology allows retailers to reduce the costs associated with software and hardware development, maintenance, and staffing. This technology also allows retailers to deliver products and services more quickly, and to monitor performance data in real time.

UCaaS improves retail’s omnichannel services

UCaaS (Unified Communication as a Service), a managed service for voice and collaboration, is an increasingly popular tool for retailers.

UCaaS replaces outdated voice-only systems and allows retailers to operate on-demand, real-time communications and applications, such as VoIP, room-based video, mobile solutions, chat, messaging, web conferencing, audio conferencing, social media, contact center solutions, and more, as a utility service. It is a scalable cloud computing in retail solution that improves the quality of voice calls while adding omnichannel features such as call reporting, video conferencing, and email.

With CBTS UCaaS solutions, retailers save time and money by increasing productivity and eliminating upfront costs. Cisco’s Context Service, which is included in all CBTS contact center solutions, collects and provides customer data from all channels, and then delivers it to employees, who can use it for marketing, sales, and other applications.

NaaS unifies multiple store locations

NaaS (Network as a Service) is a Wi-Fi enabled network that provides centralized data services throughout stores. This allows retailers to share wireless connectivity, analytics, and other resources across various locations.

NaaS helps retailers:

• Decrease costs. With NaaS, retailers no longer need to spend time and resources managing expensive and complex network resources such as LANs, appliances, switches, and application delivery controllers.
• Boost sales. Customers expect retailers to provide Wi-Fi connectivity so they can access loyalty and rewards apps, and product information and reviews. According to a study conducted by IHL Group with NCR Corp., stores that offer Wi-Fi have 663 percent higher sales growth than stores that do not. Customers are also likely to spend more time at retailers that offer Wi-Fi and potentially purchase additional products.
• Enhance customer relationships. Retailers can use Wi-Fi to obtain customer data, such as travel paths and product interaction, and send customers personalized, in-store promotions. Wireless access points in stores provide information on where the customer moves within the store, which can help retailers design store layouts that maximize foot traffic.

SD-WAN improves overall network quality

A Software Defined-Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) is another cloud resource that retailers use to cost-effectively manage services among UCaaS, LANs, Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, security systems, and private and public clouds.

SD-WAN minimizes delays over long distances and improves overall network quality. This cloud computing in retail technology allows merchants to maximize their often costly multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) costs, or even replace MPLS entirely and switch to broadband since SD-WAN can be deployed over existing private WAN links such as MPLS and Ethernet, as well as broadband networks such as cable, fiber, DSL, Wi-Fi, and 4G cellular LTE.

CBTS cloud computing in retail solutions ensure business longevity

UCaaS, NaaS, and SD-WAN are all subscription-based cloud cloud computing in retail solutions with monthly payments based on usage. This means no CapEx investment, ongoing hardware and software licensing, or upgrade costs. The trio of services ensures retailers never miss an opportunity to connect with customers, and allows them to analyze and maximize data to develop the most beneficial business strategies. Retailers also reduce costs while improving both overall business performance and customer service.

CBTS monitors and manages the network 24x7x365 to resolve issues quickly and effectively. It can also integrate these services with an existing MPLS network and legacy data apps.

Cloud networking is integral for today’s retailers. Cloud networking offers a more reliable and efficient alternative to traditional multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) networks, enterprise WAN, expensive bandwidth, and costly infrastructure. Cloud technology for retail can help businesses facing challenges that include:

• Limited budgets
• Multiple locations
• Continuous technological maintenance and upgrades

C-level executives require technology solutions that help them lower costs while providing maximum performance and scalability. Ultimately, the best strategy for these companies – especially those in the food service, retail, and restaurant sectors – is a cloud networking solution.

Executives are increasingly turning to CBTS to manage their cloud technology for retail solutions with a combination of Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) and managed cloud Network as a Service (NaaS) to triple their performance.

Cloud technology for retail saves costs and increases efficiencies

UCaaS is a managed service for voice and collaboration tools that allows retailers to operate on-demand communications and applications as a utility service. NaaS is a Wi-Fi enabled network that provides centralized data services throughout unlimited locations. This allows retailers to share wireless connectivity, analytics, and other resources.

When provided by CBTS, cloud technology for retail solutions:

• Allow retail executives to focus on their core expertise rather than IT-related issues.
• Reduce redundancies through management and monitoring via one company rather than multiple vendors.
• Decrease the need for additional IT professionals and ongoing training.
• Combine mobile solutions, web conferencing, VoIP, contact centers, and collaborative efforts so that they integrate and work together seamlessly.
• Eliminate the need for costly equipment maintenance and upgrades.
• Place the burden of implementing upgrades and enhancements on CBTS.
• Scale and evolve as your business scales and evolves.
• Provide usage-based monthly pricing models.
• Offer effective and reliable 24x7x365 service.

UCaaS and NaaS provide retailers a single-pane-of-glass view

UCaaS and NaaS solutions encompass a wide range of communications services, including VoIP, phone, long distance, collaboration applications, contact centers, networking, firewalls, access points, and optical sensor cameras. With a real-time, web-based dashboard, retailers can view key metrics and performance indicators, and evaluate how they align with business goals and priorities. These cloud technology for retail solutions provide a more efficient and unified look at a retailer’s IT services, and offers a comprehensive analysis that would not be possible with solutions from multiple vendors.

CBTS solutions aid PCI compliance

Businesses that process credit card transactions face myriad security concerns. With CBTS NaaS solutions, retailers no longer need to worry about threats to customer information. The solution works with clients’ current payment card industry (PCI) compliance solutions, and adds state-of-the-art Intrusion Detection (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention (IPS) Systems. Anti-malware products protect against digital threats that could compromise data, and a network segmentation strategy limits hackers’ attack options.

Streamlined solutions allow for more in-depth analytics

CBTS analytics evaluate client data so retailers can identify their strengths and weaknesses, and adjust their business models accordingly. This information also helps forecast trends for the future, which is important for industries like retail that rely heavily on customer data. With the suite of CBTS cloud technology for retail solutions, retailers can identify customer demographics and shopping trends, track the effectiveness of customer loyalty programs, illustrate customer traffic patterns, and send promotions.

Future-facing companies understand communication and collaboration solutions are imperative in today’s work environment, even as they face challenges such as an increasingly mobile customer base and aging infrastructure. When it comes to effective communications solutions for retailers, the key is to connect all customer entry points and create a seamless experience across your entire company.

This benefits customers, who desire a consistent experience across different platforms, and businesses looking to collect and utilize customer data for merchandising. Retailers learn more about their targeted customers, and their demographic and purchasing data, through information from a variety of communications platforms. They also learn how customers behave online and the best ways to engage with targeted groups or individuals.

What retailers can do with a unified communications solution

With a unified communications solution, retailers can:

1. Continue to grow and evolve. Communications solutions can scale and change.
   • Integrate contact centers. Deliver a seamless multi-channel customer experience no matter how your customers want to reach you.
   • Advanced routing features. Route calls to other sites during times of peak volume. This is also a necessary feature for retail chains that have locations operating in different time zones.
   • Informative store analytics. Analyze the data collected to recognize call volumes as well as the amount of missed calls your business is experiencing. By analyzing the call data, your business is able to better understand staffing needs and customer experience issues that may be occurring.
2. Reduce costs. Retailers spend less money on buying and maintaining aging infrastructure and pay only for the technology they use.
3. Implement new products and features faster and more efficiently. Integrated communications solutions allow businesses to roll out new updates and applications almost instantaneously.
4. Enhance visibility. Retailers are able to view their personalized suite of solutions 24x7x365.
5. Maintain agility. Modern businesses must be able to adapt to changes instantaneously.

UCaaS, NaaS, and SD-WAN enhance communication capabilities

UCaaS (Unified Communication as a Service), Network as a Service (NaaS), and Software Defined-Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) are important pieces in creating communications solutions for retailers, and enhance the connectivity and collaboration capabilities of communication technology:

• UCaaS allows retailers to operate on-demand communications and applications as a utility service, providing business agility, scalability, informative analytics, and cost-effectiveness to encourage innovation and growth. Through a partnership with CBTS, retailers save both time and money by eliminating upfront costs. UCaaS solutions include VoIP, collaboration, mobile solutions, chat/presence, messaging, web conferencing, audio conferencing, contact center solutions, third party integrations, and more.
• NaaS is a managed cloud service that includes Auto VPN, security, switching, and Wi-Fi. It can be integrated throughout various locations, allowing retailers to share a variety of resources, such as wireless connectivity. It also eliminates the need for expensive network resources, such as appliances, switches, and application delivery controllers. NaaS enables easy and cost-effective sharing of wireless connectivity, powerful analytics, and countless other network resources among all branches.
• SD-WAN is a purpose-built enterprise solution that implements and maintains a high-performance WAN. With SD-WAN, merchandisers can maximize the use of costly MPLS connections or even replace MPLS entirely in favor of broadband. This minimizes delays over long distances and improves overall service quality, which is essential for businesses that need to constantly maintain their connection to customers via multiple platforms. It reduces the costs of private Internet connections such as multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) and coordinates UCaaS, LANs, SaaS applications, security systems, and private and public clouds, saving costs, improving voice and video communication, and regulating private and public networks.

Communications solutions for retailers require strong network backbone

For unified communication solutions to work, and benefit both companies and customers, retailers need a strong and reliable network. Oftentimes, when companies add functions such as cloud computing, social media, and mobile technology, they strain their network capacity, slowing performance.

CBTS offers Ethernet services, dedicated network access, managed Wi-Fi, and SIP/IP Trunking Services to ensure companies stay connected to customers at all times, maintaining customer loyalty and enhancing merchandising capabilities. With 24x7x365 monitoring and management, users can feel confident knowing their network remains operational and their data stays protected. Retailers also minimize downtime, increase productivity, and enhance mobility. The network is available anywhere and everywhere with instant upload potential.

Constant customer contact key to customer-centric merchandising

Retailers require a digital contact experience that includes voice, video, and written communications. To manage these contact points, retailers must provide a contact center that delivers an easy and reliable customer experience. These solutions include omnichannel web, email, chat, and social customer interactions and integrate with existing communications technologies.

Because CBTS understands that contact solutions often change, it offers contact center as-a-service solutions that scale but still meet the necessary demands without any hiccups.

Communications solutions critical in modern business environment

If retailers want to remain competitive in today’s marketplace, they must provide customer-centric merchandising. To do this, they require strong and reliable communication and collaboration solutions that are scalable, yet easy to implement and use.

CBTS communication solutions provide management and monitoring services as well as the communication services themselves, ensuring businesses receive excellent service without oversight or interruption.

Cisco recently honored CBTS, a leading technology provider that delivers communications, cloud, infrastructure, and consulting solutions to clients across North America, with two awards at the Cisco Partner Summit annual conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.

• CBTS received the Execution Excellence Regional Partner of the Year award for its innovation, leadership and best practice as a Cisco business partner across the Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio region.
• CBTS received the SLED Breakaway Partner of the Year award in the U.S. Public Sector.

Joe Putnick, Vice President and Principal for the CBTS Communications Practice, accepted the awards on behalf of the company.

“These awards reflect our commitment to strategic partnerships with Cisco. We pride ourselves in delivering best-in-class solutions, built on Cisco technologies, that deliver positive business outcomes to our clients,” said Putnick.

“We have seen tremendous success with our Hosted Unified Communications as a Service solutions, especially in the SLED space, as more and more clients wish to consume technologies in a hosted model.”

Cisco Partner Summit Theatre awards reflect the top-performing partners within specific technology markets across the country. All award recipients are selected by a group of Cisco Global Partner Organization and regional and theatre executives.

Cisco Partner Summit is attended by more than 2,100 global attendees from Cisco’s ecosystem of partners representing more than 1,000 companies worldwide from more than 75 countries.

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