The Channel has been advising UK organisations on the dangers of not being prepared for the PSTN switch-off for a number of years, and 8x8 has played a key role in building that momentum.
The company provides organisations with a cloud contact centre and unified communications platform, which can be an alternative for organisations that need to upgrade their communications solution before the retirement of PSTN services.
The 8x8 XCaaS, which stands for experience communications as a service, platform includes cloud contact centre, business phone, video meetings, team chat, and SMS capabilities.
In the run-up to the switch-off, Russell Tilsed, vice president, sales, EMEA, 8x8, expects the real crunch point to stem from too many organisations delaying their upgrades. This could cause difficulties for those larger businesses who could need more support to move away from PSTN services.
He explained, “Our concern is that there could be companies, and therefore end users and customers, who get left behind. We have customers, for instance, who are running frontline and public services so we understand what needs to be done to prepare for that upgrade.
“And it’s those larger businesses who haven’t yet started to plan, and might not have even planned to plan because it’s not yet on their radar, who could be making the mistake of thinking this will be quick to change. And it is, and it should be, quite quick.
“But if everybody leaves it to the last minute, there’s going to be an elasticity issue or a potential elasticity issue with alternative solutions. At the moment, do people need to panic? No. But everyone does need to be planning.”
The move towards all-IP solutions is a good thing for organisations across the UK, and there is an opportunity to ensure the upgrade delivers tangible business benefits.
Tilsed explained, “The alternatives are significantly better than those older technologies. You’ve got to bear in mind that the PSTN is an extremely old technology, so any move away from the PSTN is going to bring some positive benefits to organisations. One of the initiatives that we’re running at the moment is our outcomes process.”
Tilsed said 8x8’s outcomes process allows customers to determine exactly what benefits – from ROI to KPI improvements – have been made as a result of moving from their previous solution, which in many instances was PSTN-based, to 8x8.
He added, “There’s absolutely an opportunity for those frontline services organisations who are using PSTN-type technologies today, to make improvements in areas such as call handling time reductions, improving customer satisfaction, providing better customer service, and providing better service internally to employees.”
Building a service
The Channel can support organisations across the UK by offering a managed service that will ensure the new solution functions as required.
Tilsed discussed how the company is guiding partners to build those offerings. He said, “We’re sharing material and information with partners, as well as holding events across the UK, to make sure channel companies know that we’re an option specifically to help with this.
“Some of our partners are those types of organisations that will provide a service wrap around our UC and our XCaaS technologies. One provider can take the customer’s inbound line, our technology, and then provide a managed service wrap around it.”
Tilsed emphasised the importance of helping organisations find a solution that meets their needs both today and into the future. He said, “We’re also trying to encourage our partners and their customers not to look at this as a quick fix. It’s an opportunity for consolidation around transformation plans. It is better to have a holistic approach in the long-term rather than just considering the near-term.
“The chosen solution does not have to be a replication of how a business does things today. It’s an opportunity to change positively and move into the future.”
To the cloud
8x8 has experience in taking customers from legacy and PSTN technologies to a modern cloud platform, so has the right knowledge to help partners and their customers to plan for the deployment process and avoid potential challenges along the way.
Tilsed said, “We’ve been in this business as long as there has been cloud communications, so I can put my hand on my heart and say that, whilst every business is unique, there are commonalities amongst them all.
“It’s very rare for us to come across a scenario inside a customer that we haven’t seen before, or that our best minds haven’t been thinking about. Generating solutions for those organisations is ultimately what we’re here to do.”
Problems and solutions
Fit To Switch is an all-industry, supplier-agnostic campaign from Comms Business. The campaign is raising awareness and educating businesses in different sectors about potential risks to their business when the PSTN is withdrawn. Tilsed explained why 8x8 came onboard.
He said, “We joined Fit To Switch to raise awareness. Ofcom wants this to be an industry-led problem and solution scenario. We want to rise to that challenge, and with Fit To Switch we’re looking at each vertical and we’re letting them know that there are other options.
“We’re being specific and intentional about how these options will help with specific businesses. We’ve been deep in thought about how we might help those who haven’t yet made the transition to go about it.”
Organisations across the UK have reason to be optimistic about the future of communications, despite the upgrades that are needed.
Tilsed said that organisations that upgrade to an all-IP solution can find themselves with “better customer service and happier employees”, as well as being able to “bring together data to create knowledge and insights that they didn’t have before”.
Those benefits could open new chapters for businesses across the UK.
This interview appeared in our April 2024 print issue. You can read the magazine in full here.