Deciding on a delivery model shouldn't be a basic question of weighing up the attributes of both on-premise or cloud solutions. The sensible approach is to offer real choice by adding a hybrid component, according to Adrian Hipkiss, Vice President and Managing Director for Shoretel in EMEA.
Following a significant product investment Shoretel is bringing to market a true hybrid environment based on a common platform that makes all delivery mechanisms identical, providing simplicity in devising a migration strategy that gives customers what they want.
In a keynote address to Comms Vision delegates Hipkiss gave vivid insights into the vendor's three pronged strategy and said that sticking to CPE or cloud-only can serve no purpose. He explained how the acquisition of M5 Networks in 2012 introduced UCaaS to the vendor's portfolio, and that bringing more choice to resellers and customers was now a top priority.
Displaying an infectious passion for his subject Hipkiss noted: "Offering CPE or cloud on their own is not a consultative sale. But offering CPE, cloud and a hybrid solution is true consultation.
"Conversations about on-premise or the cloud do not provide customers with a real choice. Customers want simplicity, low risk, flexibility and more options. There is strong demand for an enterprise class hybrid service, and our partners looked to us to provide a seamless platform."
Although still a significant market, CPE is declining while UCaaS is growing at a 45% compound growth rate year-on-year. "We are aiming for 38% recurring revenue and expect 55% to 60% by 2017," added Hipkiss.
As well as delivery methods converging on a single platform, social and corporate environments are also coming together and customers are increasingly choosing their business communication tools. They are intolerant of failure, they want feature richness and they expect their reseller to be consultative and insightful in meeting their requirements.
"The next generation of apps must be simple and intuitive, social and managed via a single pane of glass," said Hipkiss. "The user experience drives adoption."