How to Choose a Cloud Communications Service Provider for Your Business
Cloud communications is a contact concept that uses an internet connection instead of an ordinary public switched telephone network (PSTN). Every conversation, message, and video conference runs on cloud-hosted technology with a cloud communications approach. As a result, you don’t have to install hardware or have physical lines in your office. The road to cloud communications begins with identifying the ideal service provider for many organizations. Cloud communications service providers (CSPs) are your link to the cloud. Besides hosting your firm’s cloud platform, they provide a suitable unified solution to improve your cloud experience, eliminating any worries about gathering cloud features from different vendors.
Experts predict that as the UCaaS industry evolves, its value will be more than $165 billion by 2027. This potential has resulted in an influx of CSPs in the market. If you struggle to find the perfect provider, use the following tips to ease the process.
Evaluate Standards and Certifications
To find the right solution for your specific needs, ensure the potential cloud communications service provider complies with the recognized quality structures and standards. For example, ensure the CSP has security certifications such as ISO 27001. The ideal provider should display all their genuine certifications.
Providers that are in compliance with recognized quality standards and frameworks indicate that they adhere to the standards and best practices that are prevalent in their sector. Even if the requirements themselves do not decide the service provider you go with, they may be of great use in narrowing down the pool of candidates for that role.
Study the Innovation Plan
Once you are satisfied with your CSPs certifications, ensure their research and development compliments your cloud goals. Choose a provider committed to innovating and delivering updated solutions for customers.
The cloud comes with scalability and flexibility to ensure you manage an agile business. You can only achieve agility if your provider is at par with the latest innovations and provides tangible results for your customers and employees.
Simplicity and User-Friendliness
When enforcing a new communications program, driving adoption is key to success. You should be able to use your solution to enjoy its benefits. The ideal cloud CSP should offer a solid and rich variety of user-friendly cloud-based features.
You should understand what you need to scale your program downwards or upwards, ask for new features, and benefit from your existing features. Some providers have free test accounts that your team can use to establish the program’s viability. To integrate cloud communications and customer relations management processes into your business, assess the integration references and capabilities.
Governance of Data and Protection
It’s possible that you already have a data categorization system in place. One that specifies the various sorts of data in terms of the sensitivity of the data and/or the regulations on where the data should be in. At a bare minimum, you need to be familiar with the legislative or data privacy regulations that govern personal data.
Keeping this in mind, one of the most important aspects of the decision-making process might be the location where your data is stored. And the local regulations to which it is subsequently subject. If you have certain needs and duties, you should search for providers that provide you a choice and control over the jurisdiction in which your data is kept, processed, and managed. This is especially important if you have certain requirements and obligations. Cloud service providers should make the locations of their data centers easily accessible to customers. But you should also take the initiative to discover this information on your own.
If it is relevant, evaluate the capacity to secure data while it is travelling to or inside the cloud by encrypting the data. Additionally, sensitive volumes should be secure while they are at rest so that unauthorized administrator access may decrease. It is best practice to encrypt sensitive data stored in object storage, often via file/folder encryption or client/agent encryption.
Information Security with Cloud Communications:
Investigate and get an understanding of the provider’s data loss and breach notification protocols, and check to see that these procedures are in line with the risk tolerance of your organization as well as any legal or regulatory requirements it may have.
Be careful to evaluate the cloud provider’s levels of data and system security, as well as the maturity of their security operations and security governance procedures. Information security is very important. The information security measures that the company implements has to prevent risks. And they ought to provide explicit support for your very own security policies and procedures.
Make sure that user access and activity can be audited via all possible pathways, and make sure you have a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities for security that are outlined in the documentation for the contacts or the business policies.
If they are compatible with standards such as the ISO 27000 series or have recognized certifications, check to make sure that they are still valid and acquire guarantees of resource allocation, such as budget and personnel, in order to maintain compliance with these frameworks.
Request copies of the incident reports, audit reports, and proof that corrective steps have been taken for any problems that have been identified.
Pricing and Plans
Modern-day companies are adopting subscription or consumption-based models. Determine whether the plan supports long-distance and domestic call traffic. Some providers allow you to leverage your current SIP trunking and telephone infrastructure services, making them cost-efficient for companies with multiple branches.
Finally on Cloud Communications
Cloud communication is a new method of developing, deploying, and controlling communication systems. When used rightly, the cloud offers high-definition services, reduces costs, and provides platforms full of advanced features to empower your employees.
Adhar Dhaval is experienced portfolio, program and project leader with demonstrated leadership in all phases of sales and service delivery of diverse technology solutions. He is a speaker sharing advice and industry perspective on emerging best practices in project leadership, program management, leadership and strategy. He is working for the Chair Leadership Co.
