With over 300 million monthly active users, Teams is one of the most popular collaboration and communication technologies in the modern world.
Of course, the platform's flexibility is a significant part of what makes Teams so appealing to enterprises looking into cloud voice prospects. Not only does Teams provide its own business phone solutions, but it also allows businesses to integrate their own carrier into the ecosystem via Operator Connect and Direct Routing.
While Microsoft's Business Phone plans are appropriate for smaller enterprises, the majority of Teams cloud voice customers prefer direct routing or operator connect for a variety of reasons.
Here are some situations where Teams Direct Routing can be the answer:
1. Existing telephony infrastructure
If your organization already has a significant investment in on-premises telephony infrastructure, such as Session Border Controllers (SBCs), PBX systems, or PSTN connectivity, Teams Direct Routing allows you to leverage and integrate these existing resources with Microsoft Teams. It enables you to connect your on-premises telephony infrastructure to Microsoft Teams, making it a cost-effective option.
2. Complex telephony requirements
If your organization has complex telephony requirements that cannot be fully met by Microsoft's Calling Plans, which are Microsoft's native PSTN calling services for Teams, Direct Routing offers more flexibility. It allows you to integrate Microsoft Teams with third-party telephony providers or your own telephony infrastructure, giving you the ability to customize and configure advanced calling features as per your specific needs.
3. Compliance and regulatory requirements
Some industries, such as finance, healthcare, or government, have strict compliance and regulatory requirements related to telephony and data sovereignty. Direct Routing allows you to maintain control over your telephony infrastructure, ensuring compliance with industry-specific regulations and data governance policies. It provides the flexibility to work with compliant telephony providers that meet your organization's specific requirements.
4. Global reach and local breakout
If your organization operates globally and requires local PSTN breakout, Direct Routing enables you to connect Microsoft Teams to local PSTN gateways or local telephony providers. This ensures that your users can make and receive calls locally, reducing latency and improving call quality.
5. Cost optimization
Depending on your organization's telephony usage patterns and geographic distribution, Direct Routing can offer potential cost savings compared to Microsoft's Calling Plans. By leveraging your existing telephony infrastructure or working with competitive telephony providers, you can choose the most cost-effective calling options for your organization.
It's important to evaluate your specific requirements, budget, and existing telephony infrastructure before deciding whether Teams Direct Routing is the right solution for your organization's migration to Cloud Voice.
Any thoughts of integrating Microsoft Teams Phone to your business?
Consider consulting with us today as we're Microsoft Teams deployment partner to determine the best approach based on your unique needs.
For more information, contact us at reps@invite.my or call us at 03 8084 1028