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7 Best Ways to Install upgrading your company’s phone system to Cisco VoIP phones brings substantial benefits like cost savings, mobility, and advanced features. However, successfully deploying the new Cisco VoIP phones across your organization involves careful planning and execution. This comprehensive guide covers the most effective practices for installing Cisco VoIP phones within companies of any size.
1. Get Your Network Ready
The foundation of any good Cisco VoIP phone system is the network. Before deploying devices, audit your wired and WiFi networks to ensure ample capacity, security, resiliency and adequate QoS controls. Fine-tune VLANs, subnets, firewall policies and bandwidth allocation to optimize traffic for crystal clear voice quality. Strong wired connections are best for desk phones, while WiFi works for softphones and wireless headsets.
Slow or unreliable networks hamper call quality and quickly frustrate users. Adding dual Ethernet mode to support both IP traffic and legacy voice on separate ports for each Cisco VoIP phone can also isolate critical traffic. Traffic shaping allows the prioritization of voice and video streams. Alternate wireless connections over LTE provide resilience. These network preparation steps will minimize issues down the road.
2. Develop a Thorough Implementation Plan
Mapping out all the details in advance is crucial for smoothly installing Cisco VoIP phones. Outline the timeline and phases, inform stakeholders, order all the necessary hardware and licenses, allocate resources and assign responsibilities. Adhering to the roadmap minimizes service disruptions during the cutover. Be sure to build in time for training, testing and post-implementation support.
3. Choose the Right Phones and Licenses
With Cisco’s huge portfolio of IP phones, mobile clients and headsets, selecting models that match each user’s needs ensures adoption. Basic, affordable units for call center agents contrast with sophisticated executive video phones. Allocate mobile and common area licenses as warranted while factoring in future growth. Carefully evaluate accessories like stands and mounts as well to provide exceptional user experiences.
Aligning phones with roles prevents over or under-allocation of capabilities that impact the price per seat. Receptionists, assistants and help desk agents require intuitive call controls, numerous line appearances and productive features like an intercom while working predominantly at their desks. Road warriors operating purely on soft clients just need mobility and ease of use, like extending calls across devices. Get these essentials right, and the Cisco VoIP phone rollout will proceed far smoother.
4. Gradually Deploy in Phases
Avoid service disruptions and overwhelmed technicians by gradually deploying Cisco VoIP phones across logical user segments over several weeks. Allow contact centers, executives and other early adopters to pilot the initial wave. Gather feedback to refine training and onboarding procedures prior to organization-wide implementation. With sites progressively upgraded in structured phases, organizations assimilate the communications transformation smoothly.
Technical teams have ample bandwidth to monitor systems, address incidents and refine large-scale configuration and rollout tooling for subsequent deployment waves. Employees also adjust better to new communications without sudden changes. There’s no need for risky, big-bang cutovers with carefully planned incremental tactics.
5. Monitor Performance Closely
7Best Ways to Install Actively monitoring voice traffic and device metrics enables IT teams to proactively optimize networks and rapidly resolve issues with Cisco VoIP phones. Deploy IP SLA probes, scrutinize SNMP traps, QoS markings and syslog error trends using tools like Cisco Prime Collaboration. If call quality degrades, automatically reroute media flows while troubleshooting the root cause. This vigilance safeguards positive user experiences.
Watching the dashboard early prevents having to explain outages later. Alert thresholds tailored to service level agreements enable automation like dynamic QoS and call rerouting to transparently counteract emerging problems before staff stare at silent phones. Remember that overburdened administrators overlook preventative maintenance. So tuning systems for self-healing and graceful degradation is essential.
6. Solicit User Feedback
While technical indicators reveal network health and device functionality, regularly soliciting end user feedback exposes the real-world experience.Do administrators struggle configuring advanced call flows? Are sales reps hampered by sporadic mobile app crashes? Structured surveys and anecdotal observations highlight rehabilitation opportunities. Continuous improvements incrementally boost satisfaction while demonstrating responsive IT support.
It’s easy for technicians to get tunnel vision optimizing systems for peak efficiency. However, a phone system’s main function is to facilitate business communications. Regular pulse checks via brief support or HR distributed user surveys uncover process or tool barriers limiting productivity. Feature utilization metrics also highlight training gaps to shore up. Keep an open dialogue with users and tweak environments to facilitate workflows.
7. Refresh Strategically
While basic Cisco VoIP phones maintain functionality for years, advances in ergonomics, video collaboration, AI and workflow prompt more frequent executive phone refreshes. Budget for systematic company-wide upgrades every 3 or 4 years to steer clear of support headaches from aging models. Prioritize units with heavy usage, like reception and call center desks. Assign older units to light duty like lobbies, spare offices and work-from-home backups.
A 3-year refresh cycle for Cisco VoIP phones balances innovation assimilation with fiscal prudence. Assign next fiscal’s budget allotment for lease renewals and selective upgrades. Move nice-to-have features from executive wish lists into pilots that build business cases for increased user productivity.
Author: TechBlonHub
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