Boosting interactive intelligence

Michel Gambier, general manager at Information Worker Business of Microsoft Asia Pacific speaks at the event, top, a version of the same presence tool that Office Communicator uses, appears in the built-in screen of the UC phone, left-below, and a screen shot of the Office Communicator.

Let's say you have a promising business and are always looking for new ways to gain the edge over your competitors. Now what should you do to streamline the business process and cut operational costs to maximise profit margin?
Microsoft could come to your help. The software giant has recently come up with an integrated information technology solution that addresses your business needs and gives you the freedom to maintain communication with others from any place any time.
This new-age solution, generally known as Unified Communications (UC), utilises software power to deliver complete communications such as messaging, voice and video on devices that people use every day.
Microsoft Bangladesh organised a special demonstration session at Bangladesh China Friendship Conference Centre on November 12 in order to familiarise the new solution in the country.
Michel Gambier, general manager at Information Worker Business of Microsoft Asia Pacific, said a software-centric communication, Unified Communications will soon change the present landscape of business communication.
John Philips, enterprise technology strategist, Customer Advocacy and Technology Management, Enterprise and Partner Group at Microsoft Asia Pacific, said UC removes communication barriers and bridges the gap between telephony and computing to deliver real-time messaging, voice and conferencing to a desktop environment.
The concept of UC is to help organisations overcome technical limitations in adopting emerging technologies. It is indeed a cost-effective and flexible solution because it only requires software upgrade to incorporate changes.
Unified Communications system is based on client and server software and other services. Client software includes Office Communicator 2007, server software includes Office Communications Server 2007, Exchange Server and services include Office Live Meeting etc.
Office Communicator 2007 is the client application for real-time (synchronous) communications. Its intuitive design makes it easy for users to communicate in features like click-to-call and gives them the option to shift conversation from instant messaging to phone or videoconferences on the fly.
It also helps users manage incoming communications by alerts, automatic call forwarding and by enabling them manually set their status light. Users can set their status to busy when they need to focus on other things, and Office Communicator 2007 routes all incoming calls to voice mail.
Office Communications Server 2007 manages all real-time communications, including instant messaging, VoIP, audio and video conferencing. It works with existing telecommunications systems, so business can deploy advanced VoIP and conferencing without tearing out their legacy phone networks.
Exchange Server 2007 manages all asynchronous communications and delivers unified messaging (e-mail, voice mail, faxes, and calendaring) to users' Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 inboxes.
The 2007 release includes a new voice attendant so that users can dial in to access everything in their inboxes. Users can hear and act on their calendars, listen to e-mail and voice mail messages, manage their personal contacts, or call anyone listed on the company directory.
Exchange Server 2007 also includes Microsoft Office Outlook Web Access, a powerful webmail client that helps users stay connected when they are on the road. Users can also access a rich Outlook experience on their Windows Mobile-powered devices.
Office Live Meeting service (2007) enables people to collaborate online with colleagues, customers, and partners in real time. They could connect and engage with individuals or large groups with just a PC and an internet connection.
Integrating voice communications facility is the real excitement of Unified Communications. PC has now become a live phone machine. If you need to call anyone, just click their name and the computer places the call.
Microsoft's Office Communications Server 2007 and Exchange Server 2007 deliver software-powered VoIP functionality that works with existing messaging and telephony infrastructure.
Voice mail can be stored in the Exchange Server and accessed from a unified inbox in Outlook, Outlook Web Access, on a mobile device, or from a standard telephone.
This type of unification improves employee productivity by simplifying access to the most common types of communications. It also dramatically reduces costs by removing the need for a standalone voice mail system and by taking advantage of any existing investments in Active Directory.
Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging can be connected with a legacy private branch exchange (PBX) infrastructure through an IP gateway, or can directly be connected to certain IP PBX installations.
Nowadays, due to broadband internet, videoconferencing technology has become commonplace. Today people feel free to conduct virtual meeting, training programme or online tutorial without travelling to a particular location in person.
Video web conferencing capabilities powered by Microsoft's Office Communication Server 2007 and Office Live Meeting service will enable organisations to maintain a dynamic communication link with colleagues, customers and suppliers regardless of their physical presence.
During virtual meeting, Unified Communications allows people to enjoy nearly real life work environment. For instance, if a person needs to present an Excel file, they use voice and video facilities simultaneously to make it more interactive.
Unified Communications system has also enhanced traditional fax services. With Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, faxes can be stored in the Exchange Server and accessed from the user's unified inbox in Outlook, Outlook Web Access, or on their mobile device. Unified Messaging centralises the management of inbound fax services within the Exchange infrastructure.
Unified Communications technologies also bring changes to the Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 experience. Voice mail and faxes will arrive in the inbox and now people can work with them just like any other e-mail. Now it is possible to colour-categorise them, assign priority, attach them to to-do items, even forward them.
In addition, if anyone is away from the office, they can dial in to hear e-mails and voice mails read by the speech services built into Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. People can even access contacts and place calls through the voice-accessible Office Outlook inbox.
Unified Communications is, no doubt, a unique solution from Microsoft for smart business activities. As business is thriving in the country, this kind of technology could bring in a new dimension in our business. Ultimate success, however, depends on the proper implementation of this hi-tech solution.