The ISDN Switch-Off is looming ever closer, and many businesses are starting to prepare themselves for the change. Organisations across the country will need to pre-empt their next move to ensure the transition goes smoothly for their business.
The Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) is a form of traditional, legacy telephony that transmits voice and data over digital lines.
But we no longer have to rely on the ageing copper infrastructure currently in place. Hybrid telephone systems can help businesses move to a cloud-based system; with everything in the cloud, you’ll be able to access systems from anywhere, working from wherever you want. In essence, all analogue, copper phone lines will be deactivated in 2025 as the world shifts to making voice calls over the internet (known as ‘voice over IP’ or ‘VoIP’).
Access from all over
In a post-pandemic world, working from home is the new normal, and being free from copper landlines makes remote work even easier. Our ability to make calls over broadband means we can communicate with colleagues and clients from anywhere, with businesses becoming increasingly portable.
Yet, as remarkable as these new technologies are, they raise some important questions: how do we sustain the right work-life balance? The ISDN is being switched off — now, how do we switch off?
When your home becomes the office, and the office becomes inescapable, having all-hours access to business calls and emails can blur the line between work and personal downtime. We’re all familiar with the unhealthy temptation to carry on working whilst ‘off the clock’. Answering emails in bed. Taking calls on our lunch break. All because we’re using one shared device — constantly mixing business with pleasure with no way of switching off.
For many, remote working has increased the number of hours they are connected to their employers, with research showing that people working from home did an average of six hours of unpaid work per week.
Though this may feel like the new normal, some countries have started introducing legislation to create a clear boundary between work and personal life. For example, Portugal has banned employers from contacting employees by phone, message or email outside their working hours. Though this isn’t illegal in the UK, it’s certainly something businesses should be mindful of — especially considering 65% of UK employees said work-life balance was the most important job factor.
So, although technology is great at keeping us connected, can we also use it to ensure the lines between work and downtime remain clearly defined?
Making life simple
Microsoft Teams has been one of lockdown’s saviours. Teams allows team members (hence the name!) to communicate and collaborate easily, no matter where they are. This software also means that employees can respond to clients through an instant message, share a file or follow up with a call — all in one place. When you use this unified communications tool, all essential documents and contacts are confined to a single platform without ever interfering with your personal applications.
However, running your business communications through Microsoft Teams alone isn’t flawless. Individual accounts can’t be assigned a phone number, meaning secondary handsets could be required at a cost.
That’s where MS Teams Direct Routing — Invosys’ solution to integrating your telephone systems into your business’ day-to-day use of Microsoft Teams — comes in. MS Teams Direct Routing allows you to route calls to and from Teams, utilising all the advanced features of Invosys’ comprehensive Number Manager. Simple controls allow you to select which users to include in a call routing plan and modify inbound settings, such as CLI presentation and outbound call barring. Calls can also be directed to frontline employees to save company directors and CEOs from being bombarded with incoming calls. This way, your workload is carefully managed without losing business.
Round-the-clock support
Or, you could take advantage of our managed services so that you never have to answer another call again! This offering allows you to outsource your technical support line, and Invosys will resolve whatever issue you’re facing — 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Whatever your requirement, we’ve got the expertise and the personnel to assist, offering you seamless support, whenever and wherever you need it.
These Invosys solutions mean you won’t always have to be tethered to your devices. For employees, managers and directors, it’s never been easier to balance out working from home. Make the switch (off) today and see what your business has been missing out on.
Interested in our groundbreaking MS Teams Direct Routing solution or our end-to-end managed services offering? Get in touch today and see how Invosys can reimagine your business communications.
