Is the Contact Center Going the Way of the PBX?

That's the question posed for my latest No Jitter writeup, and it stems from several takeaways from last month's Enterprise Connect 2018. You don't have to look far on my blog to see what I've already written about the conference, but for No Jitter, it just seemed that a number of learnings from Enterprise Connect pointed to that big question.

I'm not saying it's happening tomorrow, but the parallels are strong, and perhaps you'll agree after giving it a read. And if you don't, I'd still love to hear from you, as would the folks at No Jitter. Are you there?

March Writing Roundup

March was light on the writing front, but I kept busy otherwise, doing a webinar, a couple of podcasts, attending/speaking at Enterprise Connect, and being a source for several stories that ran in the media, especially around Enterprise Connect.

Looking ahead, I'm also in prep mode for a speaking spot at the upcoming MoNage conference, and soon after that, I'll be playing music again with the SIPtones at the Genesys conference in Nashville. Updates coming on those soon.

On the writing front, below is a summary of what kept me busy last month. Aside from this, I also produce a newsletter for my subscribers. It's still quite new and is taking shape one month at a time, and the April edition should be out in the next few days. If you'd like to get that, please sign up here, and I'll make sure to get you on the subscriber list right away.

Media Citings Summary Following Enterprise Connect, my blog, March 27

Enterprise Connect 2018 - First Impressions, Literally, BCStrategies, March 19

What Does Messaging Have That Voice Doesn't?, Toolbox.com, March 15

Why the "New Voice" is Happening Now, Toolbox.com, March 12

Talking Speech Tech for the Enterprise - podcast, No Jitter On Air, March 8 (scroll down the list - registration required, but I can help with that)

3 Things IT Needs to Understand About the Digital Workplace, Toolbox.com, March 7

February Writing Roundup

Time for another monthly writing update. My mix of work has shifted a bit, so my volume of writing is less, but am plenty busy in other areas. Depending on what you did or didn't read from me in February, here are the highlights to share:

How Can Huddle Room Technology Maximize Collaboration Success?, TechTarget, Feb. 27

AI in the Workplace - Voice is All you Need, Toolbox.com, Feb. 23

EC Tutorial - 3 Big Ideas for Speech Tech, No Jitter, Feb. 20

Thoughts on ITExpo - Where the Phones Are, UCStrategies, Feb. 20

The Evolution of Unified Communications Technologies, TechTarget, Feb. 14

My Latest Cisco White Paper - AI in the Contact Center, my blog, Feb. 12

BroadSoft Survey Analysis #3 - Extending the UC Value Proposition, Toolbox.com, Feb. 8

How AI can Make Voice Collaboration Better, Toolbox.com, Feb. 6

Consolidating Overlapping Tools for Enterprise Collaboration, Network Evolution Magazine - TechTarget, Feb. 1

Preview of my Speech Tech Tutorial at Enterprise Connect on No Jitter

Got a few messages to unpack in that headline, as preparations for Enterprise Connect 2018 kick into high gear.

1. This is my first time at Enterprise Connect, and I'll be one of the very first speakers, presenting a tutorial on speech technology at 8am, Monday, March 12.

2. I wrote a preview article about my tutorial - all the details are there - and it's running now on No Jitter. Would love it if you could attend my session!

3. This may be my first rodeo with EC, but I'm a regular contributor to No Jitter - here's my profile page if you want to see my other posts.

4. We're all in sales, and here's my modest pitch if you haven't made plans yet. Use this link to register by midnight, March 9, and you'll get $500 off the price.

5. I hope you like the preview article, and if you do, I'm pretty sure you'll like my tutorial. Don't be shy - be social - use #EC18 and @enterprisecon to share.

The Evolution of UC Technologies - My Latest on TechTarget

Am way behind sharing my recent published posts here on the blog. ITExpo was very good last week, and I'll have a post on that any day now. Looking ahead, I've got a post coming about next month's Enterprise Connect, so watch for that as well.

For now, I'm sharing a link to this writeup I did for TechTarget. It ran on their site middle of last week, and has been getting a lot of social media buzz. In case you missed it, here's the link, along with this really nice infographic they put together to support it.

My Latest Cisco White Paper: AI in the Contact Center

If you follow me, you'll know I've been way busy lately. Included in that mix is a white paper I've been doing for Cisco. Everyone is trying to assess what AI can really bring to the contact center, and to help educate the market, they engaged me to produce this vendor-neutral white paper. My job is provide objective, balanced insights, and hopefully you'll reach that conclusion after giving it a read.

The white paper is publicly-available now on Cisco's website, and you can access it here, under the Cisco Finesse tab. Your comments and inquiries are welcome, and any sharing would be greatly appreciated.

ITExpo Preview #3 - The Rise of Messaging in the Enterprise

Here's the final preview post for the sessions I'll be moderating next week at ITExpo in Fort Lauderdale. We're getting our share of snow here in Toronto, so let's just say the change of scene will be nice!

This session will be on the Friday at 11am in Room 210, and joining me will be David Frankel of ZipDX, Brad Blanken of Bandwidth.com, and David Walsh of VoIP Innovations. More detail about the session and the expo in general can be found in the Event Calendar section of my website.

Also, for detail about the other two sessions I'm moderating, here are the blog posts from earlier this week. Otherwise, I hope to see you there, and to follow the event, the twitter hashtag is #ITEXPO2018.

ITExpo Preview #1 - Making Chatbots Your Most Valuable Asset

That's the title of the first panel I'll be moderating a week from now at TMC's ITExpo in Fort Lauderdale. All told, I'm moderating three sessions, and there's more detail here in a recent post on my blog.

Joining me on the chatbot session will be David Lee of RingCentral, and Akshay Sharma from neXt Curve, and we're hoping to add another speaker shortly. There's a lot of ground to cover, but basically, we'll talk about how to get beyond the science experiment stage to make chatbots a new driver of business value and deeper engagement with customers.

For those attending, we'll be in Room 209, starting at 10 - see you there!

January Writing Roundup

I was so busy through all of January, am just realizing now that I didn't do a writing roundup for December. That's getting a bit long at this point, but I'll include just a couple of items from December in this writeup. Many of my posts aren't that time sensitive, so the analysis often has a longer shelf life than the news-based posts that drive most of social media. That's not what I do, and to show the difference, here are some writing highlights from January and a bit beyond.

New Research from BroadSoft - Cloud UC is Growing, Toolbox.com, Jan. 30

Can you Collaborate without Voice?, Toolbox.com, Jan. 22

How to Navigate the Enterprise Collaboration Market, TechTarget, Jan. 16

What to Look for in a Hosted UC Partner - Who are they Selling to?, Toolbox.com, Jan. 15

2018 Outlook - The Shape of Collaboration, No Jitter, Jan. 9

Collaboration in 2018 - AI is Coming, Toolbox.com, Jan. 10

Hackonomy - How BroadSoft Helps Service Providers Succeed with the Cloud, my blog, Jan. 3

CCaaS - Another Slice of the Collaboration Spectrum, Call Center Scheduling Magzine, and  Internet Telephony Magazine, Q4 2017, Dec. 15

Shakeups and Shakeouts in Collaboration - Setting the Stage for 2018, UCStrategies, Dec. 13

Hackonomy - How BroadSoft Helps Service Providers Succeed with the Cloud

I wanted to start off 2018 with my extended thoughts about BroadSoft, a company that has continuously stayed on the forefront of innovation in our space from my earliest days as an analyst in 2001. Among independents, I can't think of many others that fit the bill, and as the industry continues to consolidate, this is a good time to reflect on what they have done right to be successful.

Not only is the technology changing so quickly, but the barriers to entry are getting higher. In today's market, it's not enough to have great technology, and slick marketing will only take you so far. Competing on price is a race to the bottom, and what really makes the difference is having a customer-centric vision, and a culture that allows the business to innovate around these levers. Very few companies do it well over time, and there are lessons to be learned from BroadSoft.

That's what I've tried to capture in my latest analysis, and you can read it here. The format is a bit different, but with all the writing I do, I'm always looking to try new things to connect with my followers. Feel free to share, and as always, your comments are welcome.

2018 Business Comms Forecast - our Latest BCStrategies Podcast

Eventually, I'll transition fully from UCStrategies to BCStrategies, and hopefully this doesn't cause confusion. Two names, two websites, but the content is the same, and so are the people. Am hoping it will just be BCStrategies at some point in 2018, and I'm getting on the bandwagon now.

I stand corrected on my earlier blog post, saying that our podcast about Net Neutrality was the last one for 2017. Forgot about that one, and this one is our lookout for what 2018 holds for the always expanding/ever-confusing world of communications/collaboration/customer care.

Whatever you choose to call it, this podcast is a good roundup of analysts and consultants - myself included - who are all close to the trends shaping this space. I think you'll find it time well-spent, and here's the link to hear what we had to say. Feel free to add your take, and I'll be back to blogging early next week. Happy New Year!

JAA Subscriber Newsletter Launch

I've lost count tracking the time for getting this done, but it's finally launched. Many of you have signed up to get my JAA update newsletter, and the first one was sent moments ago via Mailchimp. Thank you all for subscribing, and many of you have been signed up for a long, long time.

Now that I've got this in place, you can look forward to regular updates, hopefully monthly, and things will definitely evolve as we go. I'll soon be adding a short podcast where I'll review current trends in tandem with a guest, and if you have ideas for topics, please let me know.

If you aren't a subscriber, I hope you sign up, and it's not hard to find a reg form here on my site to do so. Many of you follow my blog via RSS - nothing wrong with that, but I don't know who you are, and by subscribing, you'll get exclusive content that I won't be sharing on the blog. Your call!

For my subscribers, I hope you find the content interesting, and would love to hear your feedback, as well as any business challenges I could help you address.

New UCStrategies Podcast - 2017 Year in Review

It's that time of year again, and there sure is lots to talk about for what transpired in 2017 in the collaboration space. This universe keeps expanding, but also morphing in directions that are hard for everyone to understand.

If you're nodding in agreement, then you'll find our collective reflections time well spent. Here's the link to listen, and there's more coming soon from me and others at UCStrategies in written form.

My New White Paper - Modeling CX to Create Tomorrow's Business Value

I've been working recently with Upstream Works, an emerging player in the contact center space with a strong focus on improving the customer experience. We just completed a white paper based on secondary source industry data and my analysis of the role of CX to create new business value.

The paper was just published today, and details are here on their website to get it. There will be more messaging around this on social media, and if you get a chance to read it, I'd welcome your thoughts, and I'm sure Upstream would too.

RichCall Blog - Summary of Key Contact Center Technologies and Experts

This crossed my path recently, and wanted to share it as a good resource/overview of technologies currently leading the contact center space.

RichCall is a contact center vendor I didn't know previously, and they recently compiled a pretty extensive summary, based on industry research and insights from analysts/consultants/experts in this space. This is a handy reference post if you want a 5 minute snapshot of what's driving contact center technology and what's coming next.

There's a solid list of industry experts - myself included, thanks - and if you're not sure who to follow to stay on top of things, this cohort covers the ground pretty thoroughly. Otherwise, there's some useful stats from Dimension Data's 2017 benchmark report, and if you like what you see, am sure RichCall will be happy for any sharing - and likewise for keeping our names out there.

Using "Hackonomy" to Create Customer Relevance - My Latest No Jitter Post

I'm a regular contributor to No Jitter, and this time around, my focus was on a keynote speaker from the recent BroadSoft Connections conference. Of course, that event was overshadowed by the Cisco acquisition.

That development got plenty of coverage, but I wanted to provide a collaboration context around Bonin Bough's talk about hackonomy. He's a very engaging speaker, and while his focus was very much B2C, I can see relevance here for our space. He was speaking at BroadSoft for a reason, and if you didn't see him, hopefully my post will explain why. You can read it here now, and as always, sharing and comments are welcome.

October Writing Roundup

Was a busy month, with more travel than usual, and attending/speaking at four events. Also made some good behind-the-scenes progress on my website, and had a good jump in new followers for my blog.

I've been talking about providing regular - and exclusive - updates for my subscribers for some time, and it's looking good to finally get that going this month, so please bear with me. All of this has cut into my writing a bit, but here's what was keeping me busy on that front during October.

Understanding Cisco's Acquisition of BroadSoft - I Think Taher Behbehani Knows Why, UCStrategies, Oct. 27

How do Huddle Rooms Fit in Video Conferencing Strategies?, TechTarget, Oct. 25

Why is Walmart Using Facebook for Collaboration? Should You?, Toolbox.com, Oct. 20

Why Messaging is the new Driver for Collaboration, Toolbox.com, Oct. 16

Chatbots - 10 Risks you need to Consider, Toolbox.com, Oct. 12

6 Reasons to Use Chatbots in your Business, Toolbox.com, Oct. 4

Market Analysis - How Mobility and Messaging are Transforming CX, JAA Blog, Oct. 3

Podcast - BC Summit Recap

The month has zoomed by, and the BC Summit was one of four events I attended and/or spoke at in October. Am glad to be done travelling for a while, but the BC Summit kicked the month off on a strong note.

As always, the mix of content was strong, and there was something for everyone.  Highlights have been posted already in written form, but we did a podcast as well, and it's finally been prepared for posting. You can access it now on our portal, and if you'd like to ask more questions, just drop me a line.

Why Did Cisco Buy BroadSoft? I Think Taher Behbehani Knows Why

It's been quite a week, starting with BroadSoft Connections in Phoenix, then MoNage in Boston. Been a big blur, but am back now, and along the way, I managed to write up my thoughts about the big news that dropped just ahead of the BroadSoft event about being acquired by Cisco. 

I hope the title of my post piques your interest, and if you read my latest analysis for UCStrategies (now branded as BC Strategies), the answer will emerge, along with many other thoughts that I think help explain what's behind the move. The post is running now on the portal, and while there, I welcome you to read my other posts, along with those of my fellow BC Expert peers, many of whom were also at BroadSoft's event.

Shout-out for MoNage and next speaking event

Time sure flies, and the Fall 2017 MoNage event is next week in Boston Just doing another shout-out here for the conference, which is now starting to scale as messaging becomes more mainstream.

More detail can be found in the Event Calendar section of my site, both about the conference and my speaking spot there next Wednesday.

Also, if you haven't registered yet, I can share a 20% discount code, and maybe that will get you off the fence. If so, just drop me a line, and am happy to pass that along.