i4 Solutions W.L.L’s Post

Cisco Myths 101 through the lens of an SME 🤓 As we approach Cisco’s fiscal year-end, it’s a busy time for the Cisco Collaboration team and our Cisco Practice AVI-SPL and as part of that effort I want to debunk some Cisco myths I encounter on the daily so you can share key industry insights that might help you in your next conversation. As Bruce Lee puts it: “Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, and add what is uniquely your own.” 💪 1. Myth: Clients are moving away from Cisco ✈️ Reality: Many believe that clients are switching from Cisco to Microsoft Teams for collaboration. Cisco and Webex are not interchangeable. However, Snorre Kjesbu covers in his June 20th blog Frost & Sullivan’s recent report highlighting Cisco as the Market Leader for Meeting Room Video Conferencing Devices. Cisco’s solutions remain the premier choice in the industry. 🏆 2. Myth: Clients are abandoning Cisco Calling solutions ❌📞 Reality: This couldn’t be further from the truth. 50M+ cloud users, with 15M Webex calling users can’t be wrong! Cisco’s calling solution is integral for clients transitioning to Teams. With recent advancements in integrating calling and comprehensive Webex suite workloads to enhance the Teams experience, Cisco optimizes user experience while reducing costs. One of my fav solutions, Slido, is the top polling app for Microsoft meeting presentations for a reason- Cisco’s offering is unmatched. 📊 3. Myth: Cisco is hard to work with 🛑 Reality: 97% of Cisco’s business is conducted through partners, who provide immense value to clients. Despite perceptions, Cisco has made significant strides in supporting sales enablement processes and client engagements. With a vast network of experts, Cisco ensures clients achieve their business outcomes effectively. 🤝 4. Myth: Cisco endpoints are expensive 💸 Reality: Cisco has focused on making endpoints affordable while offering premier solutions. Beyond IT, Cisco endpoints provide ROI through facilities management, HR support, and sustainability practices. Features like NVIDIA chipsets, built-in sensors and solutions like Cisco Spaces help organizations make data-driven decisions, optimize real estate, and support return-to-work initiatives. 🌱🏢 Debunk these myths and leverage Cisco’s innovative solutions for optimized collaboration and business success! 💼✨ #avisplciscopractice #CiscoMyths101 #CiscoCollaboration #TechInsights #CiscoInnovation #BusinessSuccess #TechSolutions #CollaborationTools #CiscoPartners #EnterpriseTech #ITOptimization #SustainableIT #FutureOfWork #DigitalTransformation #TeamCollaboration

If you didn't catch any #WebexOne24 content, here's a great overview from Jason Nies, one of ePlus' Collaboration Principal Architects. Let me know if you want to dive deeper with Jason.

Why Your Business Needs VoIP: Enhancing Communication with Microsoft 365 Cost-Effective Communication Traditional phone lines often come with high costs for local and especially international calls. VoIP eliminates these expenses by routing calls over the internet. Additionally, the initial setup and maintenance costs are significantly lower, making it a budget-friendly option for businesses of all sizes. Enhanced Mobility and Flexibility VoIP technology supports a mobile workforce by allowing employees to make and receive calls from anywhere with an internet connection. This flexibility is crucial in today’s remote work culture. Microsoft Teams, part of the Microsoft 365 suite, integrates seamlessly with VoIP, enabling team members to collaborate, chat, and hold video conferences from any location. Unified Communication With VirtuWorks' VoIP services, you can call, meet, message, fax, and SMS all from one user-friendly interface. Microsoft 365 applications like Outlook and OneDrive further streamline communication by integrating email, file sharing, and storage solutions. Improved Scalability As your business grows, so does your communication needs. VoIP systems are highly scalable, allowing you to add or remove lines and features with ease. This scalability ensures that your communication infrastructure can adapt to your evolving business requirements without significant investment. Advanced Features VoIP offers advanced features that enhance business communication, such as auto-attendants, call forwarding, and voicemail-to-email. Microsoft Teams provides additional functionality with its integrated phone system, which supports features like call queues and direct routing, ensuring that calls are managed efficiently. Enhanced Security Cybersecurity is a major concern for businesses, and VoIP systems are equipped with advanced security features to protect your communication. Encryption and secure data transmission ensure that your calls and messages remain confidential. Microsoft 365 applications like Microsoft Defender provide additional layers of security, safeguarding your data from potential threats. Increased Productivity By integrating VoIP with Microsoft 365 applications, businesses can significantly boost productivity. Features like shared calendars in Outlook, collaborative document editing in OneDrive, and project management tools in Microsoft Planner ensure that your team stays organized and efficient. VoIP technology is not just a trend; it’s a necessary upgrade for businesses looking to stay competitive in the modern market. By leveraging the power of Microsoft 365 applications, VirtuWorks offers a comprehensive VoIP solution that enhances communication, improves efficiency, and supports your business growth. Visit virtuworks.com today to experience the future of business communication. #SolveEverything #VoIP #Microsoft365 #UnifiedCommunication #VirtuWorks #RemoteWork #Productivity #Cybersecurity

Elevate Your Communications with i4 Solutions W.L.L and Cisco Unified Communications Manager Cisco Call Manager, now known as #CiscoUnifiedCommunicationsManager (CUCM), is a powerful enterprise-class solution for #voice, #video, #mobility, and presence services. It is designed to provide a comprehensive, scalable, and feature-rich platform for #IPtelephony and #unifiedcommunications, helping organizations streamline their communications #infrastructure and improve #collaboration. It provides centralized call control for voice and #videocommunications, supporting scalability from small to large deployments with high availability and redundancy. It integrates with Cisco's collaboration tools for unified messaging, enhances security and compliance with features like SRTP and TLS, and supports mobility through remote access options. CUCM offers advanced #callrouting, #videoconferencing, and #telepresence support, open APIs for third-party integration, and robust management and analytics tools for efficient deployment and monitoring. Why i4 Solutions W.L.L? We empower organizations by harnessing the power of Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM) to drive #productivity and #streamlineoperations. Our partnership with Cisco allows us to deliver a unified, scalable, and secure communication platform that seamlessly integrates with your existing #infrastructure. CUCM’s advanced features support effortless collaboration through voice, video, and messaging, ensuring efficient #communication across your organization. Our solutions are designed to scale with your business, from small implementations to large, multi-site environments, adapting as your needs evolve. We prioritize security with robust encryption and compliance features, offering peace of mind and safeguarding your #data. Additionally, CUCM’s mobility capabilities ensure your #workforce remains productive from anywhere. With expert support in management, analytics, and integration, i4 Solutions enhances your communication infrastructure, helping you achieve greater #efficiency and #growth. #Cisco #UnifiedCommunications #Collaboration #IPTelephony #DigitalTransformation #BusinessEfficiency #Innovation #CUCM #BusinessTransformation #SecureCommunications #ScalableSolutions #ProductivityBoost #CiscoUC #UnifiedCommunications #CiscoCUCM #IPTelephony #CollaborationTech #EnterpriseCommunication #DigitalTransformation #BusinessEfficiency #SecureCommunication #VoiceAndVideo #MobilitySolutions #TelephonySolutions #CommunicationInfrastructure #TechInnovation Boutros El Haddad, Khaled Mhawish, Rita Geagea, Tony Aoun, Karam Hariri, Eve Chalhoub, Caroline Kazanjian, Dominii Antoine

I just returned from #WebexOne 24, and Cisco certainly did not disappoint! The week featured hands-on labs, presentations from customers and industry leaders, and a large expo showcase. Cisco continues to focus on Customer Experience and Employee Experience. Key announcements from the week revolved around four main areas: • Customer experience with the new Al Agent • Employee experience with the updates to the Al Assistant • True-to-life experiences with Cisco Devices • Design your future of work with Cisco Here are more details on all the announcements. Feel free to reach out if you'd like additional information or a deeper dive into any of them. Webex AI Agent • self-service concierge swiftly takes actions and handles customer inquiries with natural dialogue and conversational intelligence to eliminate wait times and provide faster resolutions. AI Agent studio • allows contact centers to quickly deploy a voice or digital AI agent in minutes and choose which AI models are used to support customer inquiries. Cisco AI Assistant for Webex updates • translate AI-generated meeting summaries into 120+ languages • individual names in summaries instead of just the room name, ensuring every voice is recognized • automate workflows through integrations with enterprise apps, including Salesforce, ServiceNow, Zendesk, and more.   • integrate with Glean, enabling mutual customers to enhance discussions and speed up decision-making with its knowledge graph and connectors, including Outlook, Salesforce, and ServiceNow.  • choose the LLM that best fits your needs with Amazon Bedrock.  • share summaries and recaps across third-party platforms, including Microsoft Outlook, Teams, Copilot, and Slack. Cisco AI Assistant for Webex Calling • view call transcriptions, summaries, and action items during live calls • share summaries and action items when transferring a call • review summaries in the Webex App post call Vidcast • new AI feature will allow users to upload a PDF or PPT and automatically generate a script and voice-overs in the language and tone of their choice. Slido • new AI feature will seamlessly analyze your Microsoft or Google presentation and suggest polls tailored to your content, making it easier than ever to boost participant engagement Cisco Spatial Meeting • transform any space with a Cisco Room Bar Pro to create an immersive studio for Apple Vision Pro users. Lifelike video for demos, training, and more, featuring remarkable depth and dimension. Cisco Ceiling Mic Pro • unmatched audio clarity, using advanced beamforming to capture voices from all areas while reducing background noise. Workspace Designer • fully automate workspace design and customization, providing a 3D view of audio and video coverage #Cisco #Webex #Collaboration #Hybridwork

BlackRock leverages Cisco ThousandEyes to monitor the availability and connectivity of its collaboration services, enhancing their ability to manage environments and infrastructures effectively. By gaining insights into how underlying infrastructures like network, DNS, and routing impact service delivery, BlackRock can collaborate better with various teams, including network operations and Webex support. Since implementing ThousandEyes, BlackRock detected and quickly addressed an internet outage affecting their collaboration services. They also identified a longstanding traffic misconfiguration by gaining unparalleled visibility into Webex traffic from user devices to data centers. This has enabled them to maintain robust usage of Webex across the organization, hosting 2.7 million total meetings, logging 81.3 million meeting minutes, and running 2.1 million video meetings over the past year. https://lnkd.in/eeGpKuU4

Cisco's collaboration division has merged with its networking and security segments, aiming to provide a more integrated approach to IT solutions. This strategic move is expected to enhance Cisco's offerings by combining collaboration tools with robust networking and security features. Combining collaboration, network, and security features streamlines workflows by integrating tools into a unified platform, enhancing efficiency and user experience. This integration improves security with consistent policies and monitoring, simplifies management with centralized controls, and optimizes performance by ensuring seamless operation across systems. Contact solutions4networks today to learn more about how we can implement robust collaboration, networking, and security tools. https://okt.to/VKDmxU #CiscoPartner #Webex #networksecurity #solutions4networks

Exodesk, as a managed service provider, offers VoIP services in collaboration with 3CX, a popular software-based PBX system. Here's an overview of their VoIP services with 3CX: 📞 Hosted 3CX PBX: Exodesk provides managed hosting for 3CX PBX, a software-based private branch exchange (PBX) system that enables VoIP communication within businesses. This eliminates the need for businesses to host the PBX system on-premises. 💬Unified Communications: With 3CX, Exodesk integrates unified communications features such as voice calls, video conferencing, instant messaging, and more into a single platform. This enhances collaboration and productivity among employees.🌟 📱3CX Phone Systems: Exodesk offers IP-enabled phone systems compatible with 3CX, providing advanced telephony features like call forwarding, voicemail, call recording, and mobile integration for seamless communication.📞✨ 📲Mobile VoIP: Businesses using Exodesk's 3CX VoIP services can access mobile VoIP solutions, allowing employees to make and receive calls using their smartphones over the internet, even when outside the office.🚀 🛡️VoIP Security: Exodesk implements robust security measures in collaboration with 3CX to protect VoIP networks against threats such as unauthorized access, eavesdropping, and denial-of-service (DoS) attacks.🔒 🌐Quality of Service (QoS) Management: Exodesk optimizes network performance and prioritizes voice traffic through effective QoS management, ensuring high-quality voice calls and minimizing latency issues.🚀 💻 Support and Maintenance: Exodesk provides ongoing technical support, system updates, and maintenance for 3CX VoIP services, ensuring smooth operation and addressing any issues promptly.🛠️ By combining Exodesk's managed services expertise with the feature-rich 3CX PBX system, businesses can benefit from cost-effective, scalable, and secure VoIP communication solutions tailored to their needs.🌟 #nzbusiness #3cx #VoIP

In today’s digital age, reliable internet connectivity is essential for both office-based and remote teams to maintain productivity and seamless communication. Ensuring a stable internet connection is crucial for businesses that rely on cloud services, video conferencing, and real-time collaboration tools. To achieve this, start by evaluating your internet service provider (ISP) and considering options that offer high-speed, low-latency connections with strong uptime guarantees. For businesses with remote teams, it’s important to offer a solution that supports various locations, whether through VPNs, dedicated business broadband, or SD-WAN technology, which allows for more flexible and secure remote connections. For office spaces, investing in quality networking hardware such as routers, firewalls, and switches can improve overall connectivity and mitigate issues like signal interference or congestion. Regular monitoring of your network performance, combined with proactive troubleshooting, ensures that disruptions are detected and addressed before they escalate. Pen Telecom, a trusted provider, can help businesses achieve reliable internet connectivity through tailored solutions, including leased lines, broadband, and VoIP services. With their expertise, they offer scalable options that are suited to both office and remote environments. Pen Telecom’s managed services also include proactive support and network monitoring, ensuring your team stays connected without disruptions. By partnering with Pen Telecom, you can ensure that your team—whether working in the office or remotely—has the internet stability needed to perform at their best.