Strategy, system, or personnel – which matter most?

If you’re deep in a Google search for “telephony solutions,” “happier customers,” or “better internal communication” because you’re embarking on a journey towards a new communication solution, you’ve come to the right place.

If you’ve found your way here for another reason, you’re also in the right place – because this blog post is boiling with knowledge!

Before diving into your next tool, I recommend that you analyze your workplace to determine the next step.

It all comes down to three categories:

1. Strategy
2. Personnel and leadership
3. System

In this post, we will jump into all three categories and understand how and why they must coexist and not be isolated.

Simply put: If you have the right strategy and personnel but a subpar platform, you will fail…

The holy trinity

In this context, the trinity doesn’t refer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

I’m referring to the three categories mentioned earlier. Let’s look into them one by one to understand the fundamentals.

1. The right strategies There are, of course, numerous strategies for companies. Some common ones are Operational Excellence, Customer Intimacy, and Product Leadership.

A strategic plan provides clearer guidance in what might otherwise be vague, tying together vision and company goals. 2. Personnel and leadership “Right person in the right place” is a classic. And also a true one. Teams need to consist of carefully selected employees and leaders who complement and challenge each other.

But it’s not that simple.

Leaders also need to inspire, and employees must find purpose in what they do. Ensure you invest in the right type of development and steer against set strategies and goals. 3. Pick a system tailored to you The right system is crucial for success. No matter how good your strategies are or how well-trained your personnel is, it won’t matter if your systems are lacking.

Choose the services you use carefully and eliminate redundant and complex ones. In this context, a system could be a CRM or a phone system.

My message here to convey is that you cannot make a decision until you’ve grasped the above.

You also won’t succeed unless you tick off all three points.

• Proper strategies, personnel, and leadership without system support are doomed to fail.
• The world’s best apps and programs without a clear strategy won’t work.

So, it doesn’t matter if you have the world’s best and most detailed strategies and super-trained personnel with inspiring leaders if they work in complex systems.

If you, for instance, want to measure your calls in detail or log all calls on a contact card, it must be done automatically so that a user doesn’t have to do it. Some might do it because of nitpicking, but a lazy person like me wont do it.

As a service provider, we naturally champion point 3. We’ve recently launched smarter functionality for our customers to help them achieve their goals.

Which type of system should you choose for communication?

When choosing a service to fulfill the trinity, it’s primarily important to start from your business, your goals, and basis.

Remember that the system should support you, providing users with the tools they need to achieve your goals. Whether it’s shorter answer times or something else is less relevant.

Most modern services offer some flexibility, which is good.

For communication (internal and external), the choice usually stands between:

1. A Contact Center
2. A UCaaS service

The significant difference between the two systems is that a Contact Center focuses on external communication, while a UCaaS service includes both external and internal communication.

Pros and cons of a Contact Center

• Handles multiple media through one interface, e.g., social media, email, and text.
• Integration opportunities
• Callback via website
• Scheduled callback
• Advanced IVR menus and answer groups with follow-up and analysis
• High licensing costs
• No internal communication
• Complex system with a high threshold

Pros and cons of a UCaaS service, e.g., lynes

• Manages both internal and external communication
• Integration opportunities
• Works on all devices
• Advanced IVR menus and answer groups with follow-up and analysis
• Lower licensing costs
• Can’t integrate social media
• Lacks chat via website
• No callback via website

Our thoughts

We’ve recently realised that someone, in this case, us, needs to close the gap between the two services.

We noticed that a lot of customers are looking for a type of functionality traditionally found in a Contact Center, such as more advanced handling of answer groups, follow-ups, post-processing, and deeper integrations. Essentially, a more advanced (but simple) business phone system.

I’m not saying that a Contact Center is in any way bad, but it’s often a bit too much for an SME company.

And who will pay price If you DON’T decide to wear a too big (and expensive) suit (i.e. e Contact Center)

Yep, your customers.

That’s why we’ve launched even more functionality in our PBX to allow more companies to access the essential features crucial for customer service.

Comparing a UCaaS to a Contact Center, there are some advantages worth mentioning; a UCaaS has:

• Cheaper licenses, a UCaaS license costs around 70–200 SEK per user, and a Contact Center license generally costs about 200–800 SEK per user
• Shorter startup time
• Easier onboarding of new agents
• Both internal and external communication

If you’ve made it all the way here, congratulations, you’re one step closer to succeeding with your communication.

Want more tips or a demo of lynes? Don’t hesitate to contact us.