Designing a unified communications system can be a daunting task, the decision between either using a consultant or an engineer to gather end user data can be even more difficult!

Within this post we will put forward three reasons as to why it can be more beneficial for a company to utilize a consultant instead of just an engineer.

The top three reasons are:

1. Soft skills & hard skills

Consultants will have developed a crossover skill-set over time. This tends to be between the softer human side and the harder technical skills of fully understanding the capabilities of the system.

Due to this, it is often easier for them to act as the intermediary between the end client and the technical/program engineer.

The consultant is able to explain all the features using every day layman’s terms that non-technical people will understand. They are then able to transfer this data into a technical document which a consultant can either program or pass onto an engineer.

Meaning a win-win situation for both parties as the end client ends up with a UC system which they are more likely to use to its full potential.

2. Efficiency

Allowing an engineer to focus on the technical aspects of installing a UC means a more efficient use of resources. The engineer can concentrate on ensuring the new UC system is technically correct.

If installation problems occur and they are subsequently taken away from trying to fix issues to talk to end users about their user experiences this may risk project deadlines.

3. End user knowledge

Consultants tend to gain more experience and knowledge of End User and Call Centre features therefore are able to suggest ideas and functionality for the new UC system.  A notable example would be for call centre data collection.

Often call centers are programmed in the most streamlined method with minimalistic programming in mind from a technical aspect. However this impacts on the data you’re able to report on from any reporting package. Important statistics, such as call abandonment rates, are often not clear. Consultants will take into consideration not just the call flows but the eventual reporting needs of the client.

The Takeaway

Consultants often have more developed soft skills, act as a resource saving intermediary and possess personable knowledge regarding the features of a system.

In this summary the client will end up with a system that is not just a duplicate of their old system but they will have a more enriched and enhanced experience.

Although consultancy is deemed an additional cost in the short term, the long term gains and perception of the client outweighs this.

Can you think of any other advantage of using a consultant versus an engineer? Feel free to comment them below

1UC offers full consultancy and data collection services for end user and call center, head over to our consultancy section for more information or don’t hesitate to get in contact