In order to properly calculate the total cost of ownership of a given contact centre solution, a company first needs to take into account the systems’ speed of deployment and flexibility. Once these variables are fully considered, a cloud computing solution will likely emerge as the best option for the enterprise, product management professional Andrew Bird wrote in a recent 1to1 Media article.

As is the case with any TCO calculation, the initial cost of procuring a cloud computing solution versus an on-premise option must be taken into account. In this regard, the cloud is ideal, Destination CRM reported earlier this year. In comparison to legacy options, cloud-hosted systems require less upfront investment in hardware or software, are easier to integrate with a company’s existing systems and will typically not come with added upgrade fees.

How to uncover the full TCO picture

 
While initial costs represent an important part of the TCO equation, Bird wrote that more variables need to be considered. For instance, one of the most important factors to keep in mind is how quickly the new solution can be implemented, as installation delays can be costlier than many businesses might first think.

“When executives compare cloud versus premise-based contact centers, they need to consider the loss of profits and revenue if it ultimately takes the company three to six months to deploy a premise-based platform,” Bird said. “By comparison, a cloud solution is much faster to deploy and can help the company achieve business and productivity results faster.”

In addition, TCO calculations should think about future needs. While a particular on-premises solution may be cost effective in the short term, chances are it is not ideal for accommodating future growth, according to Bird. For instance, upgrading on-premise hardware and reconfiguring office wiring to add new lines is usually far more expensive than automating upgrades to the hosted system and quickly scaling the cloud solution up or down depending on the company’s immediate needs.

Another key issue that can alter final TCO is the solution’s ease of use. For example, many contact centres are becoming increasingly tech savvy and want to provide employees with the latest tools. One type of tool that has been especially noteworthy lately is data-driven analytics tools. Using this kind of software, companies can develop more accurate assessments of customers and clients, enabling contact centre representatives to later offer more refined feedback that is suited to meeting anyone’s needs. However, in order for such an effort to work well, contact centre employees need to be able to access and alter data at a moment’s notice. According to Bird, this is another area where the cloud shines.

Of course, just because a company elects to implement a cloud computing solution for its contact centre does not mean that it can expect to automatically see a positive return on investment. Enterprises need to partner with the right firm to make sure it is getting the most out of its contact centre solution. As one of Canada’s largest managed IT services firms, FlexITy has the business acumen and technological insight needed to make sure that the cloud-hosted contact centre solution installed is ideal. By aligning current and future business needs with best-in-class technology from industry-leading partners like Cisco, FlexITy ensures that its clients are able to get the most from their contact centre.

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