Didata slams UK firms' lack of presence

Less than half of UK companies with a UC strategy have deployed presence technology, integrator claims

Dimension Data (Didata) has claimed many UK firms are failing to reap the benefits of unified communications (UC) because they lack a presence strategy.

According to research by the integrator, although 47 per cent of large UK firms have a UC strategy, just 23 per cent use presence technology.

Didata argued that presence is vital to the success of a UC deployment because it allows end users to display integrated real-time information on availability and the ability to communicate.

Rob Stanley, line of business director, Microsoft Solutions at Didata, said: “Presence is arguably the key component of a successful UC strategy: it brings it all together from an end-user point of view.

"Without presence, businesses risk making it more difficult for employees to manage their communications, ultimately diminishing the return on a UC investment.”

Meanwhile, just 18 per cent of the 100 IT managers and chief information officers quizzed in the survey thought identity management was essential to UC deployment.

Stanley said this was understandable because many firms took a staggered approach to UC and viewed technologies offering quick returns, such as mobile email, as a priority.

But he argued that, in the long term, identity management was necessary for UC to work optimally across complex environments.

"To make things easier and less disruptive in the long run, and ensure the full benefits of UC are realised, it’s important that organisations make presence and identity management a top priority from the outset,” Stanley said.