A New Piece to the Unified Communications Puzzle December 10, 2010 @ 08:00 AM | By Damon Martin

It’s been busy time for InterCall’s Unified Communications (UC) team, thanks in part to Microsoft’s recent Lync Server 2010 launch.

Last month we held two well-attended events in support of the Lync Server 2010 launch. Sponsored by Microsoft and coordinated by InterCall, the events featured speakers from Microsoft, Polycom, Dialogic and our own UC group and covered everything from features and benefits to product demos and complementary solutions. You can also take a look at some pictures from our Lync launch events—head over to Facebook, become a fan and check out our album!

Wedged in between our two Lync launch events was Microsoft’s global launch in New York on November 17. We were there for the big kickoff and took away some of these key ideas:

• Lync 2010 completes the family of Office products, ushering in a new era of communications
• Lync is the linchpin of Microsoft’s Unified Communications solutions
• Businesses that have already deployed Lync are seeing reduced costs and quick adoption rates

Perhaps the most important idea we heard at the launch was that Microsoft’s goal is to deliver UC on the customer’s terms. That’s a goal we share here at InterCall. Whether you’re looking for hosted, managed on premise or hybrid solutions, we work with our clients to deliver Unified Communications in the way that works best for them. We also don’t support the “rip and replace” mentality, which means we analyze your environment to determine which solutions will integrate with your existing infrastructure.

Other global launch highlights: It was great to see Bill Gates “drop by” (virtually via a Lync meeting) and we were pleased to have InterCall listed as part of the Lync Partner Ecosystem during the presentation given by Microsoft corporate vice president, Gurdeep Singh Pall.

On the same day of the global launch, we wired a press release debuting our new services in support of Lync. If you haven’t heard about our professional services for Lync, including planning, deployment and management solutions, go ahead and give it a read. And stay tuned for upcoming information about the release of Office 365.

If you have questions or comments, we’d love to hear from you. Comment on the blog and let us know what you’d like to hear next regarding UC!

Damon Martin is vice president of sales for West UC Solutions, InterCall’s dedicated team of UC specialists. Based in Wichita, Kansas, Damon oversees InterCall’s systems integration and consulting services. When he’s not working with InterCall customers on their UC strategy, Damon enjoys spending time with his family, boating and reading.