Andrew Turner & Associates Ltd. is a Consulting Firm providing advice and support in people- and business- management issues across Europe. The client-base is high-tech and they are often based outside of the UK-time zone. As a SOHO player providing services to major technology, usually US, corporations, it is important to provide a professional image actively using technology. Working from home, with a few Associates also based from their homes across Europe, it is very helpful to appear to be a more substantial organisation than the one-man band we usually are!
For these reasons, traditional answerphone, carrier-provided services and out-sourced secretarial services all have significant draw-backs. Robson provides us with an inexpensive voice-mail facility without all the un-needed attendant features and support requirements of larger CPE systems. However, all the valuable features such as remote access and use of virtual extensions are provided, as is music on hold via a cd-player.
As a home-based operation we already had -
-a domestic line with a useful fixed extension to the office and mobile DECT handsets.
-a business line.
-a fax line.
-a mobile telephone.
In order to have maximum flexibility we had already installed a Siemens/BT 2-line Diverse system. This allowed any handset to answer, make and switch calls on either the domestic or business lines. Traditional anwerphones handled ‘no-reply’ situations.
Robson now handles the business and fax lines to allow better utilisation of the fax line. The domestic line still has an answerphone and the mobile phone is still independent. We have subsequently added ISDN but not integrated this facility, preferring to use one of the POTS lines for remote MIS support access for the server/network and the other for remote access for the portable pc-users and as an extra outgoing line for occasional staff working from the office.
Our set-up (non-ISDN) now permits –
-multiple extensions to take incoming calls on the domestic and two business lines, and for these to be identified so appropriate responses can be given on acceptance.
-using BT call-divert on busy, business incoming to be taken on either the business or fax lines and routed to all extensions.
-outgoing calls on the domestic line to be routed via Robson as a business call - allows in effect an extra outgoing line billed on-demand to the Company.
-we use the virtual extensions for Associates as this makes it look as if we all work from one office, and they dial in to check for messages or are alerted to call in by email.
-we can still publish the fax number although the line now gets much more use for outgoing calls.
Robson gets much favourable comment from our customers and has definitely upped our technology-savvy image for our early-adopter profile clients.
