While Cloud telephony and voice-over-IP technology offers amazing functionality and great cost benefits for many customers, it is usually presented as the universal solution, the panacea for every organisation.
Every customer is different
Kaptec doesn’t believe in this one-size-fits-all approach. Our philosophy has always been to listen to our customers, get under the hood of their business, weigh up the pros and cons, and then recommend the most appropriate and cost-effective solution for their long-term needs. While the Cloud is an amazing innovation, it does not necessarily work well for every business.
A critical infrastructural investment for hotels
Take the hospitality sector as a case in point. Efficient communication and guest services are the cornerstone of day-to-day operations. Additionally, to comply with legal and safety regulations, hotels are obliged to give residential guests access to a bedroom phone with reliable emergency calling options complete with high sound quality and location information. In short, a reliable, high-performing telephony system is a critical infrastructural investment.
The Hodson Bay Hotel Group
In Ireland, the Hodson Bay Hotel Group operates several, landmark Hotels, including the Sheraton Athlone, The Hodson Bay and the Galway Bay, along with the recently opened Hyatt Centric in Dublin. Eighteen months ago, when Kaptec won the contract to manage the Group’s telephony estate, we were keen to understand its needs and long-term strategy.
The customer’s needs
The Hodson Bay Group asked Kaptec to upgrade and support its existing telephone systems. As the Hyatt was brand new, we were also tasked with implementing a solution from scratch. A third request was to add hospitality functionality to the telephony platform by integrating TigersTMS software, a leading application and middleware solution for the global hospitality market.
Our recommendation
As an innovative organisation, the Hodson Bay Hotel Group is committed to continuous improvement and investing in the right technology to drive efficiencies and enhance the customer experience. However, when we examined the Group’s operating model, business environment and technology needs, we recommended a traditional, on premise PBX system, the Avaya IP Office as the telephony platform of choice.
Understanding the customer’s business model
Why this recommendation? Why not the Cloud? Here’s the nub. With a Cloud telephony solution, there are no upfront capital costs; instead, companies pay a monthly subscription charge for the service. While this is an attractive proposition for many businesses, the hospitality model is hugely different.
For example, if your hotel has two hundred bedrooms, that equates to a monthly subscription charge for two hundred phones – and that is for the bedrooms alone. In this scenario, a fixed upfront investment is more cost-effective and makes the most business sense. There was also no advantage to linking the different telephony systems across all four hotels via the Cloud as each property operates autonomously.
Why Kaptec?
Why did the Hodson Bay Group select Kaptec? According to James Duane, IT Manager for the Group, “Kaptec is a knowledgeable and dependable partner. The phone system is the heartbeat of our business. We had one situation where a module failed and Kaptec engineers had the issue resolved within hours. In our industry, it's all about quality customer support and the ability to respond fast. We have absolute trust in Kaptec’s ability to provide the right, strategic advice and deliver quality, responsive service.”
Are you looking for an expert partner?
IT and telephony can be a confusing minefield. Are you looking for an expert partner to give the right advice? Kaptec’s mission is to create value and enable our customers achieve more. Guided by industry best practice, we are committed to delivering the highest quality of service and are constantly innovating our services and products to meet our customer’s needs.
