About

COURSE OBJECTIVE
To provide you with a comprehensive and informative course on IP Telephony/VoIP to enable you to understand how important IP Telephony/VoIP is to your organisation

“IP Telephony or VoIP can bring big benefits to some organisations but it is not the “cure-all” some salesmen would have you believe. For an organisation to gain maximum benefits, the system has to be designed and implemented properly.”
Don Wallace

IP Telephony or VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) is receiving a lot of attention – it has been featured in the technology press for some time and now hardly a week goes by without a mention of one or both in the Business Pages. More and more companies are implementing it and most Telcos see it as the way in which they will be earning their future revenues.

IP Telephony/VoIP Explained for the Non-Technical Manager has been put together to help managers understand:
• IP Telephony and VoIP
• The benefits and drawbacks IP Telephony brings
• If it is right for your organisation
• What you need to do if/when you decide to implement it

The course starts by looking at what IP Telephony/ VoIP is and how it differs from the conventional telephony systems we currently use.

In line with its business focus, the course moves progressively through discussion of topics such as:
• Choosing the right technology partners
• Getting the responsibilities right
• Putting the contracts in place
• Project management of the implementation and
• On-going management of the system

If you have management responsibilities in the telecommunications area, this course is just right for you. Like its sister course, Telecommunications Explained for the Non-Technical Manager, this course is aimed at people who do not have a technical background.

7 GREAT REASONS TO ATTEND
1. Demystify and break through the clutter of IP Telephony/VoIP terminology
2. Understand the differences between IP Telephony and VoIP
3. Establish the requirements for your organisation in implementing IP Telephony/VoIP
4. Find out how you can save cost and add value to the business with IP Telephony/VoIP
5. Define all the roles and responsibilities of all parties dependent on the system and network
6. Learn to establish guidelines for assessing your needs and solutions
7. Gain a high level overview of the issues to be considered when making business decisions about IP Telephony/VoIP

Outline

What is IP Telephony
• What is convergence?
- Terminal Convergence
- Infrastructure Convergence
- Protocol convergence
• Voice over IP (VoIP) versus IP Telephony (IPT)
- Define and compare: What are they? How do they differ?
• Comparison of Conventional (POTS & PABX) & IP Telephony
- What advantages does IP Telephony offer your organisation?
• IP Telephony checklist

Define & Understand the Requirements
Where Are You Starting From?
• Green fields approach – i.e.: there is no existing telephone system and there is a need to plan and install a new telecommunications infrastructure
• Need to supplement an existing telephone system
• Need to replace your existing telephone system
• A mix of the above

Why is Your Organisation Considering IP Telephony?
• Identify the potential advantages of IP Telephony
• Cost considerations:
- Savings from toll bypass
- Savings from a common external network
- Savings from a common internal network
• Value added features:
- The virtual call centre
- The mobile worker
- Disaster recovery
• Need for a robust and future proofed network

How Important is Voice to Your Organisation?
• Defining the importance of computer applications in comparison to voice applications
• Which category is the organisation in:
- Computer applications are king, voice fits in what is left
- Voice applications are king, computer applications fit in what is left

MANAGEMENT ISSUES

Defining the Components of IP Telephony
• IP Telephony is a voice application that runs on a data communications network which uses telecommunications services
• Understand the three parts and their interrelationship:
1. Voice applications
2. Data communications network
3. Telecommunications services
Defining the Responsibilities of the Parties Involved
• Three areas of responsibility:
- Contractual
- Design
- Management
• Parties involved in the contract, design and management of the IP Telephony system & network:
- Telecommunications provider
- Data communications supplier
- IP Telephony supplier
- You
• Defining the roles and responsibilities of all parties dependent on the system and network

Shrink-Wrapped IP Telephony Services
Telecommunications Providers
• Who are the main providers of ”shrink-wrapped” IP Telephony systems and services?
- Telecom
- TelstraClear
- Others?
• What do the main providers offer? How do they compare?
• Establish clear parameters and guidelines for assessing your needs and matching to a solution

THE NETWORK

What is Required?
• Multi-service networks
• Quality of service parameters
• Call admission control
• Queuing
• Fragmentation

The Local (LAN) Portion of Your Network
• IP Phones
• Cabling
• Power
• LAN Switches
• Routers

The Long Distance (WAN) Portion
• Leased circuits
• Circuit vs. packet switching
• Frame relay
• ATM
• IP Services

Facilitator

In-house Training