During the pandemic, businesses struggled to adjust to remote or hybrid work requirements to adhere to social distancing laws. Implementing UCaaS services, which can be used from any device or place with an Internet connection and include business phone systems and video conferencing, was frequently the first step for businesses. Due to this, demand for UCaaS providers increased dramatically across all industries globally, spurring the industry’s tremendous maturation over the previous two years.
Grand View Research, among other research firms, continues to project that global UCaaS sales will expand by over 20% annually and reach $210 billion by 2028. What will maintain such rapid growth? Here are some UCaaS trends and growth drivers to look out for in 2024.
An Overview Of UCaaS Trends
Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) is a cloud delivery model that offers a range of collaboration and communication applications and services. UCaaS providers offer a centralized platform, giving access to real-time messaging, other applications, and telephone and video conferencing in addition to these. It helps staff members to communicate, share information and collaborate with a click. The unified communications support a range of communications functions as a service (UCaaS) concepts offered via the cloud, including:
- Business Telephony
- Unified Messaging
- Presence Technology
- Online Meetings
- Team Collaboration
- Video Conferencing and others.
Also Read: What is UCaaS? Why is it Essential For The Modern Remote Workforce?
How UCaaS Emerged
UCaaS was made possible by the rise of cloud computing, the drawbacks of capital investment, and the restriction on extending on-premise unified communication solutions. Businesses that started offering unified communication services via the cloud did away with the requirement for expensive on-premise infrastructure and gained access to several further advantages. These advantages included administrative capability, cost savings, adaptability, and more. Businesses entered a new era of communication as a result.
The Benefits Of UCaaS For Business Communications
The Benefits Of UCaaS For Business CommunicationsAs global network speeds increase in the upcoming years, UCaaS industry trends adoption is projected to increase. The benefits of switching to UCaaS are immediately apparent. Compared to installing all of the gear required to manage a large phone system, cloud-based services are substantially less expensive. Here are six benefits of UCaaS in the contemporary workplace:
- By maintaining the communications infrastructure, the UCaaS provider lowers operating costs.
- IT staff can concentrate on other important business responsibilities.
- Employees that work from home or in the office may easily communicate and work together across time zones, devices, departments, etc.
- With the flexibility of work-from-home options, businesses may simply deploy, administer, and access reports via a self-service portal on the Internet.
- Accessibility, workload distribution, and interpersonal dynamics are all issues that businesses may address.
Move to a Highly Scalable and Productive UCaaS Solution
The Latest Trends In UCaaS Services
Businesses worldwide are adopting unified communication as a service (UCaaS) platforms to leverage services such as video & audio conferencing, messaging, and other collaboration tools. The advancement in cloud infrastructure has extensively driven the demand for unified communications solutions.
Based On Fortune Business Insights, the global unified communication as a service market is expected to grow from $28.96 billion in 2021 to $69.93 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 13.4%.
The emerging trends in UCaaS, such as distance learning and remote working, support the adoption of UcaaS solutions. Here are UCaaS industry trends to look out for in 2024.
Mobile Integrations
Due to its capability to enable employees to work remotely from any place or device, UCaaS use has increased quickly. Integration with iOS and Android smartphones is necessary for today’s mobile-first workplace to provide smooth calling, texting, and emailing from a mobile device. The same workforce anticipates mobile voice interaction with ERP and supply chain management systems and messaging connectivity with CRM solutions. Be on the lookout for increased tool integrations that give the mobile workforce more efficiency. After all, Mobile Integrations is one of the most popular UCaaS market trends in the industry.
Also Read: UCaaS Vs. CPaaS Vs. CCaaS – Everything You Need to Know
Cybersecurity Is the Focus
BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is an increasingly common and expected practice as part of the trend toward hybrid work settings. Employees are downloading work applications onto their devices, which presents new challenges for the IT staff managing the vulnerabilities of these devices and applications and introducing them to networks. Additionally, in recent years, cyberattacks have escalated against telecom operators, declining dependability and data loss protection. To combat hackers and meet increasingly complex client security needs like SSO (single-sign-on) and TLS, UCaaS solution providers will invest more in cybersecurity solutions (transport layer security).
AI Takes The Lead In Customer Experience
Artificial intelligence has become exceedingly complex in natural language processing, making decisions, and predictive analysis. When used with UCaaS, this feature can deliver more individualized customer experiences that enhance interactions. For instance, AI-enhanced communications solutions can respond to client inquiries and offer detailed troubleshooting guidance. Expect businesses to rely more on AI to improve and personalize the consumer experience.
Organizations will employ UCaaS market trends capabilities driven by AI more frequently in 2024 and beyond to capitalize on new productivity and efficiency improvements. For instance, AI can convert voicemails into text messages, automate meeting note-taking, and enhance workflows.
Cloud (More Than A Trend)
Many businesses increased their cloud migration plans during the pandemic to support the success of their Work from Home (WFH) environments. Organizations learned about the various advantages of cloud-based infrastructure through that acceleration, and many have increased their plans for cloud migration.
Organizations are giving up on-premises hardware and outdated VoIP systems that don’t have the dependability and contemporary security measures needed to fulfill consumer expectations and compliance standards as they continue to embrace the advantages of cloud environments. Organizations also understand that UCaaS may provide greater flexibility, security, and cost-saving opportunities while relieving the pressure on overburdened IT departments. These advantages frequently allow businesses to pursue a complete cloud migration and permanently give up old on-premises equipment.
Satellites and 5G Enable Work-from-Anywhere
Work-from-home (WFH) models can only be successful if workers have access to dependable, constant connectivity. During the pandemic, Wi-Fi powered the work-from-home model, but today, WFH is evolving into work-from-anywhere (WFA). The primary technologies driving this UCaaS market trend are anticipated to be 5G and satellite, allowing customers to access cloud communication services practically anywhere on any device. Watch for satellite and 5G deployment to increase business communication in 2019.
The Future Of UCaaS
Because it gives all employees flexibility, UCaaS is also fantastic for the entire business. Working remotely and in a hybrid environment while accessing all communications is a terrific alternative. Businesses requiring a lot of employee travel would profit from UCaaS trends. The future of UCaaS holds greater opportunities for business growth. Future developments that eliminate the issue of poor communication and working in silos include the combination of UCaaS with AI, cloud computing, data management, and other applications.
