The challenge: Migration stalled two years into the project
A major American university with 30,000 phone numbers/users campus-wide had a multi-platform communications environment that included Microsoft Teams, two on-premises systems—Cisco and Avaya—and Cisco Webex. To eliminate the operational challenges and high maintenance costs of running these varied systems, they decided to consolidate everything on Microsoft Teams plus a contact center.
Knowing they needed expert help to make it happen, the university engaged a historic telephony provider to plan and execute the migrations. However, two years into the project, when they should have been well on their way to converting users to Teams Voice and shutting down the other communications platforms, no progress had been made. The university was frustrated and felt they’d been deceived about the provider’s ability to deliver on their promises.
That’s when they approached Pure IP. The university had key requirements that needed to be met. They wanted a single provider to service all the current platforms to ensure a smooth transition, and they wanted to enable 5-digit dialing across those heterogenous systems. They also wanted a more robust and functional portal, as the one they currently had was limited in functionality and updates took 24 hours to propagate. In addition, encryption, while standard with Teams, was needed for the on-premises systems.
The solution: All the capabilities—backed by proven expertise and effective execution
The Pure IP Microsoft Teams Deployment solution checked all of these boxes and more:
- SIP trunks that could be delivered flexibly via Operator Connect
- 5-digit dialing support for all platforms using our Session Border Controllers (SBCs)
- Extensive number of DID and toll-free numbers ported
- Dynamic E911 servicing many on-campus buildings and remote staff members
- Ability to incorporate analog hand-off solutions into a Teams environment while still using operator connect—something few providers can do
- Robust, intuitive portal
- All completely managed by an expert team specializing in voice migrations
But perhaps even more important, given that the university felt burned by their previous provider, was their confidence that Pure IP could execute. We didn’t just say we could deliver; we provided examples of our expertise and accreditations that allayed their concerns. Our team specializes in voice communications, and that technical proficiency was evident from the very first conversation. We showed them exactly how we would port 30,000 phone numbers and execute 5-digit dialing. We provided a credible roadmap for migrating from one system to another, and since Pure IP is certified on all four platforms in question, we validated that we could use Pure IP SIP trunking to power all the systems at the same time with encryption to the on-premises systems. Furthermore, Pure IP holds GDPR, SOC, ISO, and other certifications to assure security.
The result: Deployment with confidence
With a solid strategy in place—and confidence in their new partner—this reputable American university can get the Microsoft Teams migration back on track. They know that their users, no matter which platform they’re currently using, will be taken care of in the short term as they move toward the ultimate Teams phone system consolidation with a new contact center system as well.
With this new trusted partnership, they’re starting to think beyond completion of this initiative, exploring additional potential projects to leverage Pure IP’s technical expertise, such as connecting to their big analog estate, providing managed connectivity for campus-wide infrastructure, and technology expense management.
