NEWS
UK lagging behind European markets in
telephony innovation
The telephony systems of British
businesses are the least digitally
advanced in Europe’s major markets, with
French and German companies more likely
to have invested in cloud communications
and further along in their Digital
Transformation journeys, according to new
research from Communications-as-a-Service
leader, Voxbone.
A survey of 300 IT decision
makers for medium-to-largesized
companies across the three
markets found that, while over
half of British respondents report
that they have started digitally
transforming their telephony,
only a third believe they have
moved past the early stages of
this process – compared to 46%
of French respondents and 51%
of Germans.
Only 8% of respondents
across all three markets believe that
their organisation has completed their
telephony’s digital overhaul. Of those
businesses yet to begin their telephony’s
Digital Transformation plans, nearly two
thirds (62%) plan to prioritise it in the next
12 months. This suggests that telephony will
be a key area of investment and focus for
businesses in the very near-future.
In terms of Digital Transformation
methods, the cloud is the main area of
shift. More than a third of respondents
(36%) are looking to shift only essential
telco operations over to the cloud, while
28% would prefer to shift the entire
telecommunications on to the cloud.
“Digital Transformation has been
high on the business agenda for a
while now but considering how critical
telecommunications infrastructure is for
the smooth running of large enterprises in
particular, it hasn’t necessarily seen the love
that other business functions, such as CRM,
have in its Digital Transformation. However,
as a result of that, as well as the rise of
remote and flexible working, we are seeing
that businesses are bringing telephony
front and centre of investment plans to
make sure that the infrastructure is suitable
for modern working life,” said Matt Brown,
VP of Product at Voxbone.
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Manchester set to be the next UK tech hub as
IT workers look beyond the capital
Manchester could be set to see an influx
of tech talent in the next three years,
according to new research from CWJobs,
one of the UK’s leading tech job boards.
Surveying 1,000 tech workers, Manchester
emerged as the top choice outside of the
capital (22%) to work in, with a fifth (20%)
also revealing it’s the city they would choose
to set up a tech business in the next three
years, ahead of Birmingham (11%) and
Edinburgh (8%). In the same survey, 505
IT decision makers (IT DM) also placed
Manchester as the best location to set up
a tech business, with over a quarter (27%)
choosing the city.
This influx of talent could be coming directly
from the capital, with London potentially set
to be hit with a mass exodus of tech talent,
as three-quarters (75%) of its tech workers
revealed they are likely to relocate within
the next three years. London’s high house
prices could be one of the main reasons its
tech workers are set to be on the move. The
cost of living is considered the largest factor
(52%) for those likely to relocate, ahead of
getting on the property ladder (32%) and
facing too much travel (30%).
When it comes down to travel and
commuting, more tech workers are looking
Manchester rates highly on the agenda for
tech talent interest
outside of the already established London
tech bubble and are calling for policies to
work from anywhere they want. Therefore,
companies – no matter the size or sector –
are being urged to commit more to remote
working policies to attract and keep talent,
something that’s been heard and put into
action quickly in light of today’s climate.
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