Management of Business Telecommunications System

Question: Discuss about the Management of Business Telecommunications System. Answer: Introduction Business telecommunication is of utmost importance to an organization whether small or multinational. CA business telecommunication helps in forming a deep relation with the pre-established relations with other business in some other parts of world. Telecommunication has varied faces of it, which depends on the usability in the chosen organization. This is because of the fact that organizations take use of the technology as per their requirement, which indeed is directly proportional to the business area. Telecommunication is of several kinds such as telephone, Smartphone, Tablets, Internets, Intranet, E-mail and cloud computing (Bovee and Courtland 2012). In this assignment, two organizations are chosen for understanding the management of telecommunication in different kinds of organizations. This is indeed helpful in differentiating the usage of communication technology in different kinds of organizations depending on the area of business. Unilever and ANDigital are chosen to understand the importance of telecommunication technology in irrespective kinds of companies. Unilever is a multinational company that is amongst the top companies in the world. On contrary to this ANDigital is a small Company, which is based in UK. A digital Company is growing with its advancements in the field of technology. The main purpose of this assignment is to understand the role of communication technology in business companies. The assignment would try to make this understandable that telecommunication management is very much required in all type of companies such as multinational and small. However, their rate of dependability differs depending on the exposure to the world market (Buckingham and Willett 2013). Purpose of telecommunication in business The communication is involved during business dealings and processing for several purposes. At present time, it is very difficult to run a business smoothly without using any terms of communication technology. To understand the fact, it is better to go sometimes back in the past that could help in understanding the concept behind the internal communication in between the companies. In the past when technology was not that much advanced, even in those times companies tend to involve in some other kinds of business communication such telegrams. However, the invention of computer did transform the then existing form of communication into the electronic form such as e-mail. The e-mail remained popular for quite a long time, which is still in use in the present time. However, some other technologies have overshadowed the importance of e-mailing to a certain bit. It has limited its area of business (Castells 2013). Video calling on Skype, Torrent and Nimbuzz are some of the modern inventions, which has occupied a higher area in all types of companies. The invention of video calling has made this easy to interact with someone such as business client even being in some other parts of world. The invention and popularization of the Smartphone usage have brought most of the business activities at the fingertips. Now, professional can have access o all the necessary kinds of business process by being anywhere in the world. Following are some of the objectives of the business communication technology (Chen, Chiang and Storey 2012): To interact with the clients to discuss on some important matters Skype is by far the most usable of all the platform across the business practices Clients often tends to have an hour or more than an hour of discussions on the Skype The usage of video calling not only have reduced the timeline for the completion of the project but it has also produced cost-effective factors in the organizations To interact with all the stakeholders of the Company as it is not possible for a multinational Company to be physically present in front of all the stakeholders Most importantly, online medium if interaction is also helpful in establishing a relation with customers, which is very necessary to be service effective Customers can easily give their necessary feedbacks on the available websites of the Company or by using their Smartphones to rate the services Project bidding has also been transformed into the online mode, which makes this compulsory for a Company to have such expertise that are well versed with online for of bidding To analyse the business strategies of the rival companies, which is mostly available on some of the government websites To help the recruiting panel for attracting the participation of aspirants from every corner or parts of the world, which is never feasible with the newspaper advertisement To be up to date with all kinds of news at just go by using Smartphones or tablets Types of business communication There are several kinds of business telecommunications; however, four types are highly popular. The four kinds of business communication are as follows: VoIP Calling Systems This is some kinds of traditional landline phones, which operates through internet connection. This is very much common in communication centres such as call centre. The process involved in this shows its relation to the landline form of calling in its physical look; however, it is altogether different to the traditional calling as it depends on internet. The process is conducted via creating relations in between the different kinds of internet protocol address of different modems. It is very convenient to use and very cost effective as it only involves the data consumption, which is very low compare to the traditional form of calling (Conrad and Poole 2012). PBX Call Systems It is other very significant kinds of business communication tools, which help in establishing the private kinds of calling within the organization. This enables the private calling within the organization. This also helps in establishing the several external kinds of callings, which the employees use with the help of different shared numbers. The technology is now equipped with the latest VoIP PBX, which also facilitate the calling with internet (Cornelissen 2014). Video Conferencing As discussed earlier, this is one of the widest use media of communication in between different organizations. This generally occurs in between the clients of different organizations. Moreover, clients can easily sow the demo of the project, which would make things very friendlier for either party (Davenport 2013). Smartphone The growing technology of Smartphone have made this an important asset for the organization. Phones such as Iphone, Samsung, Blackberry and Microsoft are very much built with the high-end technologies, which has made many business processes possible at just go (Downs and Adrian 2012). Issues with the communication technology Communication technology has made job easier for the millions across the globe; however, it has also raised some issues related to the security, cost-effective and technical glitch. Security is one of the major threats with the usage of the communication technology. The usage of phones is more at risk as all the operating system used in the phones are less safe. Iphone is perhaps the safest of all the platforms used in the Smartphones. In the competitive environment, it is very much required to have a high level of security for protecting the private matters of the organization. Another problem with the usage of the technology is the technical glitch, which could even disrupt the business process for a long time. Technology has made life easier; however, it has also put life in some sort of danger. Instances can be of network failure while having the video conferencing, which could hamper or even delayed the demo of the project. Moreover, the technological glitch does also require so me expenditure for its rectification (DuBrin 2013). Unilever is a multinational Company, which is one of the largest companies in the world in terms of revenues. The Company is also engaged in several cross border operation such as in India, Pakistan, China and Srilanka. The business is circulated in a very high diameter of the business area. It is very important for Unilever to have a solid technological communication background, which could help the Company in establishing a smooth relation with the world business. To be competitive in the market and to evolve as a front-runner in terms of revenues, they are needed to be up dated with all the feedbacks of the stakeholders. The high diameter of business operations of the Company makes this important to have a sound communication technology for creating a smooth interaction with all the dimensions of business. From the collection of raw materials to the manufacturing and the distribution, it needs technological advancements at every level of the business (Dunning 2013). It is a digital agency, which is in its early stages. It needs proper cares of technological advancement in the communication field. However, it might not require the level of advancement, which the Unilever needs. This is because of the fact that it is still in its growing age. However, it is important for them to take care of the technological requirement and operation with proper care to avoid any barrier to the success (Eliasson 2012). Analyzing the communication technology of Unilever The primary form of the communication in the Unilever is the annual report, which they publish on their website on an annual basis. This is one of the primary sources, which help its stakeholders in knowing the progress of the Company. Moreover, it also let them acquainted with the necessary information of the Company. However, Company uses some of the following medium of communication technology (Grant and Meadows 2013): Internet - It is one of their primary and important medium of communication, which helps the Company in establishing a firm relationship with all its management at the different parent and offshore centres. They do so by distributing the network settings into three sections such as public, private and personal. For the internet purpose, they use several resources for the network such as mobile network and fibre optic cable (Grint and Woolgar 2013). Email This is one of the most common forms of business communication across the globe. Unilever also uses the Email format for addressing the several businesses related talks and issues (Grunig 2013). Website Unilever also does use this form of technology for communicating with its stakeholders. Stakeholders of the Company can have their access to the annual report with the help of the website (Guffey and Loewy 2012). RSS feed Unilever uses this form of technology for posting its important blogs, entries, video and audio. Apart from all these communication tools, Unilever also use some other technologies such as Phone and Fax (Kiesler 2014). Communication technology of ANDigital The difference between the communication technology of the Unilever and ANDigital is their business functionalities. ANDigital is a small Company, which only has approximately around 110 employees in this Company. The Company is well versed with basic types of business communications; however, it differs to Unilever in terms of its functionalities. The Company is engaged in educating the aspirants about some of the most in demand languages used in the business companies such as Java, Elastic and Android (Ling and Donner 2013). It is an undeniable fact that Unilever has also their team of expertise that are only dedicated to the IT related works. However, their mode of business communication is more centred on the basic kinds of business communication. On contrary to this, ANDigital is a small Company United Kingdom, which is dedicated to provide solutions on the entire famous technical platform such as Java, Elastic and Android. The Company is basically has some developers in it who are engaged in providing the software development related solutions to them. Nevertheless, they can also provide solution to multinational companies if they carry on growing further (Mumby 2012). Barriers to communication in Unilever Unilever uses basic kinds of communication technologies, which are well popular with many other multinational companies. However, the existing technology of communication can have several following barriers (Quirke 2012): Technology related glitch in the website because of some connectivity issues, which might create a communication gap within the stakeholders The technological glitch might be a temporary one but it can also take some significant time for the problem to disappear Customer service would be hampered because of the technological glitch as they might not reach to the Company for their problems and concerns through the available resources Technological glitch might also hamper the business operation as an unavailable website might prevent the Company from sending the work permit to the distributors Distribution of the products would be hampered because of the technological glitch It might also protect them from doing any business bidding as it also require technological platform In cross-border business operations, the maintenance of communication technology is often complicated because of the involvement of the Company with companies of diverse culture and geographical beliefs Cross-border business operations are generally communicated through the use of professional Email, occasional video calling and annual reports From the above mentioned facts, it is necessary that a multinational Company have robust system of technology, so that, it could avoid any flaws The biggest barrier to cross-border communication to Unilever is the internet, which establishes the relationship between the parent Company and its subsidiaries Barriers to communication in ANDigital ANDigital is a small Company that is dedicated to develop software related solutions at the different platforms such as Java and Android. However, the level of risks of communication gap is lesser in the Company. This is not because of the communication level of the Company but because of its area of business. The Company is still in its growing stage, which is good from the perspectives of the communication related gaps, as it would not attract any serious check from the clients. The business is still growing, so, a flawless work is not expected from such companies. The only major gap is in the development area, which they cannot afford at any cost (Scarbrough and Corbett 2013). The development process also needs internet connection. If the task is urgent, they cannot afford any internet related failure. This is indeed a big threat to such Company, which is still in its growing stage. On contrary to this, Unilever would not be questioned for their reputation but the might miss some important business related dealings. However, ANDigital might face severe bombarding from its clients in case of any project delayed. This might also stop them from grooming in the market, which they cannot afford at any point in time (Thamhain 2013). In case of merger with some big companies, ANDigital would attain a global appearance; however, it would also add more high responsibilities at its shoulders. The development process, which was limited to a minimum area, would be expanded to a larger market. The added area of business would increase the expectations from the Company. The communication related failure then or some development related issue would be accounted for a big threat as the Company is now engaged in serving a bigger responsibility. In cross-border relation, the biggest barrier would be then to understand the cultural needs of the host country (Vaishnavi and Kuechler 2015). Comparative analysis of time effective solution Unilever can manage the technological related glitch in the communication; however, it might take some time. On contrary to this, ANDigital would face it tougher to manage their technical glitch as they have limited access to the market giants. The resources are limited and hence, the solutions are limited. The trust, which the Unilever have developed on to its customers and business partners, would help the Company in holding their calm under odd situations. On contrary to this, ANDigital is still in their growing age and hence, they have everything to lose. Unilever with the help of their strong financial backups would easily find the solutions to the technological related failure in the communication process. However, ANDigital would find it little difficult in handling the communication related glitches (Westerman, Bonnet and McAfee 2014). In addition to this, ANDigital also depend on its developers, which is one problem that does not have any quick solution. In case of recession, it would be difficult for the Company in finding the alternate solution for the existing developers in the Company. This is very much evident from the above discussions that communication related gaps would deter some important works of the Company. However, ANDigital would be hugely affected by any language related technical failure as it takes certain time and investments for the rectification (Zurawski 2014). The level of severity of communication failure in Unilever is comparatively lesser than that of ANDigital. This is because of the fact that Unilever is a giant Company, which would find quick solutions to the problems. They are multinational companies, which have strong financial backups behind them as well as high number of labour. These companies find good supports from the local government in most of the cases as these companies are a good contributor in the economy of the local country. However, ANDigital is still in the growing stage, which is one of the reasons behind the fact that they are small contributor in the economy of the country. This is an undeniable fact that those companies, which are highly profitable for the GDP of the country, they have high supports of the local governments. On contrary to this, those who are still to prove their point for the contribution in the economy of the country, they are less recognized from the local government (Dunning 2013). Conclusion Business communication technology finds almost equal development in the wide range of multinational companies. However, in smaller companies those, which are still in their growing, age, it is comparatively tougher for them to handle the challenging situations. It takes time for them to prove their point in front if the customers, the local government and the international countries. Challenges are an inevitable aspect of the multinational companies. This is because of the fact that they find it comparatively easier in handling he challenging situations. However, those who are small companies, they are often new to any challenges. This is why they find this difficult to handle the challenging situations. The communication related technology is quite same to irrespective kinds of companies. However, the handling power of the communication technology failure varies from one organization to another. Moreover, this also depends on the operational size. The Company, which has wider area o f expertise, has also the highest ratio of challenge handling. References Bovee and Courtland, 2012.Business Communication Today, 10/e. Pearson Education India. Buckingham, D. and Willett, R., 2013.Digital generations: Children, young people, and the new media. Routledge. Castells, M., 2013.Communication power. OUP Oxford. Chen, H., Chiang, R.H. and Storey, V.C., 2012. 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