Although hybrid working is still evolving and we’re not quite sure of its final destination, what’s abundantly clear is the importance of flexibility.

Every organisation wants capabilities they can rely on to support them productively and collaboratively – no matter what direction they follow.

Currently, many organisations are working across multiple collaboration platforms. For some, it’s to support business continuity, or because they’re in the process of gradually migrating from a legacy platform. For others, it’s about meeting the needs of specific user groups or connecting their front- and back-office workers.

In many cases, having this choice of powerful communication and collaboration tools is a strength, helping them build a hybrid working strategy that can flex to meet the changing needs of their organisation.

However, multiple tools can create complexity that’s difficult to manage and maintain, requiring on-demand user training, support and configurations. Switching between platforms can make communication and collaboration more time consuming, and calling charges can make this approach more expensive.

But it doesn’t have to be like that. Living and working in a multi-cloud world shouldn’t have to disrupt voice services or collaboration. Ideally, what users want and need should be the priority, and the tech should follow their lead, providing organisations with flexible infrastructure and solutions that adapt.

So, how do you get to that point?

Predicting what your organisation will need from cloud collaboration and communication platforms isn’t easy in a working world that’s evolving quickly. However, focusing on these four main areas will help to future-proof your multi-cloud collaboration strategy:

A key part of an effective collaboration experience is the smooth flow of communication. It’s important that this is still possible in a multi-cloud world, even though your people are using a variety of platforms.

Focus on finding ways for Teams, Zoom, Webex or contact centre applications to work together so you can create a unified experience between your front and back offices. Aiming for seamless integration means your contact centre and collaboration platforms can operate as one, so it’s easy to take a call through the contact centre and pass it seamlessly to an expert in your back office.

It’s unlikely that your customers, partners and wider supply chain will all use the same collaboration tool. So, as you start to work in a multi-cloud environment, it’s critical to build in easy ways for your people to collaborate using their platform of choice.

It’s also possible that different parts of your organisation will want to use different platforms so, in the event of personnel role changes, you’ll need to make it easy for them to switch platforms smoothly. Think about putting in place a strong programme of in-life training to make sure users are up to date with the latest features, boosting their productivity and protecting their user experience.

Moving numbers from legacy systems can be a real headache, and often it can only be done in large number ranges. It can be easy to overlook this when planning your multi-cloud collaboration strategy, but it’s worth looking out for solutions that will allow for old and new platforms to coexist as you are migrating. This will allow you to move individuals or groups of users to the cloud at your own pace.

Think beyond your primary collaboration requirements to make the most of the extra benefits you can add into your multi-cloud collaboration strategy. 

For example, could you add an extra level of protection into your security by setting up a disaster recovery platform? Then, if your live platform is compromised, it would only take a matter of moments to swing all your voice services to your back-up environment, supporting users on a safe platform with immediate effect.

Adding cloud session layer capability within our global voice network makes all these scenarios possible with the added benefit that calls between the platforms are on-net, so free of charge.

We’ve channelled our expertise in delivery of voice transformation programmes to provide high-quality cloud calling across the major cloud platforms. Cloud session layer securely manages all your interactions with cloud collaboration applications like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Webex or contact centre platforms, optimising your connectivity to support your users with consistent experiences anytime.

Cloud session layer provides the scalability and flexibility that organisations are looking for when choosing their voice infrastructure. The seamless integration and freedom of platform choice it supports boosts collaboration and effective working – and extends your business continuity options.

We take the pressure off your IT teams with our managed service taking care of all number configuration and user training for you, both at the time of your transformation and in-life. This means you can move users between clouds, knowing any change will be managed smoothly and efficiently. And you can be confident that you’re getting the most out of your technology investments.

Explore the possibilities further by visiting our global voice solutions.