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Businesses within EMEA are expected to spend more than $1.5 billion on IP business telephone systems by 2015, according to IDC (News - Alert).

The communications research giant predicted that total business telephony equipment sales from Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) should grow at approximately 11.9 per cent in the five years following 2010. 

Officials with IDC also noted that for U.K. businesses, the challenge remains to control overhead while taking full advantage of technological advances like business VoIP.

In addition, suitability of systems remains a key question for many U.K. firms, as technology becomes ever more specialized. Many firms now need to outsource to business telephony firms to ensure systems genuinely meet their needs. 

Business Communication and IT support specialists SynergyPlus note clients are not aware of all their options. 

"There is a lot of new technology that helps improve their communication efficiency; the problem is understanding which IP systems are genuinely appropriate for your needs. Many companies need comprehensive support around unified communications, using suitably enabled business VoIP systems to allow them to enjoy seamless integration of email, calling and video conferencing, data applications and so on. They need the flexibility but it should be configured to be scalable according to their operational needs," said company officials.

 SynergyPlus officials also said that with the challenges that U.K. businesses have faced in the wider economy in recent years, there is also now wider recognition that cost-effective yet efficient communications are pivotal to a company’s success.

In addition, the rise of unified solutions allows for more flexible working alongside reduced costs.

However, company officials said that the service delivery needs to be just as well designed from an end-user perspective as the systems themselves. If the necessary training is too complex for staff to quickly complete, cost savings are inevitably compromised.

According to company officials, businesses also need to look at whether their communications strategy actually contributes to a more positive experience for both suppliers and clients.  Noting that finding value in the market has moved far away from the days when the size of the monthly telephone bill was the primary consideration.