Podcast: Tough Year, but UC Still Looks Good

In its second annual tracking poll of IT folks involved in unified communications, CDW finds that the category remains strong. The poor economy, Senior Manager Kevin DeMers tells Unified Communications Edge, is leading companies to focus first on projects that will save money in the short term. IT planners still are thinking about the big picture, but want to attract decision makers with quick wins. (Podcast time: 18:19)

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On Monday, CDW released its second annual Unified Communications Tracking Poll. The organization said that the poll, which was based on responses from 915 IT pros working with UC, saw implementation remain constant. Companies preparing for UC with a strategic plan or business case increased from 55 percent to 67 percent.

I spoke with Kevin DeMers, the senior manager for CDW's UC Solutions Practice, about the report. It's no surprise that he says that macroeconomic issues – the recession, in other words – were the key concerns of respondents this year. He said that the preeminent goal in 2000 was “doing more with less” and that projects that promised a quick return on investment, such as video conferencing systems that could reduce travel expenses, were favored.

The best news is that despite the challenges, UC didn't fade as the year wore on. This bodes especially well as the recession ends.