Times, they are a changin’
It’s safe to say that we live in a world of continuous change. Think about the dramatic changes to business operations and culture in recent years.
The world of education has also changed at a similar pace, with establishments of all types – nurseries, schools, colleges and universities changed – beyond recognition. They now operate on business principles and often have the same demands as a business operation.
So, the telecommunications needs of the education sector have also changed dramatically, together with the technology used to meet those needs.
Design counts
Education sector telecoms is not just about being able to keep in contact with the outside world. With thoughtful design, telecoms solutions provide a way for education establishments of all types to have an integrated communications and information platform, to support their broader communication needs.
With the capability to link modern telecoms solutions into the wider data network of a nursery, school or college, educational establishments are able to harness the significant benefits for communications, administration and collaboration.
Cloud-based telephony
Cloud-based or hosted telephony enables education providers to manage their phone systems in the cloud.
This is encouraging many users to move from their existing Private Branch Exchange (PBX) system to a cloud-based system.
There are many technological benefits of this transition, which are also underlined by the imminent demise of the BT analogue line system, scheduled for 2025.
The benefits of advanced telecoms systems
The integration of your telecoms systems with your data system means that school leaders can quickly distribute important messages and information to students and staff, as an entire group, or by pre-determined segments.
This is particularly useful if there is an unexpected event causing the closure of premises, and provides a real-time method of contacting all affected staff, pupils and, where relevant, parents.
Communicate on or off your premises
With cloud-based data storage, any event causing a closure does not necessarily affect the ability to communicate as the secure, password-protected data can be accessed by approved users from different locations.
So, for example, if a severe weather incident caused the closure of premises, a cloud-based telecoms system would allow a user to manage notifications and updates from home, without having to reach the education site.
Expansion and personalisation
As education providers continue to expand and operate across several sites with a common group of staff, modern telecoms can enable team members to remain connected across landlines, with seamless integration of mobile telephony to help manage call re-direction.
Modern telecoms can also be better personalised, with direct routing to personal voicemails, improving accessibility and responsiveness.
And with a continuing emphasis on remote learning, or ‘hybrid’ provision, modern telecoms and data management enables clearer, faster and more reliable remote teaching, when required.
Start here
The first step in transitioning to a cloud-based system is to work closely with a credible, experienced provider to determine your current needs and likely future needs.
Modern systems provide the means to future-proof against forward requirements, and their versatility enables scale at pace if any aspect of an education establishment grows, changes, or needs to adapt to emergency circumstances.
So, while it’s true to say that the future lies in our young people, the quality of their educational experience can also be influenced by the quality of education telecoms and data technology.
If you’d like to know more about transforming your education establishment’s telecoms system, Time Communications would be happy to talk you through the options available to you. Contact our expert team on 0113 2059640, you can request a callback on our home page, email at [email protected] or message us here.