This Spring, Information Technology Services (ITS) began implementing our new telecommunications system, Vonage, Inc., which replaces the old, near-end-of-life Avaya system Mason has had for several years.
This change is exciting for many reasons, but high on the list is that it brings many advanced communication capabilities to Mason, including softphone applications, Office 365 integration, call flow options, and availability status, and supports the ways working has evolved at Mason.
When choosing a vendor for this project in 2022, Vonage impressed ITS with its options for the Mason community, its international presence, and its recognition by Gartner as an “up and coming” company for phone solutions.
“They had great redundancy, which was one of the biggest things we were looking for, as well as softphone and desk phone options,” shared Cherie Galantis, Manager of Enterprise Collaboration in ITS.
The latest feature that Vonage brings Mason is a softphone, which is available via desktop and mobile apps. In its simplest terms, a softphone is a software that allows a user to make telephone calls over the internet via a computer, which is a much-needed technology as Mason has embraced more hybrid work since 2020. In addition to the online system, the new Vonage desk phones are also updated and modern.
“An exciting piece is that Vonage is very user-friendly,” said Galantis. “I think people are going to have an easy time adapting.”
ITS is continuously working towards equipping Mason with unified communications technology to improve business and allow for more efficiency and accessibility. With Vonage, users can connect on and off campus, fulfilling an essential need for those in hybrid and remote environments.
“In this day and age, especially in higher education, we’re competing for talent when hiring. Having Vonage gives us a fighting chance to be a part of that competition,” said Galantis.
The full implementation is estimated to be complete in 2025. For more information and timeline details, see the Telecommunications System Replacement Roadmap.
