A recent survey conducted by market research firm Chadwick Martin Bailey dove into the competitive advantages experienced by organizations employing unified communications solutions and found enterprises realized increased productivity and employee collaboration, as well as improved time and cost savings.

1) Increased productivity
More than three-quarters of participating organizations reported experiencing increased productivity from staff located in different offices through the use of voice and video conferencing. The study also found that, after deploying mobile communication tools, 67 percent of respondents experienced higher worker productivity and quicker resolution of problems. Another 68 percent said productivity improved between geographically dispersed groups after implementing telepresence services.

2) Cost savings
According to the report, almost two-thirds of organizations utilizing conferencing tools experienced a more than 10 percent reduction in travel costs. More than one-third of participating organizations also reported cost savings of between 11 and 25 percent each month by eliminating the use of cellphone plans and the occurrence of long distance fees.

Enterprises can also realize improved return on investment by providing employees with business data and communication tools on their mobile devices. According to InformationWeek contributor Marty Parker, organizations utilizing cloud-based communication services are able to decrease the time it takes to complete transactions, increasing their return on investment by 137 percent after five years.

3)Time savings
With tools like instant messaging and user presence, employees have become easier to reach. According to the Chadwick Martin Bailey report, 49 percent of those surveyed reported saving as much as 20 minutes per employee per day with the ability to get in touch with workers on the first try. Half of those surveyed reported saving as much as 20 minutes per employee by transitioning instant messages into Web conferences, where more can be discussed and resolved in a shorter period of time. Half of all organizations surveyed reported saving up to 20 minutes per employee on a daily basis by deploying more efficient message management.

The use of telepresence tools has also helped to save time for enterprises, especially in the form of unnecessary travel. According to the study, 46 percent of respondents said they experienced travel reductions of more than five days per employee each year through the use of video conferencing.

Capitalizing on UC benefits
As companies continue to realize greater competitive advantages from the use of unified communications and other advanced business communication tools, more enterprises will seek to implement such services. With organizations looking to earn an edge on their competitors wherever they can, these findings suggest a growing number of businesses will be interested in utilizing video and Web conferencing, unified messaging and voice-over-IP services.