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WHAT YOU’LL LEARNThe requirements for cloudbased enterprise voice systemsHow to choose an optimalnetwork for UCaaSThe metrics for measuring asuccessful UCaaS deploymentWHITE PAPERThe hidden iceberg:Seven metrics forevaluating the networkbeneath your unifiedcommunicationssolutionRoughly 90 percent of an iceberg’s mass sits below the surface of the water, and the shape ofthe underbelly can be very difficult to map just by looking at the portion that sits above thewater line. These invisible obstacles create cause for concern for vessels navigating icy waters.Much like the bottom of an iceberg, the IT network is the behind-the-scenes communicationcourier that lurches below every unified communications technology. It’s a critical mass thatIT leaders must carefully maneuver in order to arrive at digital transformation.When it comes to communication workloads,network is arguably the single most importantthe network must deliver perfect performanceelement of a cloud-based communicationsin order to keep VoIP calls and video conferencessolution. Without reliable connectivity, videofrom turning into digital mush. With latencycalling technologies and collaboration benefitsand jitter non-negotiable for enterprise contactare of no practical value.centers and executive video conferences, theCopyright 2019 Masergy. All rights reserved.masergy.com

Therefore, looking below the surface to evaluate thenetwork’s quality of service is a critical step in anyUnified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) purchase.Do you saddle your internal IT team with theThe quality of the user experience isdetermined by the technology and thenetwork service that supports it.responsibilities of providing perfect bandwidth? Canyou trust your provider’s network to deliver on thatperfection? Or, do you rely on public connectivity to dothe job?Basic requirements for managing voice trafficKey network criteria should include (among otherthings) network reliability, dynamic bandwidth controlThe route you choose can mean the difference betweenas well as full visibility into the network performance asa successful solution and a serious navigational error.it relates to voice and video packets. IT teams can’t dialUnderstanding the pros and cons of each route as wellup the bandwidth to support voice traffic if they can’tas the ancillary network services are key in selecting thesee where the bottlenecks are happening. Likewise, theyright solution and partner. This paper explores potentialmust be able to quickly and easily make adjustmentspitfalls associated with each network service type andto the network resource allocations in order to makecovers seven metrics that can help you identify UCaaSthe needed corrections. Thus, probing into a UCaaSproviders whose network is as substantial as theirprovider’s network performance dashboards and controlunified communication technology.tools becomes a critical step in the due-diligenceinvestigation.“At Masergy, we’re seeing networkreliability rise to the top of the prioritylist for UCaaS buyers. While IT executivescare about communications features andfunctionality, they’re focusing more on thequality of service the network delivers,the implementation process and our NetPromoter Score. Features and price arebecoming second-tier criteria.”— Maurie Munro, Director of UCaaS Solutions Engineering, MasergyKey network criteria should include fullvisibility into application performanceand dynamic bandwidth control.The best tools of the tradeSoftware defined network platforms are best positionedto deliver on the needs above, because they serveup deep performance intelligence, empoweringadministrators to pinpoint bandwidth-hungryapplications and modify the network on the fly. UsingUCaaS network connectivity:three basic must-knowsadvanced network approaches, these platforms areknown for breathing agility into the IT managementprocess, making performance analytics as wellas optimization fast and simple. Best of all, theseThe golden rule of the user experienceplatforms come with online control portals and easy-When it comes to unified communications, the qualityto-understand dashboards making bandwidth tweaksof the user experience is determined by two things:from the beachside lounge chair a reality. Seriously!the technology (i.e. the end-user endpoint or servicefeatures) and the network service that supports it.Comparing communication technology featurescan quickly become a matter of clicking checkboxesagainst your enterprise needs (VoIP, instant messaging,Software defined network platformsare best suited for communications.voicemail-to-email, etc.), which often makes thenetwork the next critical conversation as well as a keydifferentiator.Copyright 2019 Masergy. All rights reserved.masergy.com

Avoiding pitfalls: choosing the optimalnetwork for UCaaSThere are several pitfalls and a couple “gotchas” to know when decidingProcuring Your OwnPrivate NetworkPROCONYou’re incontrolYour IT team likelydoesn’t need theextra workloadwhich network should support your critical communications traffic. There arepros and cons associated with each strategy.Your own private network: the burden is on youSome communications providers don’t offer managed network services withtheir UCaaS solutions. Instead, they dazzle you with ad speak and promisesof cutting-edge technology, basically calling the network irrelevant. The truthis, the network is critical, and these vendors would rather put the burden ofprocuring network connectivity on you. While large enterprises have the timeand resources to accept this responsibility, taking the work in-house, manyprefer to rely on a partner for network services.The UCaaS provider’s network: due diligence requiredRelying on the UCaaSProvider’sNetworkPROCONThe benefitsof a managedservice and asingle point ofaccountabilityRisks associatedwith the reliabilityand security of theoutsourced networkas well as the qualityof customer servicethat accompanies itUCaaS providers that bundle their cloud-based communications technologywith network services bring value in the form of a fully managed servicewith a single source for accountability. While these providers help you solvefor both technology and connectivity, they are also held responsible for thequality of service delivery, which can add up to superior reliability, support,and features. But due diligence is necessary--selecting a vendor whosenetwork is as strong as their communications features is the key to success.Relying on PublicConnectivityPROCONCosteffectiveProne to jitter andpacket loss, lack ofaccountability whentroubleshootingSome providers may try to tell you that your existing cost-effective,broadband Internet access is all you need. Beware! Public connectivity is ashared resource, known as a mere “best effort” connectivity type. It is proneto jitter and latency particularly when routing traffic across long distances.Public connectivity: jitter risks and accountabilityfrustrationsSome may claim, “Broadband is so cheap--just buy two connections” (onefor primary and one for backup redundancy). But here at Masergy, we adviseagainst that strategy because latency and jitter delays will still be an issueon the broadband failover path. We believe critical and real-time servicesshould always traverse private network architectures to ensure packets arrivein sequence and on time. This ensures your mission-critical IP traffic receivesthe predictable outcome customers expect. At the end of the day, put criticalapplications on networks that can accommodate it.Copyright 2019 Masergy. All rights reserved.masergy.com

Here’s what will likely happen if you have differentproviders for the network and UCaaS. When you callto complain to your new UCaaS provider about thequality of your communications service, they will quicklypass the buck, telling you to call your network serviceprovider. The result: a frustrating customer experience.Major internet outages ahead?We live in an unpredictable world, and many CIOsare taking into account the possibility of massiveinternet outages when planning for business andcommunications continuity. For example, a Gartnerenterprise networking predictions report warns that“within the next five years, there will be a major internetBefore you make a network decision, askyourself these questionsoutage that impacts more than 100 million users forlonger than 24 hours.” These forecasts are shapingdecisions related to communication networks. Does it make sense to have separate network serviceand UCaaS providers? What impact will this have onmy IT team? Has my network services provider built a voiceplatform that delivers seamless reliability andadvanced communications services that complementmy network? Can my UCaaS services provider guarantee a seamlessexperience with minimal jitter and delay? Will the locations, applications, and user groupssupported by public connectivity be tolerant ofdowntime and lower service quality?Seven metrics for evaluating thenetwork beneath your unifiedcommunications solutionThe metrics and guarantees below allow formore apples-to-apples comparisons acrossproviders and will help tease out networkleaders:1. In-sequence voice packet deliverypercentages2. Latency metrics guarantees per route (POPIdentify the most reliable UCaaSnetworksto POP)3. Jitter metrics in milliseconds (POP to POP)Unified communications partners who have software4. Fallover ratesdefined network platforms and have embedded the5. End-to-end service availability guaranteesUCaaS offering into the fabric of their network platformcan guarantee voice and video performance through6. Proactive customer notificationsservice level agreements (SLAs). When you want to7. Global coverage (delivers localizedensure your global video conference call doesn’t resultin garbled voices and image tiling, evaluate providersbased on network SLAs. These providers will easily pivotfrom pitching video conferencing features to explainingexperience for UCaaS and SIP trunking thatincludes inbound DID/DDI and outboundtermination capabilities)network reliability factors that remove latency and jitterfrom the user experience.BONUSCustomer service ratings andNet Promoter Score (NPS)Copyright 2019 Masergy. All rights reserved.masergy.com

Enterprise-grade UCaaS: theMasergy network differenceOver the last several decades, telecom service providershave engineered an extensive range of sophisticatedfeatures into their networks, to the point where theyguarantee “six-nines” reliability. That means the networkis guaranteed to be up 99.9999 percent of the time,implying a downtime of no more than 32 secondsper year. This is what makes an “enterprise-grade”experience, and this is one of the reasons that MasergyGlobal UCaaS is so unique.The Masergy UCaaS customer experience is superiorbecause our software defined network prioritizes voicecommunications traffic and guarantees performancethrough SLAs. Our customers receive high-quality audioand multi-channel communications with the followingDon’t want to use Masergy’s network?No problem.We also offer complete flexibility to runMasergy UCaaS over your existing networkconnection or any broadband service.Masergy network guarantees: 100% in-sequence packet delivery 0% packet loss Less than 1 millisecond of jitter 99.9999% network uptime with built-in disasterrecovery and auto failover that minimizes disruptionsWhy MarkLogicChose Masergy CloudCommunicationsHear the story of Jeff Thomas,VP of IT at MarkLogic, as heoutlines how he met theneeds of a fast-growingcompany at the forefront ofthe big data revolution.Copyright 2019 Masergy. All rights reserved.masergy.com