A growing number of businesses are choosing Microsoft Teams for their telephony needs. The application is familiar (more than 270 million people use Teams to collaborate and get work done), trusted (Microsoft is now the 2nd largest UcaaS provider in the world) and a natural part of how we do business (more than one million organisations already use the application).
This makes Microsoft Teams Phone an obvious choice for most companies who want to keep things simple and build on what they already have.
It’s exciting news for Carriers, especially those who are proactively tapping into this new market and the business opportunities it represents. Step 1 is to understand the difference between Direct Routing as a Services (DRaaS) and Operator Connect, how they compare and how to choose the best strategy for your client.
Operator Connect is a Microsoft-approved way for external carriers to connect their phone systems to Teams. It allows users to choose their own carrier, while also offering guaranteed service, quality and customer experience levels.
As a carrier, you must be approved by Microsoft to form part of the Operator Connect ecosystem. The certification process includes various automation, network, infrastructure and customer experience criteria. Once successfully completed, you are added to Microsoft’s list of Operator Connect partners that end-users can choose from.
Direct Routing allows users to connect their existing telephony structures to Microsoft Teams. It’s typically more flexible than Operator Connect and works well for more complex telephony systems.
