Hong Kong S.A.R
One of the First in the Serviced Office Industry in Asia-Pacific to Benefit from Flexible Lease Option and State-of-the-Art IP-Based Communications Technology
Cisco Systems(R) has announced that The Executive Centre, the leading serviced office company in Asia, has deployed the Cisco(R) Unified Communications system and Cisco Unified Wireless Network in seven of its business centers in the region. Three of these centers are in Hong Kong, and the other four are in Seoul and Taipei. Cisco's flexible leasing option enables The Executive Centre to deploy the solution cost efficiently in different offices and in different countries.
The Executive Centre is one of the first in the serviced office industry to deploy an Internet Protocol (IP)-based communications system to support customers' voice communications needs. The Cisco solutions help The Executive Centre offer its customers differentiating, value-added services consistently across all seven locations.
The Executive Centre is now able to provide its customers with an enhanced, more flexible communications experience via value-added services such as consistent phone system services in different business centers.
Traditional private branch exchange (PBX) systems did not allow the company to move in that direction.
"The technology we deploy must be upgradable to meet the dynamic needs of our customers. We also needed a lease option that allowed us financial flexibility and great solution scalability," said Teresa Cheuk, The Executive Centre's group virtual office manager.
After a thorough search for an IP-based communications solution, The Executive Centre selected the Cisco Unified Communications system and the Cisco Unified Wireless Network solution. "The Cisco routers and switches we implemented before have given us substantial confidence in deploying Cisco solutions to build mission-critical voice and data systems. In addition, the expertise, resources and support for Cisco solutions are readily available in the market," Cheuk said.
"Above all, Cisco Systems Capital(R) offers us flexible leasing structures which have enabled us to deploy the solution in seven new locations in the last 12 months. The Cisco Unified Communications system and the Cisco Unified Wireless Network solution form one of the best total solutions available in the market today."
"We are delighted to work with The Executive Centre - a leading serviced office provider in Asia," said Charleston Sin, general manager of Hong Kong for Cisco Systems. "Cisco's lease option gives customers like The Executive Centre immediate ROI by allowing them to align their expenses with monthly revenues. In addition, it enables effective management of cash flow and resources, which can be deployed for other business areas. The lease option also brings greater flexibility in equipment upgrade and technology migration, helping customers respond to market changes in a timely manner."
The Cisco Unified Communications system comprises the Cisco Unified CallManager, Cisco VG224 Analog Phone Gateway, Cisco Catalyst(R) 3560 Series Switches, Cisco IP Softphone and more than 500 Cisco Unified IP Phones. These include the latest Cisco Unified IP Phone 7941G, 7961G and 7971G-GE models.
In Hong Kong, systems integrator Macroview implemented the Cisco Unified Communications system and the Cisco Unified Wireless Network solution, while Datacraft took care of the implementation in other markets.
New differentiating services and revenue streams
The Cisco solution enables The Executive Centre to generate new revenue streams by offering tenant customers differentiating services such as centralized billing, call pop-up, e-Voice, IP softphone and wireless telephony.
Customers can now receive a single invoice for all their communication services, reducing the administration time associated with multiple bills. The system's "pop-up screen" service informs the receptionist of the customer's profile and availability status before callers are greeted, ensuring consistent customer service. The Executive Centre's virtual office customers, who typically manage their business remotely, now enjoy productivity enhancements through the e-Voice service, which sends users voicemails in a .wav file directly to their e-mail accounts, reducing the time associated with checking voicemail over the phone.
In addition, the IP softphone service allows tenant customers to benefit from lower communications costs and higher level of mobility. Customers of The Executive Centre can also enjoy mobility through the Unified Wireless Network in and around the office space when they lease Cisco Unified Wireless IP Phones.
Consistent Services in Different Centers
As The Executive Centre has deployed the Cisco solutions in different Asian cities and will continue to do so, its customers are increasingly able to enjoy the same services and benefits in its different business centers in the region.
"This further reinforces our strategy of having a consistent look and feel in our centers in Asia. Now customers will find the communications services they enjoy at our centers are the same too," Cheuk noted.
"The ultimate aim of this deployment is to serve our customers better, and the Cisco platform has allowed us to revolutionize how we provide services to our customers. The technology we deployed at the back end is industry-leading, and at the same time perfectly user-friendly at the front end, thanks to the outstanding design of the user interface by Cisco."
Within the same city, customers can enjoy even greater communications efficiency when moving from one location to another as there is no need for them to change phone number or forward the old number to the new one.
"Both overseas and local SME customers are impressed with the Cisco solution in place. As many of our customers from overseas are familiar with the Cisco brand, they are very excited about using reliable, robust Cisco solutions in Hong Kong," Cheuk said. "Local SME customers are pleased to utilize a high-tech-driven service enabled by Cisco technologies. The useful features of the Cisco IP phones offer these customers outstanding efficiency in communications.
"Thanks to this leading-edge communication system, The Executive Centre is delighted to enhance the quality of our service offering to our virtual office clients. These customers, who pay a monthly premium, can benefit from a complete global solution supported by a team of 150 people, including senior management, accountants, sales and marketing people, and supporting administrators. They are all perfectly conversant in different local languages and equipped with the expertise needed for the provision of outstanding services. The Executive Centre's 12 years of local and international experience in business, as well as our access to qualified and tested consultants in each and every one of our markets, support our advanced services for virtual office clients."
The Executive Centre plans to link up its 19 business centers in Asia-Pacific by using the Cisco Unified Communications system. This will help the service provider break down the geographic boundaries for its customers. As a result, customers can have confidence that their communications needs can be coordinated in multiple locations in the region.
"This project underlines Cisco's commitment to help companies in different sectors migrate to an IP-based infrastructure and deliver value-added services to their own customers," said Sin. "Serviced office is a new and innovative concept in the region. It benefits from the support of a provider of leading-edge technologies and a flexible financing program such as our lease option."
About The Executive Centre
Established in 1994 as a half-floor operation in Bank of America Tower in Hong Kong's Central District, The Executive Centre has grown into Asia-Pacific's leading premium serviced office provider with 19 centres across 10 cities - all focused on addressing global business's demand for maximum office space flexibility, cost effectiveness and productivity. The Executive Centre serviced offices are located in Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Jakarta, Sydney, Sofia (Bulgaria). In Hong Kong, The Executive Centre offers premium serviced offices and full secretarial business support services in Hong Kong's best-located office buildings including Three Pacific Place, Cambridge House, Cheung Kong Center, Wheelock House, Bank of America Tower and 30 Queen's Road.
About Cisco Systems
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CONTACT: Cisco Systems, Inc. Karen Chu 852-25883292 karenchu@cisco.com Liz Lemon 408-527-8452 (Investor Relations) lemon@cisco.com
CONTACT: Cisco Systems, Inc. Karen Chu 852-25883292 karenchu@cisco.com Liz Lemon 408-527-8452 (Investor Relations) lemon@cisco.com , ,
Source: Business Wire (Business Wire India)