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PBX - What is it?
Private Branch Exchange (PBX) systems are widely deployed in business organizations, and are referred to as business PBX systems. In the past, PBX systems were expensive and were not affordable by small businesses. Now, due to reduction in prices of these systems, several small and medium sized companies find IP-based business PBX systems to be a viable solution to their communication needs. They are compact and can be used in organizations with space constraints. This topic discusses business PBX systems that are IP-based.
The earliest business PBX systems provided support for private and public analog lines. Typically, a small business PBX system consists of external and internal phone lines; a computer server that automatically routes and switches incoming and outgoing calls for the internal users of a company; and a manual control terminal.
Business IP PBX solutions can be tailored for businesses with different requirements - small office/home office (SOHO) with less than five employees, small and medium businesses with five to 100 employees, large businesses with more than 100 employees and hosted options.
IP-based Business PBX systems are often referred to as virtual PBX or Hosted PBX phone systems, and provide features such as voice mail, virtual receptionist, auto-attendants, and call handling functions like call transfer, call forwarding, dial by name, conference calling, etc. It also provides music on hold, messaging on hold, and after hours messaging capabilities. Based on business needs, a business PBX system can be suitably programmed with ease.
Advanced business PBX systems enable better management of the business. Auto-attendant handles incoming calls with appropriate greeting messages and provides necessary menu options. These greeting messages prove to be an excellent client interface. Business PBX systems provide uninterrupted communication to employees, during working and non-working hours. Calls that are missed at an extension are automatically forwarded to the voice mail box. Business PBX systems simplify number portability. Calls to official numbers can be programmed to be routed to any alternative phone number, as required. During travel, employees can access their voice messages on email as well.
Small and medium business PBX systems also enable provision of local and toll-free numbers. Virtual offices can be established anywhere in the world and calls are routed to the intended recipient, regardless of the location.
Business PBX systems consist of software that runs on a computer. Hence, scalability is simple and can be done at any time using a web-based tool - addition or removal of extensions, upgrade, etc. is done by the click of a mouse. There is no need for expensive equipment and software purchase for every network upgrade. Many of the business PBX systems are maintained by service providers at their location. This is referred to as a hosted business PBX system. The business organization benefits by the cost savings otherwise incurred on maintenance and administration and network management.
All these features aid in growth of the business, by providing a seamless working experience for employees. The revolutionary features of a business PBX system are attractive for businesses that need to save on their phone bills.
In summary, although the terminology can be confusing and business PBX phone systems are often referred to as virtual PBX, hosted PBX, hosted VoIP or even business VoIP phone systems, the bottom line is that these phone systems can yield huge cost savings for a company while improving productivity.