CHERRY HILL, N.J. (April 27, 2020) — Can a world-renowned university continue to provide a high-quality education, conduct research, and collaborate in the midst of a global pandemic?
With a Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) system that makes it easy for professors, students, and staff to learn, teach, and collaborate seamlessly from anywhere at any time, the answer is yes.
When the pandemic struck in early 2020, Pittsburgh’s Duquesne University faced one of the greatest challenges in its 140-year history: a legacy telecommunications system designed for on-campus personnel. When the campus closed, Duquesne staff and administration had to forward office extensions to their personal cell phones. Using personal phones to conduct university business created issues since Caller ID did not display Duquesne University.
The university had already begun soliciting bids for a UCaaS solution, but that process went on hold during the COVID-19 shutdown. Recognizing that communication and collaboration would be critical for remote operations, VOIP Networks proposed a trial deployment with selected stakeholders to demonstrate the benefits of a modern, scalable, cloud-based system.
VOIP Networks partnered with the university’s IT staff to implement its Cloud9 UCaaS platform for key individuals who contacted current and prospective students, parents, and vendors.
“VOIP Networks demonstrated that their Cloud9 UCaaS solution would work for us, resolving the Caller ID issue,” said Sheryl Reinhard, Director, Systems, Operations and Network at Duquesne University. “They showed us how a cloud-based system utilizing soft phones aligned with our needs and was scalable and easy to manage. It also offers a level of business continuity and an ability to collaborate that’s critical for us.”
VOIP Networks is now rolling out the system to all the university’s stakeholders, which will involve more than 3,300 users.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Duquesne University,” said VOIP Networks President and CEO Chuck Reagan. “The ability to collaborate from anywhere is critical for any college or university, and many institutions of higher education are rapidly migrating to UCaaS platforms. Our Cloud9 by VOIP Networks platform features a host of feature-rich collaboration tools that offers users more ways to work together.”
To learn more about VOIP Networks, please contact Matt Henrich at (856) 669-5258.
About VOIP Networks
VOIP Networks provides businesses of all sizes with unified communications solutions. The company’s Cloud 9 UCaaS platform is powered by Mitel, trusted by 70 million business users in more than 100 countries. Founded in 1984, VOIP Networks offers expertise in on-premises, virtual, and state-of-the-art cloud communications. VOIP Networks offers a complete, end-to-end solution with white-glove service as the standard.
About Duquesne University
Founded in 1878, Duquesne University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top Catholic universities for its award-winning faculty and horizon-expanding education. A campus of nearly 9,500 graduate and undergraduate students, Duquesne prepares students by having them work alongside faculty to discover and reach their goals. The University’s academic programs, community service, and commitment to equity and opportunity in the Pittsburgh region have earned national acclaim.
