Connecting Voice Operations with Infrastructure Operations through Azure.

Forge a seamless alliance between Voice Operations and Infrastructure Operations with the transformative power of Azure.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of Unified Communication and Telecommunications services, Microsoft stands as a seasoned player with extensive expertise. Azure for Operators, Microsoft's specialized suite, is meticulously crafted to cater to the unique needs of telecommunications operators and service providers. This comprehensive offering spans network function virtualization (NFV), software-defined networking (SDN), 5G support, IoT, edge computing, data analytics, and security. Aimed at facilitating operators in deploying, managing, and scaling their network infrastructure, these solutions also empower innovation and ensure adherence to industry compliance standards.

On the flip side, numerous enterprises are navigating their way towards cloud-based Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS), leveraging familiar tools such as M365, Teams Admin Center, and Power BI with Call Quality Dashboard (CQD) and Quality Event and Diagnostic Logs (QER). Teams Voice and the Teams Admin Center components provide administrators with a centralized hub for optimizing voice communications within Microsoft Teams. Complemented by Power BI for CQD, these tools deliver robust analytics, allowing organizations to enhance voice communication infrastructure and proactively address call quality issues through data-driven decision-making.

However, for many enterprises, their organizational needs may fall within the spectrum between these two comprehensive scopes.

Organizations can enhance operational efficiency by focusing on IT services that align directly with customer offerings. Streamlining communication infrastructure management is achievable through the strategic use of hosted solutions, resulting in reduced capital investment and operational burdens, especially within Unified Communication.

A prime example of such a solution is Microsoft Operator Connect, a targeted approach that effectively minimizes infrastructure needs, simplifies management overhead, and reduces expenses associated with operating communication infrastructure. By entrusting capacity, licensing, and service health to solution providers experienced in daily operations of UCaaS networks at scale, organizations can ensure operational efficiency.

While the transition to a fully hosted and managed cloud UCaaS environment may be gradual, organizations might find the need to manage independent communication infrastructure along the way, with Teams Direct Routing as an example. This is where hosted or enterprise-managed Session Border Controllers (SBCs) often play a crucial role, providing practical solutions within this evolving landscape.

If your organization is currently navigating the transitional phase outlined above, various challenges may manifest in the following scenarios:

1. Disjointed or Missing Alerts:

   • Inadequate or disjointed alerts and notifications for critical communication impacts may hinder your ability to promptly address and resolve issues, potentially leading to service disruptions.

2. Incomplete Performance Metrics:

   • The absence or unavailability of essential performance metrics could result in a lack of visibility into the health and efficiency of your communication infrastructure, making it challenging to optimize and maintain peak performance.

3. Multiple Management Platforms:

   • Managing communication infrastructure through multiple platforms from your Session Border Controller (SBC) vendor or carrier may introduce complexities. Juggling different interfaces and workflows could lead to inefficiencies and potential oversight of critical configurations.

4. Diverse SBC Vendors:

   • If your organization employs multiple SBC vendors, monitoring multiple panes of glass may become a daunting task. This situation may require your team to diversify their skill set to support and troubleshoot across different platforms, potentially impacting operational efficiency.

5. Lack of Unified Reporting:

   • The absence of a unified reporting mechanism may result in challenges when trying to compile and analyze data across various communication systems. This could impede comprehensive insights into the overall performance and health of your unified communication environment.

6. Limited Scalability and Flexibility:

   • Inflexible solutions may hinder your organization's ability to scale operations efficiently, especially during periods of growth or changes in communication requirements.

7. Insufficient Security Measures:

   • Inadequate security measures could expose your communication infrastructure to potential vulnerabilities, jeopardizing the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive information.

Addressing these challenges requires a thoughtful approach to streamline management processes, enhance monitoring capabilities, and ensure the seamless integration of diverse communication components within your organization's infrastructure.

The concept:

A prevalent challenge arises when voice and unified communication teams operate in silos, separate from traditional IT development and support teams involved in web services, application development, optimization, and support. The concept of collaboration encompasses applications that integrate voice, video, and content-sharing solutions.

Azure offers a unified suite of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) capabilities, providing a cohesive platform where both traditional IT and Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) support teams can mutually benefit.

• Moving Traditional On-Premise SBCs to Hosted Infrastructure in Azure:

  • Migration of Session Border Controllers (SBCs) from on-premise to Azure-hosted infrastructure.
  • Leveraging the scalability and flexibility of Azure for SBC operations.
  • Enhancing accessibility and management of SBCs through cloud deployment.

• Hosting Element Management Solutions in Virtual Machines:

  • Deploying Element Management Solutions in virtual machines for efficient resource utilization.
  • Utilizing the virtualized environment to enhance scalability and adaptability.
  • Streamlining management processes by consolidating element management solutions in Azure VMs.

• Centralize Logging and Analytics:

  • Establishing a centralized logging system to aggregate data from various sources.
  • Implementing analytics tools to derive insights from centralized logs.
  • Enhancing visibility into system performance and activities through centralized logging and analytics.

• Create Alerts for Critical Environment Impacts:

  • Implementing alert systems to promptly notify stakeholders of critical environment impacts.
  • Defining thresholds for key performance indicators to trigger alerts.
  • Proactive monitoring to address potential issues and minimize downtime.

In the initial chapter, delving into the intricacies of the above concepts, our emphasis will be on the latter two scenarios. For further details, explore HERE in Chapter One (coming week of 1/1/2024).

Authors Note: As a novice blogger working to improve the content I share, AI-powered tools are my new best friend. Microsoft and GitHub CoPilot, Designer and even GPT are now regular tools in my toolbox.