Microsoft's Azure cloud services have been hit by a major outage on Friday morning AEDT, with DNS resolution issues apparently responsible for the services being unavailable.

Enterprise communication is a challenge

Businesses today are more dynamic and globalised than ever. With the help of the internet and other technologies, we live in a world where we can operate businesses from practically anywhere. And with that, virtual work relationships are on the rise as companies expand geographically. Whether it be colleagues from a different state or clients from another time zone, businesses are increasingly being challenged with how to maintain healthy virtual relationships.

The solution? Video conferencing.

It’s not something new but in recent years has become a go-to method for one-on-one and group communications. A Forbes Insights study revealed 80% of executives saw the growing use of video call by internal teams and 84% said their staff were using video calls to meet with external stakeholders.

Video conferencing breaks down geographic boundaries. It opens boundless opportunities by creating seamless visual experiences with people in different places. With real-time streaming, video calls diminish the sense of distance as users are immersed in the visual experience. This is particularly important for stakeholders that live or work remotely so that they can maintain the same level of communication without feeling communication or their relationships are compromised.

Humans are also highly visual. Studies show we are faster and better at processing visual information than text or audio. We build stronger connections through facial recognition rather than only voice. Similarly, virtual face-to-face conversations are likely to create a deeper sense of understanding, rather than via email or other non-visual communication forms.

Video is the ‘killer app’ for Enterprise

Video conferencing has become a necessity for communication and relationship building. And yet not all businesses are willing to adopt it. Why? Businesses often are reluctant to add more communication tools, on top of the fragmented calling, chat and messaging products they already depend on. Instead, enterprise and government organisations are increasingly seeking Unified Communication (UC) tools that can bring all communication services together. One vendor and one solution in the cloud.

What is Unified Communications?

Unified Communications tools promise to improve productivity, enhance security and lower the operational cost of enterprise communications. In fact, 98% of executives from the Forbes study believe consolidation of platforms would encourage greater governance and control by IT teams, along with 92% agreeing consolidation would bring about better cost savings.

Many businesses already use Microsoft Office 365 for internal voice and video calling (Skype for Business), chat (Teams) and collaboration on cloud-based documents and projects. So with the move toward Unified Communications, it is no surprise that Microsoft is a preferred vendor for mid-size, enterprise and government organisations.

Unified Communications via Teams

This is where MNF Enterprise’s Cloud Connect SaaS comes in. Cloud Connect is a seamless and intuitive way to deliver landline and mobile calling via Microsoft Teams. Calls are delivered via the MNF global network, enabling users to call outside their organisation and use receive calls on existing phone numbers, bridging a key functionality gap for Office365 users.

Cloud Connect equips Microsoft Teams with traditional PBX features and a range of call centre capabilities. Users are able to connect and communicate from any device including desktop, laptop, tablet and mobile devices. In addition to voice calls, users can host high quality video calls and web conferences with up to 250 participants.

Maximise your Office 365 investment

Cloud Connect is a game-changer for organisations that rely on Microsoft Office 365. It enables any organisation to transform Microsoft Teams into a fully featured cloud PBX system and deliver a modern Unified Communications experience.

Best of all, by using Teams for corporate voice and video calling, organisations can extract even more value from their existing Office 365 Enterprise licenses.

Embrace the opportunity of video conferencing and Enterprise Unified Communication. Unlock the hidden potential of O365 with Cloud Connect for Teams.

Microsoft 365 services may have to be renamed to something with a smaller number, given that they have once again gone on the blink, with affected users unable to authenticate to, and access, them.