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Carole Crowther
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Dear Salem State Colleagues,
In an effort to improve services to faculty, staff and students, Information Technology Services (ITS) will be moving away from its current voice-calling platform (Avaya) and implementing Microsoft Teams Calling across campus. Avaya, while effective when it was implemented in 2005, is outdated and requires significant investment to update and manage.
Investing in a basic, less robust phone system would cost at least $500,000; whereas moving to Microsoft Teams is a cost-effective solution as licensing is covered in our Microsoft Campus Agreement. Our goal is that by this time next year, all faculty, staff and administrators will be using Microsoft Teams Calling instead of desktop phones.
Microsoft Teams Calling is an Internet-based application that can be used on any device (computer, mobile, etc.) and allows you to make and receive calls from your current SSU extension, both on- and off-campus. This move is beneficial for many reasons, including allowing work extensions to travel with us whether we are working remotely, in our offices, or from another location on campus – something that would certainly prove useful given the current situation with COVID-19.
Microsoft Teams Calling is provided as part of Salem State’s Microsoft Campus Agreement. Several of our colleagues and departments have been utilizing Microsoft Teams Calling to better connect with one another and serve our students, and ITS regularly receives requests from SSU employees for this platform.
ITS is holding a series of virtual trainings on how to use Microsoft Teams Calling. More information on training dates and resources is available on the Microsoft Teams Calling post in Polaris. We will also be providing headsets as needed. If you or your department would like to make the switch to this platform, please contact Carole Crowther at ccrowther@salemstate.edu or complete the form at www.salemstate.edu/phonesignup.
Moving to Microsoft Teams will be a transition, and ITS will be here to help in any way that we can. This change is one that will allow us to work more effectively in a cloud-based environment and to use our current resources to the fullest, while addressing the challenges with voice calling that many of you faced this spring.
Please contact me if you have any questions. I look forward to working with you.
Best,
Mike Rose
Deputy CIO, Technology Services