Triad Advertising is growing and planning for the future. During a move to new offices a year ago, the Canton, MA-based company engaged Atlantic Telephone to update its original PBX telephone system with a new converged voice and data network based on the Mitel Networks 3100 Integrated Communications Platform (ICP). More recently, the advertising firm added a Mitel Networks 6000 Managed Application Server (MAS) for web hosting, secure e-mail service and the Mitel Networks 6010 Teleworker Solution.

“The 6010 Teleworker Solution gives us the ability to work conveniently from home with full access to our phone system and computer network,” explains Joe Emerson, a Triad account executive who also oversees the company’s network. “I can use it from home or on the road. If I was in Las Vegas visiting a client, for example, the 6010 Teleworker Solution would keep me in contact with the agency and allow me to use downtime between meetings to be productive.”

After trying out the 6010 Teleworker Solution from his home office, Emerson decided to deploy four additional remote phones within the company. “Child care is important in this agency. Most of us have children and we are very flexible with child-care arrangements. The 6010 Teleworker Solution allows us to work flexibly even during those times when we need to be at home.”

It’s all part of Emerson’s plan to ensure that Triad is well prepared for the future. He began a year ago, “looking for an upgrade to our existing Mitel Networks phone system. That’s when I realized that it was time to step up our technology and increase our Internet capabilities. The Mitel Networks solution helped to position us for the future. Once I realized what the solution would give us, a light went on – it was the obvious choice.”

But Emerson wasn’t interested in change for change’s sake. He wanted to be sure that any new technology would provide significant business benefits. Equally important, it had to integrate seamlessly with the company’s existing network and be user-friendly. Like many advertising firms, Triad has standardized on Macintosh computers. He explains, "We’re not technically savvy people here, in general. Our old phone system was easy to use, so any new technology we chose had to be simple, too.”

Today, he reports that all employees are pleased with the new converged voice and data network installed by Atlantic Telephone. Even simple improvements – such as being able to tell at a glance who is on the phone - make a big difference. “I’ve programmed everyone’s phones with line appearances, “ Emerson says, “which is a huge benefit. It seems trivial, but it improves customer service and makes us all more productive. We can see if someone is on the phone before we put a caller through the call transfer process.”

'Now, we give out just one number to be accessible no matter where we are'

Emerson enjoys this same capability even when he’s working from home using the 6010 Teleworker Solution, helping him feel more connected to the office. “It was so simple to set up,” he says. “In 10 minutes and two plug-ins I was connected from home, with all the same phone features and network access that I have in the office.”

He’s impressed that such an easy-to-install solution could offer his company such advanced capabilities. “This solution is pretty amazing. The idea of picking up a phone and connecting to another system, be it another phone or the Internet, with the same quality as if I was on a phone line – that’s amazing.” Perhaps most important is that the complete Atlantic Telephone solution - – phone system, computer network, file-sharing, e-mail and web services and teleworker support – is simple enough that Triad can manage it on its own, with no dedicated IT support. “I’m not even an IT guy,” says Emerson, “and I’m taking care of all this. It’s worry-free.”