For companies who make more extensive use of the phone, modern corporate phone systems offer some significant benefits.

Automatic call forwarding, also known as “follow me anywhere,” helps both your employees and your callers. By routing incoming calls to wherever your employees are, whether on the road, working at home, or at a remote location, automatic forwarding increases the likelihood that callers reach the person they need. Callers do not need to make a second or third call. In addition, your employees avoid having to return to an overflowing voicemail box.

Call convergence enables your corporate phone system to handle phone calls, voice mail, e-mail, instant messages, video conferences, faxes and other types of communication.

Computer telephony integration (CTI) covers a wide range of applications that connect your computers to your corporate phone system. One example is one-click dialing for an outbound call center. Employees can use their contact management applications to place calls without dialing the number manually, reducing errors and time per call.

Other CTI applications handle incoming calls: in conjunction with caller ID, calls can be routed to the correct representative before they are even answered. And callers’ account information can be displayed automatically when an employee picks up.

CTI applications themselves are usually sold separately from phone systems. If you are interested, you should investigate what CTI applications are marketed for the software you use, and then make sure the corporate phone system you choose is also compatible. Most high-end corporate phone systems are CTI-ready.

For businesses with the highest call volumes, automatic call distribution (ACD) can really increase productivity. ACD manages incoming calls to maximize efficiency and reduce call answer times. It also tracks per-call and per-employee statistics, allowing you to improve your call center’s responsiveness. While ACD is extremely valuable for large call centers, most small businesses probably will not see much advantage to it.

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