The transition to the cloud was already a reality, the pandemic only reinforced this trend. It is undeniable that lockdown and remote work drove a very significant change in the way of communicating, ie “calling” – voice calls by telephone – gave way to collaboration tools that, in this scenario, have gained enormous relevance in our daily communications.

We are experiencing great changes in the working world and in the last few months we have seen drastic changes in communications and the way we interact with colleagues, team, friends and family has changed.

As with the transition from desktops to laptops, on-premises phones remained in offices, but at the same time there was greater use of collaboration tools and mobile phones. Chat conversations have also increased exponentially, proving to be an effective method of communication that even allows registration for future consultations, similar to e-mail.

These changes in the communication paradigm, from spontaneous to scheduled communications, from face-to-face interaction to the use of video with a voice complement, all of this may lead us to think that “calling” is no longer part of our daily lives, but it is not true, even though, in some situations, they have been relegated to the background.

Traditional voice calls are still necessary and useful. In the work context, communications are mostly made with videoconferencing systems and collaboration platforms (eg, Webex, Microsoft Teams and Zoom). In the familiar and closer environment, these platforms are also used, but apps like WhatsApp or Telegram are often the preferred medium. When it is necessary to communicate with other entities, the typically chosen medium remains the voice call. We still continue to make calls while walking or in the car; in case of urgencies or emergencies, the use of voice calls is the first impulse; when e-mails and messages have already been exchanged without understanding by one of the parties, the voice call ends up appearing in order to clarify the matter quickly.

The concept of mobility and “work from anywhere” has long been present through our phones. This is Calling!

In short, we have seen the use of different media/platforms depending on the context we are talking about, but Calling has not died and is very much alive and present in our lives. Undoubtedly, the future of work will be different, remote and hybrid, but voice calls will remain together with collaboration platforms or physical videoconferencing systems.

by Carlos Lima

Consulting Services Solutions Architect – Collaboration & Customer Experience