The ROI of VoIP

Organizations with fewer than 100 users spend less than those with 100 to 499 users. Often, companies with fewer than 100 users are running small trials and haven't invested in a baseline network assessment yet, so their cost per user appears lower.

Also, organizations with small rollouts usually keep their implementations straightforward, eliminating some of the time-consuming complexities of larger rollouts, such as integrating the gear into current TDM PBXs or voice mail systems. This keeps the fewer-than-100-user rollouts lower than the next level up.

The trends were similar with capital costs. The highest cost per unit is among companies with 100 to 499 users, at $771. The lowest cost per unit is among companies with more than 1,000 units, at $448.

In cases where the average phone cost is high, it's usually organizations that have added audio or video equipment to their hardware costs, or those that have invested heavily in equipment and still are running trials so they don't have as many phones in use as the equipment supports.

For example, one large global manufacturer has spent $2 million on equipment, housed in five U.S. and two European locations. But it only has 350 users on the system now, as it runs trials and starts a slow rollout. Once fully deployed, the switches will support thousands of users, lowering the cost per unit, even though the company will buy more handsets.

Step 3. Don't forget the cost of management tools and training

Aside from the initial capital equipment and operational costs, many companies overlook a few other key cost considerations: management tools and training.

Only about 25% of companies budget upfront for specialized management and security tools. Many network managers say current management tools will do the trick, and (if they acknowledge that voice traffic must be secured) standard security practices already in place will take care of the security issues.

But this isn't the end of the story. Most companies that didn't budget for management and security end up wishing they had. Sometime within 12 months after installation, companies recognize they need VoIP-specific management tools, and they start shopping. The budget for management tools should be set at about $50,000, and companies should budget a minimum of $100,000 (this could go significantly higher, depending on the size of the company and the extent of the rollout).