VOIP Training and Education is gaining popularity as this vital technology is becoming an imperative to maintaining a competitive edge.
Designing any training course, the first aspect you have to consider is the answer that the training course will have to furnish to the demand of learning formulated by the buyer.
A non superficial knowledge of the training needs it allows to predispose a suitable and effective answer in terms of contents and, often, also of methods.
Besides it also allows to choose the teachers and trainers able to transfer knowledge to participants and also to manage processes.
From Were to Begin ? As for any other training intervention a plan of action is needed, what follows could be useful in our case:
1- Define Training Goals and Objectives:
Naturally the objectives of a training course on VOIP can be different according to the dimension of your firm and to your line of business.
For example if your firm is a small or medium enterprise that utilizes VOIP services as end user, the objectives of a training course on VOIP could be these:
-To make aware project managers and responsible of function persons of the necessity to adjust the organization to the technology Voice Over IP;
-To homogenize VOIP knowledge and skills among the business responsible launchings;
-To Identify the application problem list;
-To stimulate the dialogue among the persons responsible of function.
If your firm is a firm that supplies products, services and VOIP consultations, then the objectives could be:
To understand the market context and the perspectives of development of the VOIP products and services in your region or country.
To identify the technical and application problem list of the VOIP with reference specifically to the integration between traditional telephone infrastructures and IP networks of which it requires the client to safeguard the investments effected in the past.
Specific updating on necessary technical knowledge to effectively configure the customers VOIP equipments
Which is the Target Audience of a VOIP Training?
Here are some examples but this list is not exhaustive:
-IT managers
-Technical sales/marketing personnel
-Consultants
-Network designers and engineers
-Product design engineers developing integrated-services products
-Telecom technicians and managers integrating PBX services within data networks
-Systems administrators who will manage a converged network
2. Determine Participants’ Needs
In a VOIP training the initial demands of learning are usually the followings:
-Necessity to furnish the basics of VOIP technology to the participants, especially to those who are not technicians;
-To furnish a common language to all participants, both to those coming from Information Technology function that from the other areas not tightly tied up to the Information Technology (for instance administration, marketing, production);
-To facilitate the integration of the new technology with those existing;
-To appraise the impact of VOIP on the business structure and on the redefinition of the duties of the personnel;
-To understand the necessary elements to the determination of the ROI (Return On Investment) of the project of investment in the VOIP technology.
3. Outline Training Content
Here for example some hints:
-Introduction to Voice over IP
-Understanding the Requirements of Voice in an IP network
-Understanding Gateways and Their Roles
-Encapsulating Voice in IP Packets
-Calculating Bandwidth Requirements
-Understanding Security Implications
Voice over IP Signalling and Call Control
-Understanding the Need for Signals and Call Control
-Configuring H.323
-Configuring SIP
-Configuring MGCP
-Comparing Call Control Models
-Improving and Maintaining Voice Quality
-Comparing Voice Quality Measurement Standards
-Understanding VOIP Challenges
-Understanding QOS (Quality Of Services) and Good Design
-Understanding Jitter and Delay
-Understanding QOS Tools in the WAN (Wide Area Network)
-Configuring QOS in the WAN
-Understanding Voice Bandwidth Engineering
Scalable Numbering and Applications
4. Develop Instructional Activities such as brainstorming, case studies, cooperative group work
Skill development is best achieved through modelling, practice, and feedback, while information acquisition can be achieved through group discussion or collaborative group work
Some strategies that promote active learning include brainstorming, games, mini-lectures, small group work, cooperative group work, simulations, role-playing, and VOIP implementation success case studies
5. Prepare Participant Evaluation Forms
The purpose of the evaluation is to determine the extent to which the training achieved its objectives and to identify what adjustments, if any, need to be made to the VOIP training design or follow-up process. Some issues to address through the evaluation form:
-Did the participants acquire the knowledge and skills that the VOIP training was supposed to provide?
-Were the trainers knowledgeable about VOIP training content?
-Were the activities interesting and effective?
-Was the training format appropriate?
-Is more training on this or related topics needed to support participants in their work?
6. Determine Follow-up Activities for the Event.
Without follow-up, the benefits of a VOIP training may quickly be forgotten or never used.
Follow-up activities provide the continued support and feedback necessary for the successful implementation of new ideas and practices.
To be effective, follow-up activities should be planned as you develop your VOIP training design, and should include a range of opportunities for participants to reflect on both the content of what they learned during the VOIP training and the process of implementation.
By: Dr.maurizio Cucchiara
Archive for December, 2009
How-to Design a Voip Training Course
December 30th, 2009Internet Calls: Voip technology for cheap calling
December 29th, 2009Calling over Internet has proved to be the best solution to avoid exorbitant monthly telephone bills, as Internet calls can save up to 40 to 60 percent when compared with PSTN services.
To make Internet calls one needs a high speed Internet connection, a computer, a sound card, speakers, head set with a microphone and special software used for setting up an Internet phone connection. Popularity of making calls over Internet has led many users to switch to VoIP services. The reasons for people opting for Internet telephony are many:
The Internet calling provides unified communication with others as it is backed with packet switching technique.
Unlike traditional PSTN services, the Internet telephony offers value added calling features including voice mail, caller ID, call conferencing, call waiting and call forwarding.
The service providers offer users cheap calling rates than the normal telephone calls. The facilities include unlimited PC to phone calling, PC to PC and so on.
Internet calls also improve productivity as it ensures excellent voice quality without any latency.
Introduction to Voice Over IP (VOIP) Phone Service
December 29th, 2009Anyone who is old enough to remember making long distance phone calls 30 years ago would also agree that telephone communication has changed considerably over the past three decades. Certainly the introduction and mass adoption of the cellphone has changed voice communication immeasurably. But there is a new revolution going on in landline communication as well. The latest technology is called Voice Over Internet Protocol, or VoIP for short. It is also known as Internet Telephony, a name that is derived from the fact that VoIP involves making phone calls over a broadband internet connection.
VoIP technology is taking the world by storm for mainly one reason – it is much cheaper than phonecalls made with the Plain Old Telephone System (POTS). It is very common for people who switch to using VoIP over POTS to save several hundred dollars per year off their phone bills. Furthermore, VoIP offers a wide variety of services like caller ID, 3 way calling, call forwarding, and so on at no extra charge. While most of these features are available in POTS plans, they are almost always available only for an extra monthly charge. So VoIP phone service offers improved phone service for less money – who doesn’t love that idea?
VoIP technology has come a long way since it was invented in the mid 1990’s. Originally, computer hobbyists were responsible for creating VoIP so that they could use voice communication between two people who both had computers and specialized voice equipment. The first VoIP companies began delivering products to the market in 1996, and by 1998 or 1999, VoIP technology had become a topic of considerable interest in technically oriented publications. The largest VoIP company (Vonage) started in 2001 and signed its first residential customer in 2002. Within the next two years, newer companies like Sunrocket entered the market to compete with Vonage by offering the same service at an even lower price. Today, an ever-growing number of residential and business customers are adopting VoIP technology as they discover the cost and performance advantages offered by the technology.
Another nice feature of VoIP is that switching from a POTS plan is very easy. You do need a broadband internet connection (cable, DSL, even wireless) but aside from that, the VoIP company you sign with will give you everything you need. The equipment can include either analog telephone adapter (ATA) which connects your existing phone to your broadband internet connection. However, it is more common these days for the VoIP carrier to provide you with a new VoIP phone, which looks just like your regular phone but is specially made to work with VoIP.
One of the latest exciting features of VoIP is portability. On leading VoIP carriers like Sunrocket and Vonage, you can take your VoIP modem with you when you go on business trips or on vacation, and simply connect this modem to any computer at your destination (any computer with a broadband internet connection). If you do this, your phone number travels with you! No one back home will ever know that you are overlooking the beach in Florida rather than sitting in your office in Cleveland. Imagine the possibilities!
The fact that VoIP is internet-based is the only major downside to VoIP. Unfortunately, internet connections occasionally go down, and during this time there is no VoIP service. Many people get around this problem by having a cellphone available as an emergency backup. So many people have cellphones these days that this is usually not an issue. So, you can use the VoIP system for making calls cheaply, and use the more expensive cellphone only for those emergency situations when the internet is down. In this way, you get the best of both worlds.
By: Marc Ilgen
