Large and Small Companies Select Cisco Unified Communications to Improve Business Processes and Reduce Total Cost of Ownership

Business Wire, August 22, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO -- Cisco Systems(R), Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) today announced that companies of all sizes are increasingly adopting the Cisco Unified Communications system as their solution of choice to streamline their business processes and drive productivity through Internet Protocol (IP)-based communications.

Companies such as C.J. Hughes Construction, Warner Pacific Insurance Services and JJ Food Service join a growing number of small to large companies that are deriving significant productivity benefits and return on investment from adopting the Cisco Unified Communications system. Cisco's systems-based approach is also helping channel partners grow their business and meet customer demand for innovative communications solutions. Announced in March 2006, the Cisco Unified Communications system is a suite of voice, data and video products and applications specifically designed to help organizations of all sizes to communicate more effectively and increase operational efficiencies.

C.J. Hughes Construction

Small to medium-size businesses continue to benefit from the flexibility and scalability of the Cisco Unified Communications system. C.J. Hughes Construction, a construction company in West Virginia, leverages Cisco Unified CallManager Express 4.0 and Cisco Unity Express 2.3 to improve communication and streamline business processes. The solution is offered as a managed service at a fixed monthly rate by Advanced Technical Solutions (ATS), a Cisco Premier(R) Certified and Unified Communications Specialized Partner.

"Cisco's solution is perfect for organizations of our size, as it can be offered as a managed service, giving us flexibility and more options without the capital outlay of implementing the solution," stated Ed Burns, President and CEO of C.J. Hughes Construction. "We can now see and prioritize voice messages using the screen display on the IP Phone, see who has called and left an urgent message, how many missed calls we had and who we need to get back to right away. Our staff can be more productive and offer better customer service."

JJ Food Service Ltd.

A long-time Cisco customer and one of the leading independent food distributors in the U.K., JJ Food Service Limited has upgraded its existing systems to take advantage of new capabilities in Cisco Unified Communications, including presence technology, easy-to-use video phones and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) support. The company has deployed the Cisco Unified CallManager 5.0 to provide voice services to employees across all offices, and the Cisco Unified Personal Communicator to reduce the time needed to reach another employee.

"As we look for new ways to improve communications, reduce costs and remove the boundary of distances with our employees, customers and partners we found that the Cisco Unified Communication system is the only system that has really brought voice, data and video together, making our company more cohesive," said Rif Kiamil, IT Manager at JJ Food Service.

Warner Pacific Insurance Services

Warner Pacific Insurance Services, an insurance company with approximately 100 employees, including 35 tele-workers, is another Cisco customer that has added additional components to its existing Cisco Unified Communications system to increase business agility by helping employees communicate more efficiently and providing faster service to customers. The company recently deployed Cisco Unified Personal Communicator and Cisco Unified Presence Server, offering employees quick access to communication tools that use voice, video, Web conferencing and presence information to help them work smarter and faster and reduce costly delays due to telephone tag.

"Cisco's Unified Communications takes the guess work out of communicating and allows us to reach people more reliably and on the first attempt," said Michael DeDecker, network administrator at Warner Pacific Insurance Services. "The intelligence is in the network, and Cisco offers the functionality we need to increase employee productivity and empower more effective communications to all parts of the organization."

Channel Partners Drive Momentum

Cisco channel partners, from large global integrators such as Dimension Data to regional solution providers such as ATS, are packaging Cisco Unified Communications with a full range of lifecycle services and innovative applications to meet the unique requirements of their customers.

Dimension Data, a global solutions and services provider with operations that span 30 countries and six continents, sees unified communications as dramatically improving collaboration and productivity within the business environment. "An integrated collaborative communications infrastructure, which is effortless from both an operational and user viewpoint, is vital in today's competitive business environment," comments Ettienne Reinecke, Group Chief Technology Officer at Dimension Data. "The integration of all business communication channels, including voice, email, meetings, mobile phones, instant messaging, SMS and video-conferencing is delivering real cost, productivity and agility improvements for clients. Cisco Unified Communications is helping us migrate our diverse global customer base to a rich communications environment that seamlessly integrates presence and mobility with voice, video and data collaboration."