I hate it but I think I need to make the move to recording all my phone lines at work.
I probably posted this in the past but need updated info on tech required and cost.
I have:
Internet > Ooma VOIP box > 2 lines > Nortel computer > 7 handsets
What to buy
Where does it install
How does it work
How to review calls
Thanks
Should be done at the Nortel if it’s your PBX if you need internal extension to extension calls recorded or the metadata of who called from caller ID or which extension answered the call... or any sort of control over which calls are recorded by extension or whatever.
Otherwise ask Ooma if they have an option, but I doubt they do. It’ll likely be available only at the Nortel in your setup.
What to buy:
Dump the entire thing for a nice Asterisk based setup. LOL.
Can also probably buy something that records the analog lines in-between your Ooma and the Nortel. But I haven’t done anything at that tiny scale in a long time other than help really small places rip and replace with Asterisk.
Where does it install:
Depends on what you need recorded.
How does it work:
Depends on what you buy. LOL. Most digitize the audio to compressed files on a computer which takes a LOT of storage space if you have a lot of calls.
Almost all expose the recordings to a web server where you can search by date/time. Ours is fully integrated so we see the entire call processing chain from answer to hang up, what menus a line heard, and everyone they’re transferred to or to voice mail, all in a consistent timeline view. Not cheap.
The closest you’ll get to that at a price point palatable for a small business and two lines is something Asterisk based. But hopefully your Nortel rep has a better option that’ll integrate nicely with the existing PBX.
How to review calls:
For most, open the web page and enter a date and time and find the call you’re looking for by listening IF it isn’t integrated in some way with the PBX so you get the callers Caller ID, or the extension the call went to or SOMETHING useful to hunt it down with.
50% of the time our staff can’t even give an accurate date and time. Seriously. Never have in all the systems I’ve worked on. I’ve always searched by *extension* an hour BEFORE they said something happened then looked for the hints that it was a call bounced around or whatever, or just listened to the files until I found it or found no evidence of what they said happened. At least at your size you’d recognize everyone’s voices. Gahhhh!
50% of the good ones to investigate that weren’t utter BS, the PBX logfile was more useful in piecing together what occurred than the recording itself.
Have fun with that. You’re opening a can of worms. But once in a while it’s useful. Like finding out you hired a dyslexic who transfers all calls to some combination of the numbers transposed that they intended to transfer to. Been there done that investigation, got the t-shirt.
For just simple “quality assurance” of a new staff member, back in the day, we used to just record their headset with a Y cable and a cassette deck. Nobody has time to listen to anything longer than a couple hours anyway.
What kind of Nortel? That’ll tell a lot about what’s probably possible with it from a few Google searches. But if it’s ancient, the most integrated way to do it all will be something like FreePBX. Which will mean new everything including handsets and dumping Ooma for a regular SIP provider, and getting the numbers released, and... multi step project.
What’s the goal? How much work do you want to do on it? I’ve got two small biz owners who run their own FreePBX setups but they put in the time to learn it. Otherwise a vendor and some pro help is better. Depends on how DIY you want to be.
We’re running Avaya gear only because they whipped the price point down when we told them we’d do our own Asterisk a number of years ago, but we pay a company out of Atlanta to provide service and expertise on it just in case us two old telecom heads leave the company or get hit by a bus riding to lunch together. Not cheap but a call center needs more business continuity than a DIY Asterisk box unless one uses a commercial or semi-commercial Asterisk that has similar support available.