Info Advantage Blog

Smartphones have become an inseparable part of the workplace, to the point where they’re almost necessary in order to maintain efficiency. Yet, sometimes it can feel like a hassle to switch to another device, even if it’s for something as mundane as making a phone call. Did you know that it’s super simple to add a second phone number to your smartphone?

There are plenty of reasons why you may want to do this. Perhaps you’d like a second phone number that you can use to sign up for promotions, just to keep your primary phone number off of the lists of annoying telemarketers. Maybe you want to take calls from your business phone on your personal smartphone. Regardless, the technology you need to do so is very accessible and easy to set up.

Call Transfer
This technology has been around for far longer than smartphones, and comes with most phone plans. If your current phone system supports it, you’ll be able to set up forwarding for calls to your personal cell phone. This can allow you to accept business calls, even while you’re out of the office.

Granted, this feature does have a catch. It might be great for receiving phone calls, but it doesn’t necessarily allow you to make calls from your device using the transferred phone number. There are plenty of business phone solutions that are designed specifically for this situation, like Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). Solutions like these are dynamic and responsive enough to make it easy to manage a second phone number.

Second Phone Number Apps
If you just want a second phone number for personal use, there are plenty of great options that can give you similar functionality. Here are a few of the most popular options:

• Google Voice and Hangouts: You can use your Google account to set up a second Google Voice phone number, which you can then use through Google Hangouts to make and receive phone calls. This is a great option for those who are already fully using their Google accounts, and it’s free.
• Sideline: Sideline might only provide the basics, but it gives you a second phone number. You can make and receive calls, and have a voicemail, but that’s about all it can do. It’s $3/month, so it’s an inexpensive option… that is, if you can get around the advertisements.
• Line 2: Line 2 offers more features than the previous examples, which make it a better solution if you’re willing to shell out some extra cash for it. Line 2 has two plans: a $10/month plan, which provides a personal number, and $15/month, which provides a business line. Many smartphone users may find the mobile app and online dashboard desirable.
• Skype Number: Skype has made it quite easy to get a second phone number, and if you’re already using it for video chat, you may as well use it for your second phone number solution. An online Skype number offers a robust set of features at $6/month, which makes it both affordable and convenient.

If you want to put a second phone number on your smartphone, as you can see, you have several options to consider. However, if your business wants the most dynamic phone solution that can benefit your entire infrastructure, there’s only one option. Info Advantage suggests implementing a Voice over Internet Protocol solution for your communication needs. To learn more, reach out to us at (585) 254-8710.

More organizations are revamping their traditional IT infrastructure to favor new technology that allows for greater mobility. Not to be outdone, even major government departments are making this move, like the U.S. Department of Education.

This move toward mobility is designed to replace the department's current IT infrastructure, known as EDUCATE (Education Department Utility for Communications, Applications, and Technology Environment). EDUCATE was implemented in 2007 by Perot Systems after they won the bid for $400 million. At the time, this was a bold move because it effectively transferred oversight of the infrastructure from the government to a contractor.

Today, the U.S. Department of Education has a new set of priorities that they would like to see out of their infrastructure. According to Jason Gray, Chief Information Officer for the Education Department, the technology landscape has changed so much since 2007 that a revamp is in order. Gray says that these new infrastructure objectives should encourage innovation, optimize the cost to benefit ratio, and show flexibility to make integrating changes in requirements simple.

These objectives are spelled out in a new infrastructure plan named PIVOT (the Portfolio of Integrated Value-Oriented Technology). Unlike the previous model, PIVOT looks to have each aspect of the infrastructure (like oversight, hosting data, printing, network services, technical management and integration, and mobile services) written up with its own contract.

The primary goal of the Department’s new infrastructure is increased mobility. They look to achieve this by moving away from a permanently established office space, and instead, take advantage of teleworking and hoteling (where workers use mobile devices to move about an office instead of being limited to their desk). This kind of move is in line with a federal government initiative to reduce its real estate footprint. In keeping with this goal, PIVOT has the potential to free up 6,200 workers from the traditional office environment.

There are lots of benefits to be had by the U.S. Department of Education from a move like this. What about your own IT infrastructure? Has it been updated in recent years to take advantage of the advancements of mobile computing? Or, are you still doing business like it's 2005 with a workforce tied to their desks and limited to bulky workstations?

To revamp your own IT infrastructure, give Info Advantage a call at (585) 254-8710 and find out what we can do for you.