Gartner defines communications platform as a service (CPaaS) as a cloud-based platform used by developers, the IT team and other nontechnical business roles to build an array of communications-related capabilities using APIs, SDKs, documentation and no-code/low-code visual builders. The CPaaS tools facilitate access to multiple communications channels spanning voice, SMS, email, messaging apps, video and conversational capabilities, along with security.
Workforce engagement management (WEM) software is a collection of technologies that help manage the customer service workforce to ensure a high level of operational performance while elevating employee well-being, discretionary effort and satisfaction. The core capabilities of WEM products include: • Evaluation and improvement • Time management • Metrics and recognition (that is, performance management) • Assistance and task management • Voice of the employee (VoE) feedback • Recruitment and onboarding
Gartner defines contact center as a service (CCaaS) as solutions offering SaaS-based applications that enable customer service departments to manage multichannel customer interactions holistically from both a customer-experience and employee-experience perspective. CCaaS solutions offer an adaptive, flexible delivery model with native capabilities across the four functional components of the technology reference model for customer service and support. CCaaS providers also offer productized integrations with partner solutions through application marketplaces.
Unified communications as a service (UCaaS) for the midmarket — defined as organizations with between 100 and 999 employees, and typically $50 million to $1 billion in revenue — includes cloud solutions intended to improve user productivity and enhance collaboration. Gartner defines UC solutions as offerings that facilitate the use of multiple enterprise communications methods to achieve those aims. UC solutions integrate communications channels (media), networks and systems, as well as IT business applications and, in some cases, consumer applications and devices. Cloud delivery of UC functions is characterized as provisioning services on shared infrastructure (for example, data centers, racks, common equipment and blades). Cloud delivery also uses shared tools (for example, provisioning, performance and network management tools); per-user-per-month pricing; and elasticity to dynamically add and remove users.
Gartner defines unified communications as a service (UCaaS) as a cloud-delivered service that provides the following core capabilities: 1) Telephony 2) Meetings 3) Messaging 4) Software apps 5) APIs 6) Adjacent services