Even if a move to IP telephony is a sound business decision, some of your staff may take it personally. The sooner you recognize and address that issue, the smoother your transition will be.

You must keep in mind that many voice network staffers have spent decades building some of the most resilient and reliable networks on the planet. Is your data network unavailable because a router rebooted? No problem, just call the remote branch to get those numbers you need. Is your database down because a server crashed? No problem; pick up a phone and call back to headquarters to get the data straight from the paper file.

If you have an emergency, do you send an e-mail or a text message? Of course not! You pick up the phone and dial 911 without worrying about whether or not you'll hear dial tone. It's a cliche, but it seems true that dial tone is a God-given right. When was the last time you picked up the phone and didn't get dial tone?

That's what scares voice techs about VOIP. When they hear that you want to take the responsibility for providing dial tone off a rock-solid PBX and move it onto a server, they start to get a little skittish -- and for good reason.

If the IP telephony system can't be as reliable as the old voice network, then they want no part of it. There are valid reasons to be concerned about moving your phone system to platforms that are historically less dependable than the PBX, and your voice network staff will be the first to point those reasons out to you.