How Leonidas Deploys Unified Communications for Businesses

How Leonidas deploys unified communications isn't a secret formula — it's an opinionated process built from running migrations across dozens of businesses over the past few years. The framework looks the same for a 20-person professional services firm and a 200-person multi-location organization; what changes is scale, not method. Here's the methodology we use for UC deployments at clients across industries.

Discovery Before Design

Every UC engagement starts with structured discovery. The goal is to understand the current state in enough detail that the recommended target state isn't a guess. The discovery covers: current voice infrastructure (PBX, carriers, contracts, end dates), call flow patterns (where calls come in, how they route, who handles them), user profiles by role (front-line, knowledge work, executive, contact center, mobile-first), endpoint inventory (desk phones, soft clients, mobile, conference room gear), network readiness (bandwidth, QoS, Wi-Fi posture, firewall rules), application integrations (CRM, helpdesk, calendaring), compliance requirements (HIPAA, PCI, recording laws), and stakeholder expectations.

Discovery typically takes one to three weeks depending on the size and complexity of the environment. It produces a written report that becomes the foundation for the design and the migration plan.

Vendor Selection

Vendor selection follows discovery, not the other way around. Common pattern in failed deployments: a vendor was selected based on a sales pitch before the requirements were fully understood, and the implementation then fights against the gaps. Doing it in the right order — requirements first, vendor selection second — produces more stable outcomes.

We work with multiple UC platforms (RingCentral, Microsoft Teams Phone, Zoom Phone, and others depending on fit). The choice for any given engagement comes from matching the discovered requirements against the platforms' specific strengths. We don't have a default vendor; we have a process for picking the right one.

Network Readiness

Before any voice traffic flows, the network gets ready for it. That work includes:

• Bandwidth analysis and circuit upgrades if needed
• QoS policy implementation at the network edge
• VLAN segmentation between voice and data where appropriate
• Wi-Fi tuning for voice-over-wireless if softphones will be used heavily
• Firewall configuration for SIP/RTP traffic and vendor-specific signaling
• Failover connectivity if the business depends on voice for revenue operations

Network readiness usually surfaces follow-on infrastructure work — replacing outdated switches, upgrading internet circuits, deploying business-grade Wi-Fi to replace consumer gear. That work can be a meaningful part of the UC project timeline.

Migration in Phases

Most UC deployments are phased, not big-bang. A typical sequence:

• Pilot phase — 10-20 users on the new platform in parallel with the legacy system, working out integration issues and end-user training
• Department-by-department rollout — moving teams one at a time, lowest-risk first, learning from each wave
• Number porting — main numbers and key DIDs ported once stability is proven
• Decommission — legacy PBX and carrier circuits retired after a parallel-operation period

The phased approach catches problems while they affect a small population. Big-bang migrations save time but produce larger blast radius when something goes wrong.

Post-Deployment Operations

The work doesn't stop at cutover. Post-deployment operations include user adoption tracking and follow-up training for areas where adoption lags, ongoing administration of the platform (call flows, hunt groups, voicemail, user provisioning), quarterly reviews of usage and cost optimization opportunities, integration maintenance as connected business apps update, and proactive monitoring of voice quality across the user base.

For most clients, we provide UC operations as an ongoing managed service after deployment. The platform is too complex for most internal IT teams to fully own without a steep learning curve and ongoing time investment. If you're scoping a UC deployment for your business, a conversation with our team can map the work specific to your environment.