Part of:Uniting the enterprise with integrated UCaaS and CCaaS
How the convergence of UCaaS and CCaaS affects businesses
UCaaS and CCaaS platforms continue to converge as organizations look to unify internal and customer communications. Integration can deliver benefits, but it requires planning and clear requirements.
A focus on improving CX, the growth of cloud platforms and overlapping communication needs have pushed UCaaS and CCaaS toward closer integration.
Vendors in the unified communications as a service (UCaaS) and contact center as a service (CCaaS) markets follow various strategies to support the convergence of these platforms, including acquisitions, strategic partnerships and internal product development. Examples of vendors that offer, bundle or tightly integrate UCaaS and CCaaS capabilities include 8x8, RingCentral, Vonage and Zoom.
Vendors are moving in this direction because the market has signaled that a converged UCaaS and CCaaS platform can improve CX and customer service.
What does a UCaaS and CCaaS integration mean?
UCaaS and CCaaS platforms can each streamline interactions, drive efficiency and enhance CX -- regardless of whether the customers are internal or external. Integrating these platforms can give users access to capabilities traditionally associated with both UCaaS and CCaaS environments.
Organizations shouldn't worry about whether a single vendor offers the converged platform or if different vendors develop a tightly integrated platform. If an organization chooses the latter, it must ensure a level of comfort with support from different vendor teams.
UCaaS and CCaaS platforms serve different primary purposes, but overlapping features and integrations are driving convergence between internal and customer communications systems.
The effect of convergence varies by role, with different benefits for internal business users and contact center agents.
This “Eye on Tech” video provides a quick overview of the differences between UCaaS and CCaaS before organizations evaluate how and where the two platforms converge.
Business benefits of a converged platform
A converged UCaaS and CCaaS platform can benefit organizations, internal business users and customer service agents.
Because both platforms are cloud-based, cloud-related benefits include the following:
More easily supports remote work environments.
Improves ability to scale and address fluctuating staffing needs.
Offers easier access to advanced technologies for business and contact center users.
Reduces the number of vendors supporting different platforms.
Lowers the number of integrations required for other systems, such as CRM platforms.
Improves customer journey reporting even as customers travel between contact center agents and individuals outside the contact center.
Offers better pricing.
Internal business users could also gain access to tools previously only available to contact center agents, including the following:
Screen pop-ups, which let business users quickly see details about other call participants.
Quality monitoring tools to ensure users interact with customers properly.
Speech analytics to analyze calls, determine a call's root cause and identify interactions that might require additional treatment.
Contact center agents would gain access to tools previously used only by internal business users, including the following:
Team collaboration tools to get support from experts outside of the contact center.
Video conferencing as an alternative communication channel with customers.
A converged UCaaS and CCaaS platform can improve CX and customer service.
Considerations before adoption
Even with the benefits available from a converged UCaaS and CCaaS platform, organizations must still perform due diligence to ensure that this strategy can work for their operations.
Before deciding, organizations should take the following actions:
Develop business requirements for users and contact center agents to ensure the system can support their needs.
Ensure the converged platform delivers clear operational or CX value beyond what separate UCaaS and CCaaS tools provide. Avoid adopting convergence based on market momentum alone.
When selecting the platform, organizations need a single point of support when issues arise. Reaching out to references and researching can help.
The convergence of UCaaS and CCaaS is in motion. Vendors are moving quickly to develop new offerings in the marketplace. Organizations must determine how a converged platform could improve the experiences of internal and external customers and take advantage of this opportunity.
As vendors continue to blur the lines between internal and customer communications, organizations will need to revisit platform decisions regularly as capabilities and integration depth evolve.
Editor's note:This article was updated in January 2026 to improve clarity, flow and the overall reader experience.
Scott Sachs is president and founder of SJS Solutions, a consultancy that specializes in contact center strategy assessments and technology selection.
