Basics and technology

PBX (private branch exchange)
A PBX connecting branches within a company.
Cloud PBX
PBX without hardware operated on the provider's servers
VoIP
Internet telephony instead of a traditional line
SIP
Protocol for initiating and managing VoIP calls
SIP trunk
Virtual phone line via the internet instead of a physical one
Softphone
An app that turns a computer into a business phone
IP telephone
A physical telephone calling over an internet network
WebRTC
Technology for voice calls directly from the browser
ISDN
Older digital telephone technology giving way to SIP trunking
Analogue telephone line
Classic line on copper cabling, the predecessor of VoIP
GSM gateway
Equipment connecting the PBX to the mobile network

PBX functions

IVR (voice menu)
Automatic voice menu for call routing
Call forwarding
Automatic forwarding of incoming calls to another number
Call queue
Virtual queue of waiting callers for operators
Group ringing (ring group)
The phone rings at multiple employees' handsets simultaneously or in sequence.
Voice mailbox
Automatic recording of missed call messages
Voicemail to email
Voice message delivered directly to email as an attachment.
Call recording
Automatic recording of telephone calls with archive
Call recordings (transcripts)
automatic transcription of a phone call into text
Conference call
A call with three or more participants at once.
Click to call
Initiate a call by clicking on the website or in the CRM.
Direct inward dialling (DID)
a dedicated direct line number for each branch or department
CLIP and CLIR (caller identification)
displaying or hiding the caller's number on the screen
Time conditions (operating hours)
automatic switching of PBX rules according to working hours
Music while waiting
sound for callers waiting in queue or on hold
DTMF
tone signalling when pressing phone keys
FMC (fixed and mobile convergence)
Mobile phone as an extension of the company switchboard

AI and automation

Voicebot
Voice robot that understands spoken language
AI receptionist
AI handles calls instead of a live receptionist.
Call analysis (call analytics)
Data on the company's telephone traffic in summaries

Telephone numbers

Transfer of phone number (porting)
Switch to another operator without losing your number
Green Line 800
The customer calls free of charge; the company covers the costs.
Geographic and non-geographic numbers
Which numbers are tied to the location and which are not

Quality and operation

Codec (G.711, G.722, Opus)
Voice encoding algorithm for VoIP transmission
QoS (Quality of Service)
Prioritising voice traffic on the network
Jitter
Packet delay jitter causing call drops
Latency
Audio delay between caller and recipient
SLA (Service Level Agreement)
Contract guaranteeing telephone service availability
CTI integration with CRM
Integration of telephony with CRM for immediate context
Anti-spoofing (CLI protection)
Protection against caller ID spoofing