Getting the Most from Microsoft Teams Telephony: What Businesses Need to Know

As more organizations adopt Microsoft Teams as their central communication and collaboration hub, many are discovering that its built-in calling features can be enhanced to better support business-grade telephony. From hybrid work and customer support to regulated industries, understanding how to extend and optimize Microsoft Teams telephony can help businesses unlock more reliable, flexible, and feature-rich communication across every team and location.

When properly integrated with a powerful cloud telephony platform like Intermedia Unite, Teams evolves from a collaboration tool into a complete business communications solution – combining meetings, chat, and enterprise-grade calling in one familiar interface.

The ability to add high-quality phone service to Teams’ functionality has led many organizations to replace legacy PBX systems with unified communications and collaboration solutions. Intermedia’s Teams Phone and SMS integration enables users to make and receive calls to and from external phone numbers directly through the Teams app – offering the advanced reliability and control businesses expect from a professional phone system.

Adding Intermedia Unite to Microsoft Teams allows users to maintain familiar workflows while gaining Private Branch Exchange (PBX) capabilities, advanced call routing, and SMS – all managed through the Intermedia platform. The result is a more comprehensive system that supports voice communication, email, calendar management, instant messaging, and file sharing in one place. 

Core Teams Telephony Features Enhanced by Intermedia Unite

Microsoft Teams and Intermedia Unite together deliver a collaboration and calling experience designed for today’s dynamic workplaces. These core capabilities help businesses elevate call quality, reliability, and customer experience:

• PSTN calling: Make and receive external business calls directly within the Teams desktop, mobile, or browser app.
• Auto attendants and call queues: Route calls professionally using customizable greetings, menu options, and queue logic. Configure everything easily through Intermedia’s admin portal.
• Voicemail and transcription: Receive voicemails directly in Teams, with optional email forwarding and transcription for easy review and response.
• SMS and MMS: Send and receive text messages natively within Teams – no third-party apps required – powered by Intermedia’s built-in messaging platform.
• Business continuity and call failover: Stay connected even if Teams experiences an outage. Intermedia’s cloud-based telephony ensures uptime and continuity.
• Analytics and call reporting: Track performance and usage with detailed call metrics to help sales, service, and support teams measure productivity.
• Scalability and flexibility: As your organization grows, Intermedia Unite scales seamlessly – without adding complexity or cost.

Key Use Cases for Adding Unite to Teams

Hybrid and Remote Workforces

Hybrid and remote work are here to stay. By combining Teams with Intermedia Unite, employees can take business calls from anywhere – on any device – while maintaining consistent call quality and enterprise-grade security.

Customer Support Teams

Support teams can leverage advanced call routing, queues, forwarding, and voicemail to manage high call volumes effectively. Integration with CRM and help desk systems streamlines customer interactions, improving responsiveness and service quality.

Sales and Field Representatives

Sales and field reps can make outbound calls and send follow-up texts directly from Teams using their business numbers. With Intermedia’s SMS and call features, every interaction stays professional and trackable – without switching apps.

Multi-Location Businesses

As organizations expand, managing communications across locations can be challenging. Teams telephony enhanced by Intermedia Unite helps centralize calling and management, eliminating siloed systems and reducing infrastructure costs.

Regulated Industries

For sectors like healthcare, finance, and government, compliance and security are critical. Intermedia’s telephony architecture supports global communication standards, including HIPAA, FINRA, and GDPR, providing secure, compliant communication and retention tools.

Microsoft Teams offers rich opportunities for collaboration, but it’s easy to feel overwhelmed about how to use it.

FAQs About Unite + Teams

Can I port my existing numbers?
Yes – Intermedia handles all number porting through Direct Routing at no extra cost.

Do I need extra hardware?
No – Teams and Intermedia work across your existing desktop, mobile, and desk phone devices.

Are Teams and Intermedia Unite secure?
Yes – Intermedia delivers enterprise-grade security and compliance to keep your data protected.

What happens if Teams goes down?
If Teams experiences downtime, Intermedia’s failover and call continuity options help mitigate disruption to your business.

Optimizing Microsoft Teams for Better Business Communications

A reliable phone system remains essential in today’s connected workplace. Microsoft Teams delivers powerful collaboration capabilities; Intermedia Unite brings enterprise-grade telephony to match.

With 99.999% uptime service level agreements (SLAs), 24/7 J.D. Power-certified support, and flexible Direct Routing options, Intermedia helps businesses get the most from their Microsoft Teams environments – improving reliability, enhancing productivity, and streamlining communication across every channel.

Melinda Curtis

Melinda Curtis is a Director of Product Marketing at Intermedia, where she focuses on helping businesses improve employee productivity and enhance their customer experiences using Intermedia's award-winning cloud communications solutions. Melinda brings over 20 years of experience in telecommunications, having worked in B2C and B2B marketing, product management, and vendor management roles. In her free time, she loves to travel with her family.