Mitel MiVoice End of Life

The announcement from Mitel regarding the end of life for Mitel MiVoice is the continuation of a trend that is now becoming the rule versus the exception. For businesses that have relied on this platform for over two decades, there is now a fork in the road on what is next.

If you’re wondering what this means for your enterprise and how to navigate this change seamlessly, you’ve landed at the right place. Let’s dive deep into what Mitel MiVoice’s end of life entails and how to effectively evaluate options, set a timeline, and ultimately transition to a new system that aligns with your business needs.

But First, Let’s Give an Old Friend Their Day

ShoreTel is where the InflowCX story began almost 3 decades ago. Before CCaaS and UCaaS were regular acronyms, before true cloud communications were a reality, there was ShoreTel. Born in a world full of complexity, ShoreTel created a system that was, in their words “Brilliantly Simple”.

Taking away the complexities and need for an entire engineering team to establish communications within a company, ShoreTel delivered on being brilliant and simple. The system enabled salespeople to connect with prospects and customers while providing IT teams with the resources they needed to deliver a great communication product.

In a way, ShoreTel, in the post “Ma Bell” world, democratized the world of communication and brought cutting-edge technology to businesses small and large across the globe. With easy-to-use interfaces, catchy marketing messaging, and sharp branding ShoreTel brought in a new era of communication. Even though ShoreTel is now firmly in the rearview mirror of our world, engineers and salespeople around the globe will forever be grateful for their place in communication history.

Mitel MiVoice End of Life Timeline: Key Dates to Remember

Mitel MiVoice Connect end of life announcement reminds us that this system has had a remarkable run since the early 2000s, providing reliable & clear communications for businesses globally for over 20 years. However, all good things come to an end, here are key dates to consider as you strategize on the best path forward:

• July 6, 2024: Discontinuation of new system sales

• December 31, 2024: Termination of add-on sales including both hardware and software expansions. Feature enhancements, patching, and system scalability will no longer be available. This is especially important to note that expansion of current systems end. So if you are opening a new office, and truly want your communications unified, this could seriously affect or halt those efforts.

• December 31, 2028: End of RMA support. Hardware Warranty ceases.

• December 31, 2029: End of Technical Support

Post-2024, the system will solely be in maintenance mode, offering support until December 31, 2029. You can view Mitel’s Lifecycle Policy here. 

It is imperative to note the significant risk of operating the MiVoice system beyond December 31, 2024, due to halted expansions and security patches, leaving your system vulnerable and stagnant. Operating with this system in place will take some incredible work-around engineering which in turn can cause frustration. 

Other Key Dates to Keep in Mind:

• September 2020: ShoreTel 14.2 End of Life/Support 

• March 1, 2024: MiVoice Connect Advanced Applications End of Support

• June 30, 2024: MiVoice Connect Call Recording End of Support

Your Organization Now Versus When You Deployed Mitel MiVoice Connect

As you look to the future, it is important to note that many companies have outgrown their current platform, they just didn’t realize it. There is an entirely new world of innovation, automation, and customer experience waiting for you to explore.

More than likely your company is very different than when you first deployed Mitel MiVoice, and the communication world has evolved at a faster pace than ever over the past decade. AI, flexibility, chatbots and so much more are available.

It is important to ask yourself what category you fall under first, before exploring options. Start with who you are before selecting who your platform should be. A few of the questions we start with are:

• Do you have a contact center?

  • If so, is it smaller or larger?

• Multiple locations or one centralized workforce?

• Do you have satellite offices or hybrid workers?

• How do your customers interact with you as a company?

Look at who you are now and solicit the feedback of customers, partners, vendors, and your own employees to really understand your organization. You will learn something new, and this is critical to a smooth transition.