Microsoft 365 · Teams Voice · Phone System Replacement

You’re Already on Microsoft 365.
You’re Still Paying for a Separate Phone System.

Most mid-market companies on Microsoft 365 are still paying for a separate phone system nobody likes: an aging PBX, a hosted VoIP system with a different admin portal, a carrier-managed system that takes a week to make a change. Teams Voice replaces it. Calls, meetings, messaging, and voicemail in one place, with TechWise handling the migration, number porting, and ongoing administration.

Talk About Teams Voice

Migration project + ongoing calling plan administration

Microsoft Solutions Partner

Full phone system assessment before migration

Number porting handled by TechWise

Ongoing calling plan administration included

What TechWise Delivers

Migration Project. Then Ongoing
Administration. Both Handled.

Teams Voice is a project and an ongoing relationship. The migration replaces the phone system. Ongoing administration handles every change after: new numbers, updated call routing, user moves and changes, so the internal team doesn’t have to manage a voice platform on top of everything else.

Phase 01. Migration Project

Replace the phone system. Port the numbers. Train the users.

Phone system assessment: numbers, extensions, call flows, auto attendants, and call queues inventoried

Calling plan recommendation: domestic, international, or Operator Connect based on actual usage

Number porting: existing numbers migrated to Microsoft calling plans

Auto attendant and call queue configuration: existing call routing replicated and improved

Device guidance: desk phone compatibility, headsets, soft phone setup

User training: calls, voicemail, transfers, mobile app

Go-live support and hypercare through stabilization

Phase 02. Ongoing Administration

Every voice change handled. No ticket queue. No waiting a week.

User adds, moves, and changes for voice

Calling plan management: numbers added, removed, and adjusted as the business changes

Auto attendant and call queue updates: call routing updated as the business changes

Monthly voice health and usage reporting

What TechWise Replaces

Three Phone System Situations.
One Migration Approach That Fits Each.

The source system changes the complexity. TechWise assesses the existing phone environment before scoping the migration. The right approach for a 20-year-old PBX is different from consolidating three systems after an acquisition.

Most Common

On-Premise PBX

Hardware at or approaching end of life. Maintenance contracts that cost more each year. Features that haven’t changed since installation. TechWise inventories every number, extension, auto attendant, and call queue, then replicates and improves them in Teams Voice. The transition is invisible to callers.

Also Common

Hosted VoIP

A third-party phone platform running alongside Microsoft 365: separate login, separate admin, separate vendor to call when something breaks. For companies already using Teams for meetings, consolidating voice into the same platform removes the friction and reduces cost.

Post-Acquisition

Multiple Systems Across Locations

After an acquisition, the acquired company has a different phone system entirely. Sometimes multiple. TechWise consolidates onto Teams Voice across all locations, with a single calling plan, single administration, and consistent call routing across the combined organization.

Related Services

Teams Voice Raises the Same Question Every Time:
Is the Rest of Microsoft 365 Actually Configured Right?

Phone system replacement surfaces adjacent questions: whether the rest of Microsoft 365 is properly deployed, whether someone is managing the tenant day-to-day, and whether the broader IT environment needs attention.

Microsoft 365 not fully deployed

Microsoft 365 Deployment

Teams Voice requires a properly deployed Microsoft 365 environment. If Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive were never properly configured, TechWise deploys them alongside the voice migration.

See Microsoft 365 Deployment →

Need someone to manage the tenant

Ongoing Microsoft 365 Administration

Calling plan administration is included in broader ongoing Microsoft 365 administration: user management, license management, SharePoint governance, and voice all in one relationship.

See Ongoing Administration →

Need all IT managed

Full-Service Managed IT

Teams Voice as part of a broader managed IT engagement. Microsoft 365 administration, security, cloud, and voice under one relationship and one monthly cost.

See Full-Service Managed IT →

Teams Phone Explained

How Teams Phone Replaces Your PBX.
What You Stop Paying For.

Microsoft Teams Phone is the cloud-based phone system built into Microsoft 365. It replaces traditional on-premise PBX hardware and analog phone systems with a software phone that runs on desktops, laptops, and mobile devices, anywhere with an internet connection. For organizations already running Teams for meetings and messaging, Teams Phone unifies communication on a single platform.

What Teams Phone Replaces

The On-Premise PBX and Its Maintenance Costs.

Traditional PBX phone systems require on-premise hardware, annual maintenance contracts, per-line carrier fees, and a vendor to call when something breaks. Teams Phone runs entirely in the cloud. no hardware to maintain, no per-device licensing from a phone vendor, and phone numbers managed through Microsoft or a direct routing provider. Most organizations find that eliminating PBX maintenance costs offsets the Teams Phone licensing cost significantly.

Calling Plans vs. Direct Routing

Two Ways to Get Phone Numbers Into Teams.

Microsoft Calling Plans are Microsoft-managed phone number services. Microsoft provides the phone numbers, handles the PSTN connectivity, and includes a per-user per-minute or unlimited calling bundle. Direct Routing connects Teams to a third-party SIP carrier. The organization brings its own phone numbers and carrier relationship, which is less expensive for large user counts or organizations with existing carrier contracts. TechWise recommends the right model based on user count, call volume, and existing carrier agreements.

Auto Attendants and Call Queues

The Features That Replace the Receptionist Desk.

Auto attendants handle inbound calls with menu options. Press 1 for sales, press 2 for support. Call queues route calls to a group of agents with hold music, overflow rules, and callback options. Both are included in Teams Phone and replace the auto attendant and ACD features of traditional PBX systems. TechWise configures these as part of every Teams Phone deployment.

Common Questions

Questions About Microsoft Teams Phone.

Microsoft Teams Phone is the cloud-based phone system built into Microsoft 365 that replaces traditional PBX hardware. It provides inbound and outbound calling, voicemail, auto attendants, call queues, and call transfer, all running in the Teams application on desktops, laptops, and mobile devices. Organizations already using Teams for meetings and messaging unify all communication on a single platform.

Yes. Teams Phone provides all the core features of a business phone system: direct inward dialing numbers, inbound and outbound calling, voicemail, call transfer, call hold, auto attendants, call queues, and conference calling. For most mid-market organizations, Teams Phone replaces the on-premise PBX entirely, eliminating PBX hardware maintenance costs and per-line carrier fees.

Direct Routing is a method of connecting Microsoft Teams Phone to a third-party SIP carrier for PSTN calling. Instead of using Microsoft Calling Plans, the organization connects Teams to its own carrier relationship through a Session Border Controller (SBC). Direct Routing is less expensive for organizations with high call volumes or existing carrier contracts, and allows the organization to keep its existing phone numbers.

Microsoft Calling Plans are Microsoft-managed services where Microsoft provides phone numbers and handles PSTN connectivity. Direct Routing connects Teams to a third-party SIP carrier the organization manages. Calling Plans are simpler to set up and manage. Direct Routing offers more flexibility and is less expensive at scale. TechWise recommends the right model based on user count, call volume, and existing carrier relationships.

A standard Teams Phone deployment for a 50 to 200 user organization takes four to eight weeks from kickoff to go-live, including number porting, auto attendant and call queue configuration, user setup, and training. Number porting from the existing carrier is the longest step. TechWise provides a timeline estimate after reviewing the current phone system and carrier situation.

Existing phone numbers can be ported to Microsoft (for Calling Plans) or to a new SIP carrier (for Direct Routing). Number porting takes two to four weeks from submission to completion depending on the carrier. TechWise manages the porting process and runs parallel systems during the port so no calls are lost. Emergency calling (911) is configured and validated before the old system is decommissioned.

Yes. Teams Phone works on iOS and Android devices through the Teams mobile app. Calls ring on the mobile device, outbound calls show the business phone number, and voicemail is accessible in the Teams app. Users can have a dedicated desk phone, use a headset on their laptop, use their mobile device, or any combination. TechWise configures the device mix as part of the deployment.

An auto attendant answers inbound calls and routes them based on menu selections. Press 1 for sales, press 2 for support, press 0 for the operator. Auto attendants can have business hours schedules with after-hours handling, holiday schedules, and multiple menu levels. TechWise designs and configures auto attendant flows as part of every Teams Phone deployment, replacing the menu systems that previously ran on the PBX.

Calls, Meetings, and Messaging.
One Platform. One Admin.

The conversation starts with a phone system assessment, inventorying what you have before recommending how to replace it. TechWise scopes the migration before any work begins.

Tell Us What’s Broken.
We’ll Tell You How to Fix It.

Every managed engagement starts with a free assessment of your environment: no scope surprises. Tell us what’s broken, what’s keeping you up at night, or what you’re trying to build. We’ll tell you exactly what it takes and which model fits.

  • Free environment assessment, before any scope is finalized

  • 30-minute call with a senior engineer, not a sales rep

  • Six engagement models, from project to enterprise SOC

  • Chicago · Philadelphia · Los Angeles

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Free assessment. No commitment. No pitch before we understand your situation.