Business Phone Systems That Work the Same in the Office, at Home, and on the Road
Replace the old key system with a cloud platform that works the same on desk phone, laptop, and mobile. enterprise network gear Talk for SMB, Teams Phone for M365-heavy shops, 3CX for everything in between.
Desk phones that work only in one building are a liability for any business with remote staff, multiple locations, or workers who spend time on-site. Cloud VoIP replaces the old key system with a platform that works the same on a desk phone, a laptop, or a mobile, so your team stays reachable regardless of where they are working.
North Star, based in Prince George, BC, supplies, configures, and supports cloud VoIP systems for SMBs across British Columbia, Alberta, and Yukon. We match the platform to your existing stack and the way your team actually works, not the other way around.
Platform Options
Teams Phone
If your team already works in Microsoft Teams, calling becomes another capability in the same application they use for chat, meetings, and files. Teams Phone integrates directly into the M365 experience with no separate app to install. Best fit for organisations already on Microsoft 365 Business Premium or higher. Deployed via Direct Routing or Microsoft Calling Plans depending on your location and requirements.
3CX
A flexible, full-featured business phone platform available as on-premises or hosted. Low per-user cost, strong call-centre and hunt-group features, and a mobile app for every device. Good fit for multi-location businesses, organisations with higher call volumes, or teams that want a dedicated phone system separate from their collaboration tools.
Algo / On-Premises VoIP
For environments already running enterprise network infrastructure, particularly Fortinet or similar, on-premises VoIP with Algo overhead paging and door entry integration. No monthly per-seat charges, low total cost of ownership, and hardware in stock for Northern BC deployments.
What North Star Delivers
Platform Selection
Honest comparison of Teams Phone, 3CX, and on-premises options against your existing stack, call volume requirements, and budget. We recommend the platform that fits your business, not the one with the highest margin.
Call Flow Design
Hunt groups, IVR menus, business hours routing, voicemail-to-email, and auto-attendant designed to match how your business actually handles calls. Documented before deployment.
Number Porting
Keep your existing numbers. North Star manages the Local Number Portability (LNP) process with your carrier. Cutover coordinated so calls are never dropped during the port.
Hardware Supply
Desk phones, headsets, and overhead paging hardware supplied and pre-configured. Delivered to Prince George and Northern BC sites directly. Remote sites across BC, Alberta, and Yukon shipped directly.
Integration
CRM integration where available. Teams Phone integration with the M365 stack. 3CX integration with web-based click-to-call and CRM connectors.
Training
Short, role-based training sessions covering desk phone, mobile app, voicemail, transfer, and conferencing. Most staff are productive on day one.
How It Works
Step 1, Design
Match platform to your existing stack and business requirements. Compare costs transparently. Call flows, hunt groups, and IVR designed and documented before any hardware is ordered.
Step 2, Configure
Tenant or server provisioned. Numbers staged. Call flows configured and tested in a parallel environment before the old system is touched.
Step 3, Port
LNP coordinated with your carrier. Port validated before cutover. Old system remains active until the port is confirmed clean.
Step 4, Train and Support
Training delivered per user role. Ongoing support on the same managed services retainer as the rest of your IT environment.
Who This Is For
- Prince George and Northern BC businesses running ageing key systems or on-premises PBX hardware that is approaching end-of-life
- Multi-location businesses in BC, Alberta, or Yukon with inconsistent phone systems across sites
- Businesses with a significant remote or hybrid workforce where a desk phone tied to one location does not work
- Microsoft 365 users who want to consolidate calling into Teams rather than maintaining a separate phone system
What buyers ask before they sign
How much does cloud VoIP cost compared to our current system?
It depends on your current system's age, your carrier plan, and the platform you move to. Teams Phone added to an existing M365 Business Premium subscription adds minimal per-user cost. 3CX typically runs significantly less than traditional business phone plans. We model the comparison during the design phase.
Can we keep our existing numbers?
Yes. Number porting is included in every VoIP deployment. We manage the porting process with your carrier to ensure no calls are dropped during the transition.
What happens if our internet goes down?
Cloud VoIP depends on internet connectivity. For business-critical call handling, we configure failover routing that redirects calls to mobile numbers or a backup line during an internet outage. Redundant internet connectivity, available through our managed network service, eliminates the risk entirely.
Do we need new hardware?
Not necessarily. Many cloud VoIP platforms support softphone apps on existing laptops and mobile devices, so you can deploy without buying new desk phones. If your team wants physical handsets, we supply and pre-configure them.
What about call quality?
Call quality is primarily determined by your network quality, not the VoIP platform. North Star assesses your network and internet connection during the design phase and recommends QoS configuration or network upgrades if needed.
How long does deployment take?
A straightforward single-site deployment typically takes two to four weeks including number porting. Multi-site or complex call flow deployments take longer. Number porting timelines are partially dependent on your current carrier.
Why North Star
North Star is a Prince George-based MSP that serves businesses across Northern BC, BC, Alberta, and Yukon. We supply and support VoIP hardware locally, no waiting for a vendor in Vancouver to ship to Prince George. Our VoIP deployments are managed under the same retainer as your IT environment, so phone support is not a separate contract with a separate vendor.
Get a Quote on Cloud VoIP
Tell us your site count, approximate user count, and current phone setup. We will come back with a platform recommendation and a fixed-price proposal.
Call 672-983-1174 or request a quote online.
Get a quote on voip & cloud phones.
Tell us a bit about your environment and we'll come back with a scoped proposal in two business days. No obligation, no pressure.
Request a Quote Back to Cloud & InfraBusiness phones that work the same at the office, at home, and on site.
A traditional key system (the kind with physical handsets and a PBX in a closet) ties your phone number to a physical location and requires a vendor to come on-site for any change. A cloud VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) system moves your business phone system to the internet, so a staff member's extension rings on their desk phone, their laptop, and their mobile app simultaneously, regardless of where they are. When your staff work from the office in Prince George on Monday, from a job site near Chetwynd on Wednesday, and from home in Nanaimo on Friday, they all use the same phone number and the same call experience.
For a Kamloops professional services firm with 25 staff and three remote workers, moving from a legacy PBX to Microsoft Teams Phone means eliminating the PBX hardware maintenance contract, reducing the per-line cost of PSTN calling, and giving remote staff the same call handling as office staff. For a construction company in Fort St. John with field supervisors who need to receive calls from clients on their mobile phones without giving out their personal numbers, a VoIP system with call forwarding and a mobile app solves that cleanly. For a retail chain with multiple BC locations, a cloud phone system means one phone admin managing all locations from a single web interface rather than coordinating with a different PBX vendor at each site.
VoIP and cloud phone system deliverables.
- Platform selection and design: North Star recommends the right platform for your environment: Microsoft Teams Phone for M365-heavy organizations, 3CX for flexibility, or RingCentral for standalone deployments. We document the call flow before configuration begins.
- Number porting: we manage the transfer of your existing business numbers from your current carrier to the new VoIP platform, including coordination with the incumbent carrier and a test before cutover.
- Auto-attendant and call routing: main number answered by an auto-attendant with business hours and after-hours routing. Extensions, hunt groups, and ring groups configured to match how your business actually takes calls.
- Mobile app deployment: Microsoft Teams app or platform-native app deployed to staff mobile devices through Intune or manual configuration. Staff can make and receive business calls from their mobile without revealing their personal number.
- Desk phone provisioning (if required): provisioning of desk handsets for reception and front-office roles where a physical phone is preferred. Teams-certified or SIP handsets depending on the platform.
- Call recording: configured where legally required or requested. Staff are notified of recording in compliance with CASL and provincial wiretapping requirements.
- Voicemail to email: voicemail transcribed and delivered to email inbox. Staff can read and act on voicemails without listening to recordings.
- Ongoing management: adds, moves, changes (new staff, changed extensions, updated routing) handled as helpdesk requests without a separate vendor engagement.
BC and AB businesses with remote staff, multiple locations, or ageing phone hardware.
VoIP is the right move for any business that is paying a maintenance contract on a legacy PBX, running out of physical lines as they hire, managing staff who work remotely or from job sites, or planning to add a second office location. In BC and Alberta, the industries where VoIP changes things most are construction and resource extraction (field supervisors need business calls on their mobile), professional services (remote staff need the same call handling as in-office staff), and multi-location retail (one admin managing all locations).
Businesses currently using a traditional PSTN landline setup are typically paying per-line monthly fees that add up to more than an equivalent VoIP solution. The main cost drivers for VoIP are the platform subscription (per-user per month), the PSTN calling plan, and the one-time setup cost for porting, configuration, and training. For most BC and AB SMBs with five or more staff, the economics favour switching.
If you are already on Microsoft 365 Business Standard or Premium, Microsoft Teams Phone is likely the lowest-friction path because your staff are already using Teams for meetings and chat. Adding calling is a license upgrade and a configuration project rather than a new platform adoption. North Star handles both the Microsoft licensing side and the PSTN connectivity configuration.
Per-user monthly cost plus a one-time setup fee.
VoIP pricing has two components: the platform subscription (per user per month, varies by platform and whether PSTN calling is included) and a one-time project fee for design, porting, configuration, and staff training. Hardware (desk phones) is optional and quoted separately. For Microsoft Teams Phone, Microsoft licensing costs are separate from North Star's project and management fees. Contact us for a proposal based on your user count, number of locations, and current phone setup.
What clients ask before switching.
Can we keep our existing phone numbers?
Yes. Number porting transfers your existing business numbers from your current carrier to the VoIP platform. The process takes two to four weeks and includes a test phase where your new system is running in parallel before the number is cut over. We coordinate with your incumbent carrier and manage the porting paperwork. Local BC and AB numbers, toll-free numbers, and fax numbers (converted to virtual fax) can all be ported.
What happens to call quality if our internet connection is slow?
VoIP call quality depends on internet bandwidth and, more importantly, on network quality: low latency, low jitter, and consistent packet delivery. For most businesses with a standard business internet connection (25 Mbps or faster), VoIP quality is excellent. For sites with limited connectivity, we configure QoS (Quality of Service) on the router to prioritize VoIP traffic over other applications. For remote sites running on Starlink or LTE, we test quality before final deployment and configure fallback options if needed.
What if the internet goes down?
If your internet connection fails, VoIP calling over that connection stops. We mitigate this with LTE failover on managed network plans (calls fail over to LTE automatically), by configuring mobile app forwarding so calls ring staff mobile devices even if the office connection is down, and by designing ring groups so that the business main number rings multiple staff simultaneously rather than routing to a single device that may be unreachable. We document the failover behaviour before cutover so you know exactly what happens in an outage.
Do we need new desk phones?
Not necessarily. Many businesses find that staff who already use Teams or the mobile app do not need desk phones at all. Reception staff and roles where a physical handset is preferred can use Teams-certified IP phones or standard SIP handsets compatible with 3CX. We assess which roles genuinely benefit from desk phones during the design phase and recommend hardware only where it adds real value, not by default.
Cloud phones configured for how your business actually operates.
North Star is based in Prince George and serves BC, Alberta, and the Yukon. We implement VoIP solutions for businesses where the phone system has to work the same in a downtown Edmonton office, on a job site near Grande Prairie, and for a remote worker in Whitehorse. We prefer Microsoft Teams Phone for M365-integrated environments because it eliminates a separate platform and lets staff make business calls from the Teams app they already use for meetings. For businesses where Teams is not a fit, we implement 3CX or RingCentral. We manage the full migration from your legacy system, including number porting, and we stay accountable for the phone system as part of your managed services agreement afterward.
VoIP and business phone across BC, Alberta, and Yukon.
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Frequently asked questions
What is a cloud VoIP service and how does it work?
A cloud VoIP service, or Voice over Internet Protocol, allows you to make and receive calls over the internet instead of traditional copper lines. By hosting your phone system in the cloud, North Star removes the need for expensive on-site hardware. This setup provides your business with enterprise-level features like auto-attendants and call recording, all managed through a simple web portal for maximum efficiency across your entire organization.
Can I keep my existing business phone numbers?
Yes, you can almost always keep your current business phone numbers. The process, known as porting, involves transferring your numbers from your old provider to our cloud platform. Our team handles the technical coordination to ensure there is no downtime during the switch. This allows your clients to reach you at the same familiar numbers while you enjoy the benefits of a modern cloud phone system without interruption.
Is a cloud phone system secure for business use?
Security is a top priority for our cloud VoIP services. We implement robust encryption for all voice traffic and utilize secure data centres to host the service. Additionally, North Star provides 24/7 monitoring and regular security updates to protect against unauthorized access or fraud. This ensures your business communications remain private and compliant with industry standards while serving customers across British Columbia, Alberta, and the Yukon.
What hardware is required for cloud VoIP services?
One of the biggest advantages of a cloud phone system is the minimal hardware requirement. You can use physical IP phones that plug directly into your internet connection, or you can opt for softphones. Softphones are software applications that run on your existing laptops, tablets, or smartphones. This flexibility reduces upfront capital expenditure and makes it easy to add new users as your business grows without purchasing new desk phones.
Does cloud VoIP work for remote employees?
Absolutely. Cloud VoIP is designed for the modern mobile workforce. Whether your employees are in Prince George, Calgary, or working from home in the Yukon, they can access the full phone system from any location with an internet connection. Mobile apps and desktop clients allow your team to stay connected using their professional business identity, ensuring a professional appearance and consistent customer experience regardless of where they are working.