Poor call quality or video lag? Here are the 9 most common business digital telecom problems (and fixes)

At Curveball, we help UK organisations keep their communications crystal clear, from VoIP systems and cloud telephony to Teams calls. Here we take a look at the nine most common workplace telecom problems, their causes, and how a Managed Service Provider (MSP) can help fix them fast.

Voices cutting out mid-sentence, echoing during calls, robotic or distorted audio, or long delays between responses. Sometimes the person on the other end hears you perfectly, but you can’t hear them, making communication awkward and unproductive.

Common causes: Network congestion, low bandwidth, poor VoIP configuration, or outdated hardware such as routers and headsets.

What Curveball does: We run full network diagnostics, apply QoS (Quality of Service) policies to prioritise voice traffic, and optimise your VoIP configuration for consistently clear, professional audio.

Pro tip: Use wired Ethernet where possible.  Wi-Fi is handy, but cables are king for stability.

Calls that end abruptly, ring without connecting, or transfer but then cut out. Employees often experience this when moving between WiFi zones or when using softphones on laptops and mobile devices. Clients hear silence or ‘call failed’ messages, causing frustration and lost opportunities.

Common causes: Unstable WiFi, VPN interference or SIP trunk configuration issues.

What Curveball does: We analyse your network to identify weak spots, optimise routing paths and make sure firewalls or misconfigured routers aren’t dropping your VoIP traffic.

Pro tip: Keep firmware up to date on routers, switches, and handsets. It’s one of the easiest ways to prevent call drops.

Issues like screens freezing mid-meeting, out-of-sync audio and video or pixelated images make online meetings difficult. Presentations may stutter, and participants can’t hear questions or see shared content properly.

Common causes: Insufficient bandwidth, outdated conferencing applications or video resolution settings that haven’t been optimised.

What Curveball does: We optimise bandwidth allocation, ensure your conferencing tools (like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Google Meet) are correctly configured and check hardware performance to prevent lag or buffering.

Pro tip: Encourage staff to close unnecessary browser tabs and apps before meetings to free up bandwidth and improve performance.

Web pages are taking forever to load, cloud apps are lagging, and video calls are dropping in quality. Staff may report being ‘kicked off’ Wi-Fi or noticing performance drops during peak hours. In severe cases, productivity grinds to a halt.

Common causes: Bandwidth saturation, outdated networking equipment, or poor-quality broadband lines.

What Curveball does: We perform network monitoring, prioritise critical business applications, and recommend connectivity upgrades such as fibre or leased lines for maximum reliability.

Pro tip: Regularly run speed tests and keep logs to identify trends or sudden performance dips early.

No dial tone, one-way audio where callers can hear you but not vice versa, missing voicemail features, or extensions that won’t ring. Some users may experience long connection delays or calls routed to the wrong person.

Common causes: Incorrect SIP settings, blocked ports on the firewall, or DNS misconfiguration.

What Curveball does: We set up and maintain your VoIP systems correctly from the ground up, ensuring that firewall rules, SIP credentials, and network routes are configured securely and efficiently.

Pro tip: Avoid self-installing business VoIP systems without professional input, as minor setup errors often cause big headaches later.

Your CRM doesn’t log calls automatically, Teams doesn’t sync with Outlook calendars, or helpdesk tickets don’t include call data. Staff waste time entering the same information twice or missing customer details altogether.

Common causes: API version mismatches, outdated software, or incomplete authorisation between platforms.

What Curveball does: We manage and test integrations between your telecoms, CRM, and collaboration tools, ensuring data flows correctly and software connects seamlessly.

Pro tip: Always test integrations in a sandbox or demo environment before enabling them across the business.

Suspicious login attempts on telecom dashboards, phishing calls impersonating internal staff, or unencrypted calls exposing sensitive information. Employees may receive ‘ghost’ calls or spam through communication apps.

Common causes: Weak passwords, lack of MFA, missing encryption, or outdated system patches.

What Curveball does: We lock down your telecom environment with strong authentication, encryption and proactive security monitoring. Regular patching and account audits keep your systems protected.

Pro tip: Educate staff never to share meeting links or credentials in public channels. It’s a common entry point for attacks.

Headsets disconnecting mid-call, microphones failing to pick up sound, webcams freezing, or USB devices not recognised by PCs. These issues can be inconsistent, affecting some users but not others.

Common causes: Driver conflicts, insufficient USB power, or incompatible firmware versions.

What Curveball does: We standardise and manage approved telecom hardware, ensure drivers and firmware are kept up to date, and test compatibility across your systems.

Pro tip: Plug headsets and webcams directly into your computer rather than via USB hubs to improve performance and reliability.

Sudden inability to log in to Teams, Zoom or your VoIP dashboard. Calls go straight to voicemail or can’t be made at all. Staff might assume it’s a local issue when the provider’s cloud region is down.

Common causes: Cloud vendor outages, expired licences or temporary regional disruptions.

What Curveball does: We provide real-time monitoring of cloud telecom platforms, set up failover solutions, and maintain backup communication tools so your team can stay connected even during outages.

Pro tip: Bookmark your cloud provider’s service status page to save guesswork during downtime.

Dropped calls, frozen video meetings, and misconfigured VoIP systems don’t just frustrate employees; the cost paid is in time, money and customer trust. But with proactive management and expert telecom support, these problems can be eliminated before they disrupt your business.

Curveball Solutions provides managed telecom and IT support across the UK, keeping your communication systems secure, reliable, and performing at their best.