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The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the world in 2020 and affected the unified communications as a service (UCaaS) market and the overall collaboration landscape. While the tremendous economic downturn and the loss of millions of jobs (potential users) in Latin America and the Caribbean (CALA) had a negative impact on the markets, the demand for remote enterprise communications substantially increased in this new environment. As most companies shifted to remote work, they realized the need to emulate face-to-face collaboration and streamline communications. To do this, many organizations turned to UCaaS; as a result, the CALA UCaaS market achieved a double-digit year-over-year user count growth (only slightly below of Frost & Sullivan’s pre-pandemic forecast for the year).

The CALA UCaaS market exhibited double-digit growth in 2020, driven by the need to streamline enterprise communications to support remote work environments. Future growth is forecast to be in the double digits too, driven by the growing number of offerings, the increasing acceptance of the cloud as a proven modality for technology consumption, and a greater branding and relevance of UCaaS solutions (both to customers and service providers). Significant growth is expected in several market segments, including midsize companies; banks, insurance, and financial services; retail and consumer goods; professional services; manufacturing; government; healthcare; education; and travel and hospitality.

A hybrid work environment will be a fundamental driver for this market in the next few years. In the post-pandemic world, many employees will perform tasks from home or another remote location.