Voice over IP can work -- it takes talent to screw it up in a corporate environment where you have complete control over QoS. I guess they saved money on the routers. But I think your problem probably lies in the bridges: They print out the packets, put them in the those vacuum tubes to get them from floor to floor, and then the printouts are scanned/OCR'd at the other end.

Please feel free to name names. That's what anomynity on LJ is for -- to stick the knife in and twist.