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On the Prowl for New Ways to Cut Contact Center Costs November 09, 2009 
Contact center operations are constantly under scrutiny. They're complex, they're expensive to run, and employee retention and training can be problematic, to say the least. Contact center managers have a never-ending desire to streamline operations to keep spending in check.
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Avaya Caters to SMBs With Kinder, Simpler IP Office Release September 22, 2009 
Avaya has launched Avaya IP Office, a new version of its flagship product line targeting the SMB space. Changes to the product, now in version 5, include new configurations for certain user roles, such as customer service agent or mobile worker, as well as new functionality.
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IVR Systems: Are They Done Yet? September 11, 2009 
Remember the bad old days of customer self-service? Automated systems would present you with five or more different options -- any one of which could lead to five or more other options. With touchtone systems, accidentally pressing the wrong number at a prompt could result in instant death by disconnection. Then came the speech-recognition systems, with their own specific tortures.
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Beyond CRM: 5 Steps to Outfox Your Competitors September 03, 2009 
Imagine this all-too-common scenario: A customer needs to add a new line to his cellphone plan. He's had a number of reception and phone issues, and he will stay with his current company only if offered a very good deal. However, the agent -- unaware of the prolonged dissatisfaction and insensitive to the customer's tone -- suggests an expensive upgrade plan and rushes the customer to some type of decision.
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Time for a Virtual Agent Reality Check? July 17, 2009 
For decades, companies have leveraged technology with the twin goals of reducing the cost of customer support while improving its quality and dependability. This is reflected in the significant investments many organizations have made in providing information, products and services through self-service channels.
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Avaya Steers Toward Fertile Mid-Market May 27, 2009
Avaya is redoubling its efforts to gain traction in the mid-market, a neglected but potentially very lucrative niche for contact center providers. To that end, Avaya has acquired Agile Software, the company from which it had been OEM-ing its main mid-market solution, Avaya Contact Center Express.
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Differentiating Your Company in a Tough Market April 30, 2009 
Several years ago, while selling software in the British telecom market, I met the CMO of a smallish network operator. He described the issues his business was facing, and when I asked him his churn rate, he replied, almost casually, that it was "about normal for our industry: 37 percent." He must have seen my jaw drop.
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Moving as Fast as We Can: Q&A With inContact CEO Paul Jarman April 06, 2009 
Right now, about 2 percent of the contact center infrastructure market uses Software as a Service, said inContact CEO Paul Jarman, citing research by Gartner. That statistic seems reasonable, given that the contact center infrastructure space has traditionally been dominated by on-premise players -- but Jarman hopes to change that.
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Speech Analytics: Can You Hear Me Now? February 12, 2009 
Society's expectations for more personalized products and services have risen. As a result, vendors need to better understand their customers and prospects in order to remain competitive in the marketplace. One of the best ways for a company to do this is to spend time examining the interactions between its employees and customers. Speech analytics delivers the insights organizations require to do just that.
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Web 2.0 Stars Are Aligning: Q&A With Genesys CEO Paul Segre February 10, 2009 
Genesys has always been a distinct entity within the Alcatel-Lucent line of divisions, products and services. On Jan. 1, though, it was folded into a larger group called the "Applications Software Group." Genesys' mission of offering contact center products and services geared toward enterprises and telecommunication firms will still be part of Alcatel-Lucent's mix.
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We're Hiring: Q&A With Alpine CEO Christopher Carrington February 05, 2009 
The home-agent contact center model has undergone a metamorphosis in the last few years. A few short years ago, it was the refuge of small companies that couldn't afford to outsource operations to typical brick-and-mortar contact centers, said Alpine CEO Christopher Carrington. However, larger companies are increasingly drawn to the model.
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All About the Bottom Line: Q&A With Avaya Global Services President Chris Formant February 02, 2009
Chris Formant, president of Avaya Global Services, has been on the job since March 2008. It is no small irony that one year ago he was tasked with the assignment of strengthening the services group's financial and operating performance -- a significant undertaking, given that the services division touches upon more than half of Avaya's revenue and workforce.
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Best Practices in the Call Center: Make Every Contact Count January 23, 2009 
It's no secret that customers aren't buying much these days. The economic engines have locked and stalled, leaving businesses everywhere in freefall. While companies around the globe are jettisoning anything they can to slow the descent, none are ditching CRM. In fact, CRM may be the last remaining parachute: a fact realized during earlier turbulence.
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Avaya Pitches In-Store, Web Video Customer Service Apps to Retailers January 12, 2009
Avaya is rolling out two new industry-specific applications at the National Retail Federation's annual trade show on Monday. One, Avaya Video Assist, leverages the company's contact center expertise. The other, In-Store Connect, allows retailers to do away with siloed commnication systems such as intercoms or telephones.
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Live Chat's Not Just for Sales Anymore: Q&A With Conversive CEO Robert Williams December 31, 2008 
For many e-tailers, online chat is a closer. Packaged and offered up to site visitors as a service, it provides an opportunity to close a sale when an uncertain customer wavers. Retailers were early adopters of this technology precisely because of the distinct return on investment, Conversive CEO Robert Williams told CRM Buyer.
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Broadening the Contact Center Platform: Q&A With Avaya VP Bob Lyons December 29, 2008
This summer, Bob Lyons was tapped to lead Avaya's contact center division. The new general manager and vice president of customer service applications joined the company at a crucial time. It was in the midst of reorganizing its operations around three business units: the contact center, unified communications, and small and mid-sized business applications.
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