ac2 Solutions Recognized for Workforce Optimization Portal

Labor constitutes a significant part of contact centers’ costs. To keep costs in check, contact centers are continually challenged to do more with less and improve efficiency across all levels of operations. By optimizing handle time, improving agent productivity, reducing call volume and effectively forecasting workloads and scheduling staff, contact centers can enhance operational efficiency that benefits the bottom line.

Frost & Sullivan (News - Alert) recently recognized ac2 Solutions, a provider of contact center optimization and supply chain management technology, with the 2012 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Differentiation Excellence. ac2 Solutions' signature product, the Advanced Workforce Optimization (AWO) portal, has standout features that attract and retain customers. Highly intuitive, the software removes the complexities of traditional workforce management solutions to optimize performance.

"ac2's WFM technologies, many of which are patented, enable organizations to handle customers that are more demanding, multichannel growth, and a complex work environment," said Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst Brendan Read, in a statement. "Rugged and secure hosted delivery make these tools affordable and scalable without consuming costly and scarce IT resources."

The advanced workforce optimization portal incorporates advanced time series forecasting and staffing models that allow for hitherto unachieved levels of comprehensive strategic planning. Along with regular time series, special event forecasting, and "what if" forecasting, the system offers automated forecast accuracy tracking and concurrent optimal scheduling.

It allows forecasting and scheduling for multiple skills, sites and channels, and creates agent and supervisor schedules to include exceptions, shift swapping, overtime, vacation planning, and volunteer time off. It can also schedule assignments by agent availability, preferences, and bidding. The system facilitates home agent schedule management as well as real-time adherence and contact traffic tracking, agent workstation, plus dashboards and scorecards.

"WFM software must be built with sophisticated and adaptable technologies to successfully execute its functions, and to allow for future upgrades and new features," noted Read. "AWO has been written with advanced technology, which makes it reliable and secure. The system has achieved availability/uptime statistics for the past 24 months of 99.97 percent. It supports system security, compliance and standards/certifications, with SSL and one-way hash-encrypted passwords."

In recognition of the innovation, customer value and strong potential ac2 Solutions offers through its products and services, Frost & Sullivan presented the company with the 2012 Product Differentiation Excellence Award in the North American hosted WFM space. Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has developed a product with unique features/functionality as well as high quality for customers with complex needs.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.

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