Santa Claus is coming to town, and around the globe millions of little boys and girls are anxiously anticipating December 25^th, and a treasure trove of presents under the tree. After Kris Kringle diligently checks his list twice, and puts the elves to work, it’s time to deliver. Thanks to technology, all ages can track good old St. Nick on his route.

Today, Avaya (News - Alert) announced it is more than ready to support NORAD track Santa this holiday season. Running from 12/24 through Christmas Day, last year the hotline received a record number of calls – 1.8 per second to be precise. Some 1400 volunteers answered more than 150,000 calls in 2016, 2017 should see another record breaking year.

NORAD is leveraging the Avaya Customer Engagement platform for the 62^nd NORAD Tracks Santa. The Avaya technology currently supports NORAD operations at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and will enable contact center volunteers the ability to put planes, satellites, radar and Santa Cams positioned worldwide to provide callers with an accurate location for Santa Claus.

Last year, the NORAD Tracks Santa website saw visitors from 233 countries, totaling nearly 11 unique visitors and more than 56 million page views during the 23-hr window. The international phenomenon of Santa cannot be undervalued.

"We are hoping for another record setting year for NORAD Tracks Santa and a delightful experience for each and every caller and volunteer. As we know, each call matters -- whether it's an eager child impatiently waiting for that perfect gift from Santa; a Navy officer on an aircraft carrier sending birthday greetings to his grandfather; a weary traveler checking the web for a flight status; or a customer calling a bank's call center agent to see if a check cleared. All interactions count. We are proud to serve so many, including the NORAD Tracks Santa,“ noted Jerry Dotson, VP, Avaya Government Solutions.

The Avaya solution is more than Santa-ready, as it was put to the test at the Department of Defense Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC), and is also deployed in a number of other government agencies.

Before you sit down to read “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” call 1-877 HI-NORAD to see exactly where jolly old St. Nick is on his journey. The magic of the holiday season is here, and Avaya’s Customer Engagement platform is empowering the contact center spread some Christmas cheer.

Is your contact center solution Santa-ready?