September 2004

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Control-F1
SupportBridge Self Service Automation &
SupportBridge Self
Healing Automation
www.control-f1.com

Support automation solutions are designed to prevent, detect and repair computer problems before they cause significant disruption to operations. They eliminate support desk costs through problem prevention and reduce the time required to solve support incidents through problem deflection and optimization. SupportBridge Self Service Automation is unique in that it enables customers to help themselves through intelligent analysis of the computer's registry, drivers, network connections, active and idle processes, operating system properties (memory and control panel settings) and more.

SupportBridge Self Service Automation allows customers to resolve their own computer problems without IT staff assistance. From any entry point in your support system, such as a knowledge article, Web site or e-mail, customers can access automated tasks that will detect, diagnose and resolve computer problems. If a customer requires or desires escalation, Self Service Automation can deliver information about the problem to a technician, accelerating the resolution process. Any time a user can solve IT-related issues on his or her own means more productivity, quicker resolution and less of a load on the IT staff, all of which results in lower costs by reducing IT staffing requirements.

A single-click in a Web page, an e-mail, knowledge base articles or newsgroups can activate automated detection tools to gather and correct system data and initiate automated diagnostic tools to troubleshoot problems. With another single click, customers can escalate to live assistance, 'carrying' along their history; entry route details; and any telemetry, knowledge content or additional details that have been gathered, thus expediting the live support process.

What is really innovative are the automated detection tools that gather information about a customer's computer such as operating environment details, memory, the status of currently running applications, installed applications, installed devices and network devices. Additionally, system information is gathered and sent to a knowledge base for more effective searches. Furthermore, the automated diagnosis tools analyze system information to pinpoint symptoms and problems. These automated diagnostics can be tailored by the support desk to diagnose symptoms of known issues, problems or thresholds.

SupportBridge Self Service Automation tracks and reports activities in real-time. Details such as what automated content is most accessed and executed and how it is accessed, plus escalation rates, are tracked to allow real-time improvements to the support response strategy.

One important consideration in any call center is the size of the application. Many call center PCs already run resource-intensive programs, such as a CRM application, on PCs that are two to three years old and with limited RAM, so it is critical to avoid slowing or crashing agents' desktop PCs. We were pleased to discover that the automation software is smaller than 150 kb and once deployed can be automatically updated and automatically uninstalled.

Finally, we should mention the very innovative SupportBridge Self Healing Automation module which can automatically detect and repair a PC with or without user intervention.

Now if only our PCs could automatically do our work for us, we'd be all set.

EADS TELECOM
Nexspan
Product Family
www.eadstelecom-na.com

We were impressed with Nexspan's feature-set, which delivers more than 400 standard telephony features ' far more than most competing systems. It also provides a smooth migration path to IP by maintaining compatibility with TDM and digital phones, but allowing the transition of existing gear to IP sets at the user's own pace. In fact, an interesting and innovative feature is that Nexspan has digital phone sets that can migrate from digital to IP simply by adding a cartridge.
The suite includes four models: the Nexspan S and Nexspan L for small and large businesses, and the Nexspan 50 and Nexspan Communications Server. We were impressed that Nexspan systems also have embedded voice mail and auto-attendant features, which significantly lower acquisition and deployment costs.
Nexspan networked telephony solutions are designed with a unique and efficient method for processing calls and distributing information across the network. The result is a 'single platform' network from which the entire system can be managed and maintained from a single location. If desired, all sites can have identical functionality without the time and expense of replicating the information at each location.

The Multi-switch Original Virtual Addressing Communication System (MOVACS) signaling protocol is a first in the industry in the way it handles broadcast messaging across the network. Nexspan's signaling protocol is designed so each node has a TCP connection to all other nodes, which enables tunneling, and each media gateway 'sees' all others and can dynamically create direct connections as needed.

With Nexspan, intersite calls are routed over private links and least-cost routing (LCR) mechanisms substitute local for long-distance calls. In addition, Nexspan's signaling protocol can locate users anywhere in the network, eliminating the need for global routing tables.

With MOVACS, EADS TELECOM can provide geographically dispersed locations with applications and services from a single location. Some key features include real-time data exchanges, uniform numbering plan (no matter whether you're in Dallas or London) and mobile terminal integration, which means there is no need to update subscriber tables on every node. MOVACS is referred to as an intelligent broadcast network, meaning it can locate users anywhere in the Nexspan network, regardless of the network spanning, for example, from Dallas to London. MOVACS also optimizes costs for organizations by routing intersite calls over private links and least-cost routing (LCR) mechanisms substitute local for long-distance calls.

Eloqua Corporation
Eloqua Conversion Suite
www.eloqua.com

We previously mentioned that Webtrends is a very good Web analytics platform designed for measuring Web traffic and statistics, but it doesn't have any real intelligence to figure out what customers are looking for on your Web site, and it has no ability to wrap business rules around customers' Web site visits to perform automated tasks.

Eloqua takes Web analytics to the next level by incorporating business rules around Web analytics. Eloqua uses a sophisticated Web site tracking and analytics application that provides detailed reports on customers' Web site activities to both sales and marketing front-line users, while also enabling customized communications (e.g., e-mail or Web- based chat) to the individual prospect level.
Monitoring your customers' Web site visits may sound eerily like spyware, however, what Eloqua does is determine which marketing pitches work and what online information is the most useful to customers. Armed with this information, organizations can modify or tailor their information to provide customers with what they want. Unlike spyware, which is surreptitiously installed on your PC, Eloqua merely monitors Web site logs and uses unique identifiers (such as a unique URL per customer) to track customers' Web site visits.

The Eloqua product line is called the Conversion Suite and consists of four modules: Sales Conversion, which contains marketing and tracking tools used by sales reps to generate leads; Marketing Conversion, a campaign and Web site tracking tool used by marketers to generate leads; Site Conversion, a system that generates real-time Web site leads via rules-based triggering and instant messaging; and Hypersite, a personalized Web site system that leverages personalized URLs to create custom content for visitors and convert offline addresses to online addresses. On top of this is CS Enterprise Edition, which enables marketers to design sophisticated programs that include direct mail, e-mail, voice mail, microsites, Web site tracking and actions in third-party software systems.

Eloqua claims its product is the first to apply real-time business rules, wrapped around all details of Web activity, to a marketing automation system. For example, a marketer is able to send a direct (physical) mail campaign, and then dynamically define an e-mail follow-up based on what the recipient does on the Web site (i.e., look at product A versus product B) as he or she responds to the direct mail campaign.

The technologies for Web site tracking, custom business rule definition, direct mail and e-mail marketing and workflow automation all existed in various forms in other technology solutions, but Eloqua claims to be the first to integrate all these aspects to create a marketing solution that allows marketers to custom-define a fully automated campaign that integrates all these aspects for much greater effect than any technology alone.

Eloqua offers some other innovative features. For example, it provides real-time delivery of personalized and relevant e-mail and Web site analytics, customized to the individual visitor level. Another unique feature is that it offers sales reps the ability to identify their customers' Web site activities, available in real-time via e-mail reports that can be written automatically into reps' CRM systems (including salesforce.com, Salesnet and Microsoft CRM).

etalk
Qfiniti
www.etalk.com

Qfiniti is a comprehensive performance impact system designed to enable enterprise contact centers to deploy proven, scalable quality monitoring and agent evaluation programs. Qfiniti provides the tools to capture telephony and desktop events, evaluate and measure those activities, coach agents and analyze the entire quality program.

Qfiniti's superb features include fault tolerance, easy system administration and Qfiniti Observe's API. Additionally, it includes innovative playback features that allow supervisors to play recordings quickly and easily. Synchronized voice and screen playback ensures that both call and desktop activity can be simultaneously monitored for a complete view of agent performance. Innovative playback features including remote telephony playback, visual CTI and coaching markers and continuous playback.

Observe's monitoring options include transaction-based monitoring of voice, screens or both simultaneously. Intelligent quality monitoring can be activated via CTI triggers or desktop events such as Web access, applications or keyboard activity. Playback markers simplify quality evaluations and support advanced coaching with voice and screen annotations. Observe employs an innovative presence-based feature that notifies the system when an agent is seated and performing a recordable activity, an approach that reduces management workload and conserves IT resources. An important design feature of Observe is that it uses telephony ports for recording but not for playback, which boosts efficiencies and system capacity.

Another module called Qfiniti Advise simplifies the evaluation process and improves the precision of measurement efforts. Through automation of many basic evaluation tasks, Advise improves evaluation accuracy and reduces the time needed to ensure optimum performance quality. Advise provides several evaluation tool capabilities, including online access, automatic scoring tabulation and sophisticated scoring with weighting options, automatic failures and multiple answer types. Managers simply establish the evaluation criteria and then employ Qfiniti's tools to analyze, review and strengthen the organization's quality performance.

Five9.com
VoIP Virtual
Contact Center
www.five9.com

Five9 provides a complete hosted contact center system on-demand (ACD, dialer, IVR, CRM, chat, recording and reporting) using full VoIP over the public Internet. In essence, Five9 allows any agent to connect anywhere in the world there is broadband connection, enabling users to build an IP-based contact center without the need for hardware, software or phone lines. (Yes, you read that correctly.) Five9 hosts the voice (VoIP) as well as the data by hosting a powerful and flexible CRM application to host critical customer data. Essentially, regardless of whether a business is comprised of two people in a garage or a medium-sized company, Five9 will give that company the soup-to-nuts solution to build everything needed to run a contact center. Amazingly, Five9 claims to be the first and currently the only hosted contact center company to have 100 percent of its customers running solely on VoIP. Pretty impressive!

Five9 leverages SIP and Linux to offer contact centers an affordable, feature-rich contact center system that uses the public Internet to deliver substantial cost savings on monthly long-distance and voice T1 costs, in addition to all the other feature benefits of a hosted contact center system.

Five9's SIP technology was built from the ground up specifically for contact centers. This SIP technology allows for proper detection of DTMF tones for IVR menu traversal; encryption security to protect communications involving sensitive information such as credit card numbers; and quality of service (QoS) algorithms that consistently monitor packet loss and audio quality to maximize both call center uptime and voice quality over the Internet.

Five9 offers a fully featured VoIP contact center system without the need for any hardware, software or phone lines. In fact, it's only $125 to $200 per agent per month for inbound only, and $150 to $300 per agent per month for blended inbound/outbound centers. This doesn't merely lower the entry-level costs for a new call center, it virtually eliminates them. Also, one very important and unique feature we don't typically see is that Five9 does not oblige customers to sign term contracts, so customers can sign on for just a month to assess if Five9 will work for them.

GN Netcom Inc.
GN 6110
www.gnnetcom.com

iPods have built a loyal fan base because of their sleek interface, ergonomic packaging and excellent functionality. It's considered cool to own and be seen using an iPod. Today, call center agents want to use the most functional headsets, but they also want the coolest-looking headsets with the best functionality. This 'hip factor' also holds true for salespeople, if not more so, due to their competitive nature.

The GN 6110 may fit both bills by offering a single headset that works with both desktop and mobile phones, eliminating the hassle of juggling multiple headsets for different phones. In addition to the productivity benefit (no need to switch headsets), there is a significant cost savings when one headset replaces the need for two.

GN Netcom developed the innovative DuoLink technology, which builds upon the Bluetooth wireless protocol by adding an additional software layer to the headset. The extra layer allows the headset to pair concurrently with both a desk phone and mobile phone. An included base station, which incorporates a Bluetooth transceiver as well as the headset's charger, is connected to the landline phone.
The GN 6110 boasts an incredibly tiny form factor: it weighs under one ounce and has a diameter of only 50 mm (under two inches) when closed. When in use, a folding silver boom arm extends out of the device, providing excellent sound quality and an unmistakable 'coolness' factor. The GN 6110 provides the standard Bluetooth range of 30 feet.

The unit can be left on all day without fatigue and features a talk time of four hours with a standby time of one week. Also, the headset features a reversible ear hook, allowing it to work on either ear.

Users simply press the 'answer/call' button on the GN 6110 headset if either the mobile phone or the desk phone rings ' there are no awkward wires and no fumbling with two headsets. Similarly, users can initiate an outgoing call by simply pressing the same button. If the headset detects the base station in proximity, it will initiate a connection to the desk phone for dialing. If it doesn't detect it in proximity, it opens a connection to the mobile phone, which can be dialed manually or, if supported by the phone, by voice command. Did we mention this product is cool?

Jacada, Ltd.
Jacada Fusion
www.jacada.com

Many companies maintain disparate databases along with several CRM packages that require the user to switch between several applications. Application complexity negatively impacts many critical areas of call center operations, from call handling times to employee training and attrition to customer satisfaction levels. Application complexity and incompatibility also impede upsell and cross-sell opportunities as representatives do not have timely access to a 'unified view' of the customer's information from various applications and databases. Even if 'alt-tab' (the shortcut to switch between Windows applications) is your best friend, don't you wish there was an easier way?

Well, Jacada Fusion, just as its name implies, 'fuses' applications together to deliver a simplified user interaction. Jacada claims to have developed the first robust, flexible and non-intrusive way to integrate Windows-based client/server applications. Jacada Fusion helps eliminate the costly problems arising from the complexity of applications that users must navigate in order to accomplish even simple business tasks.

In fact, Jacada Fusion fuses all types of applications ' Windows, Web and host-based and they claim to be the first to offer all three. By fusing all three major types of applications, users can deliver a simplified user interface, eliminating the need to navigate through and between applications. Jacada Fusion eliminates redundant data entry, cuts keystrokes and streamlines process steps, all of which result in driving new revenue for the business and cutting costs associated with training and employee turnover.

Jacada Fusion provides a non-invasive approach to reuse that enables the core components from any application to be quickly and easily fused with the components from other systems to dramatically improve the processes that a user performs. Jacada Fusion is flexible and non-invasive, which means users need not have access to the source code or APIs of the applications to be reused. Think of Jacada Fusion as providing the 'last mile' integration of applications, or better yet, 'the super glue that sticks disparate applications together' for a much more productive experience.





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