U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs Picks Verizon Business for Call Center Routing

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has selected Verizon (News - Alert) Business to provide call center routing and support under a new agreement valued at $20.9 million.

 

This latest agreement calls on Verizon Business (News - Alert) to provide toll-free services, hosted interactive voice response (IVR) and secure database applications for Veterans Affairs call centers nationwide.

 

The agreement was awarded under the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA (News - Alert)) Networx Universal contract. Networx is among the largest federal telecommunication contracts awarded by the GSA, providing federal agencies with a common vehicle for purchasing a set of networking and technical services.

 

“Verizon Business’ expertise and technology will be helping the Veterans Affairs Department meet the needs of the women and men who served in our Armed Forces, whether they are checking on health benefits or looking for information on the GI bill,” said Susan Zeleniak, group president at Verizon Federal.

 

Verizon Federal is a sales organization within Verizon Business dedicated to serving federal government customers. Zeleniak said in a statement that her company’s experience in providing Contact Center Services will enable the agency to enhance the customer service it provides to the nation's veterans.

 

Verizon Contact Center Services help government and large-business customers manage inbound and outbound customer communications. The hosted IVR product line includes enhanced call routing (ECR), global ECR, speech services and Internet protocol (IP) IVR.

 

Using speech technology and touch-tone commands, Verizon Business’ hosted IVR service provides call-treatment and transfer capabilities. In addition, the service also enables caller self-service transactions.

 

This technology is expected to enable veterans use the National Automated Response System (NARS) toll-free numbers. The system will route the calls to the appropriate contact for handling, including compensation and pension, education, and health care services.

 

As the project is implemented, the VA will have the ability to order additional services from Verizon Business, according to Zeleniak. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs serves the nation's veterans and their families, providing medical care, benefits and social support.

 

Verizon Business is a provider of communications services to the U.S. federal government. The company also offers advanced communications and information technology services globally.

 

Last week, Tellabs (News - Alert), a provider of solutions that enable advanced video, data and voice services, signed two agreements for wired and wireless network services from Verizon.