Getting to fully integrated IP-based call centers

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This week we return to our mini-series on IP-based call centers. First, we’d like to thank the many readers who have sent us their case studies and views on the call center. Clearly, given the multitude of case studies and wide variety of products available, the IP call center is “here and now” – although in some ways still in the “early adopter” stage.

While many call centers have turned to an IP-based PBX or to IP telephony to reduce their trunking costs, when it comes to full integration of back-office systems like those we’ve discussed in our case studies the industry is just beginning to fully appreciate the productivity improvements.

As for vendor offerings, we’ve heard from all the incumbent call center providers that have shared their success stories, including Alcatel, Avaya, Cisco, Nortel, and Siemens – along with newer entrants like Shoreline Communications, Nuasis, and Quintum Technologies.

We’d like to highlight a couple of white papers our readers may find useful as they begin to investigate a possible deployment of an IP call center. The first paper, offered by Nortel, discusses the seven common myths and misconceptions about IP contact centers. It discusses what every contact center manager should know about the cost-cutting, productivity, and performance advantages of IP – and how to get there without overhauling the communications infrastructure.

The second paper, offered by Avaya, explores the business benefits and operational models where Avaya contact center products can be deployed on IP-based networks for financial return.

The papers can be found on www.webtorials.com at:

https://www.webtorials.com/main/sponsors/nortel/index.htm

and

https://www.webtorials.com/main/sponsors/avaya/index.htm

Next time we’ll wrap up with our conclusions on the IP call center.