Aspect Software Unified IP
Aspect Software’s Unified IP, a software-only platform designed to operate on industry-standard hardware and software platforms, is competitive. (10/17/2008)

Avaya Customer Interaction Center
Avaya Customer Interaction Suite is threatening to alternative solutions because it is a very broad and complete portfolio of contact center applications. (10/14/2008)

Cisco Unified Contact Center Enterprise
Cisco’s Unified Contact Center Enterprise (CCE) is an integrated modular suite of contact center applications. (10/17/2008)

Interactive Intelligence Customer Interaction Center
Interactive Intelligence’s Customer Interaction Center (CIC) is competitive to rivals, largely because it was designed and built to be a fully integrated, all-in-one suite of contact center applications. (10/29/2008)

Siemens OpenScape Contact Center
Siemens Enterprise Communications offers OpenScape Contact Center as its contact center solution for large and mid-size contact centers. (11/13/2008)

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Report Contents

• Solution Description
  
• Solution Elements
  
• Solution Strengths/Weaknesses
  
• Key Selection Criteria

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Large Contact Center Solutions Solution Elements

• Outbound and Blended Dialing
  
  • This element determines how the contact center solution interacts and integrates into the technical infrastructure of the business implementing it.
    
    
• Reporting and Analytics
  
  • This element contains the data gathering systems to the contact center, including but not limited to reporting tools, and data and speech analytics.
    
    
• Core Contact Center
  
  • This element describes basic and traditional contact center component of multi-media contact distribution, including but not limited to ACDs, agent desktops, and PBX interfaces.
    
    
• Self Service
  
  • This element describes the non-assisted component, meaning the elements of the contact center where there is no agent intervention such as IVR, knowledgebase, self-service portals, etc.
    
    
• Optimization
  
  • This element is the portion of the contact center that provides tools and systems that are used to increase effectiveness and efficiency of the contact center. Components could include workforce management, quality management, and training.
    
    
• Interconnectivity
  
  • This element lists the applications and platforms that provide connectivity to systems outside the contact center, such as CRM connectors, SIP Servers, and Mobility Servers. This element could include PBX compatibility and mobility options.

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Large Contact Center Solutions Buying Criteria

• Client Facing Features and Applications
  
  • Client-Facing Features and Applications are elements that contribute to client retention and client attraction. These include features and capabilities that allow contact centers to provide clients with the right information. Client facing features are about making sure the clients are happier then they can be by going to rival contact centers by making the process smooth. Retention also includes the features and capabilities to cross sell or up-sell clients.
    
    
• Interoperability and Mobility
  
  • Interoperability and Mobility defines how the contact center works with other systems in the technical infrastructure of the business implementing it. Interoperability is defined as integration and communication with back office and CRM systems. Mobility is defined as connection with other telephone systems, including PBXs (IP, TDM and hybrid), and include indication of presence for both wired and wireless phones.
    
    
• Inward-facing Features and Applications
  
  • Inward-facing Features and Advanced Applications are elements that promote efficiency and effectiveness of agents and other contact center personnel. These include features and capabilities that allow contact centers to use resources more proficiently, about building economies of scales and increasing the agent value through better tools or decreased duplications and redundancies.
    
    
• Price
  
  • The Price criteria are the actual price to the purchaser and mechanisms that allow flexibility in the pricing structure.
    
    
• Scalability, Virtualization, and Multi-Tenancy
  
  • Scalability, Virtualization, and Multi-Tendency are features that expand the contact center and include the capacity of the contact center applications, how independent centers can be connected, and if there are partitioning and multi-client capabilities included.