Customer Inter@ction Solutions[R] magazine's nineteenth-annual Top 50 inbound Teleservices Agencies Ranking.This is the nineteenth year Customer Inter@ction Solutions[R] magazine brings you its "Top 50" Teleservices Agency Ranking. In this issue, we're presenting the "Top 50" inbound in·bound 1 adj. Bound inward; incoming: inbound commuter traffic. Adj. 1. inbound portion of the ranking. (The outbound out·bound adj. Outward bound; headed away: outbound trains. Adj. 1. outbound - that is going out or leaving; "the departing train"; "an outward journey"; "outward-bound ships" portion of the ranking was highlighted in the March 2004 issue.) Since its inception in 1986, our "Top 50" ranking has been used as the benchmark for choosing large-capacity/sized teleservices agencies. Ranking Basis Since the basis of our ranking is company size, Customer Inter@ction Solutions[R] uses a measurable, third-party-verifiable aspect of teleservices to arrive at our list of the "Top 50" agencies: the number of minutes each agency was billed by each of its phone companies for telephone service for 12 months, encompassing November 2002 through October 2003. We have found this to be an accurate and reliable reflection of the amount of teleservices each agency does, and therefore, provides a true reflection of its size. Qualification Criteria To qualify for inclusion in this year's "Top 50," the agencies had to answer a questionnaire detailing the nature of their business and listing their number of billable minutes between November 2002 and October 2003. The questionnaire had to be verified with the signature of each agency's president/CEO. In addition, each agency had to submit a letter of verification from each of its telephone service providers certifying the number of minutes for which it billed the agency during the designated period. (Our sincere gratitude Gratitude agrimony traditional symbol for gratitude. [Flower Symbolism: Flora Symbolica, 172] Androcles because he had once extracted a thorn from its paw, the lion refrained from attacking Androcles in the arena. [Rom. Lit. is extended to all the carriers for their thorough and expeditious ex·pe·di·tious adj. Acting or done with speed and efficiency. See Synonyms at fast1. ex provision of these data.) Exceptions Agencies that did not supply this third-party verification TPV (Third party verification) is a process of getting an independent third party company to confirm that the customer is actually requesting a change or ordering a new service or product. were disqualified dis·qual·i·fy tr.v. dis·qual·i·fied, dis·qual·i·fy·ing, dis·qual·i·fies 1. a. To render unqualified or unfit. b. To declare unqualified or ineligible. 2. , with the exception of three circumstances CIRCUMSTANCES, evidence. The particulars which accompany a fact. 2. The facts proved are either possible or impossible, ordinary and probable, or extraordinary and improbable, recent or ancient; they may have happened near us, or afar off; they are public or : 1) a client of the service agency was billed directly for its telephone service and would not provide a letter of verification for anonymity reasons; 2) part of the billable minutes were with a foreign telecommunications Communicating information, including data, text, pictures, voice and video over long distance. See communications. carrier that could not provide the data by the dead-line; 3) legitimate business situations prevented an agency from obtaining verification from certain of its carriers or a certain carrier. For each of these circumstances, we required a letter of explanation and signed verification of billable minutes pertaining per·tain intr.v. per·tained, per·tain·ing, per·tains 1. To have reference; relate: evidence that pertains to the accident. 2. to the explanation from the president/CEO of the agency. You will find an asterisk (1) See Asterisk PBX. (2) In programming, the asterisk or "star" symbol (*) means multiplication. For example, 10 * 7 means 10 multiplied by 7. The * is also a key on computer keypads for entering expressions using multiplication. next to the name of all "Top 50" agencies that supplied a portion of their verification from their president/CEO due to one of the three circumstances identified above. In all cases, from the questionnaires to the letters of verification, the agencies were warned that should falsification falsification /fal·si·fi·ca·tion/ (fawl?si-fi-ka´shun) lying. retrospective falsification unconscious distortion of past experiences to conform to present emotional needs. be detected, they would be disqualified from this and all future "Top 50" rankings. And indeed, Customer Inter@ction Solutions[R] magazine's editorial staff carefully verified calculations, discrepancies and other aspects of the supplied information to ensure that this ranking is of true value to you. Understanding The Listings As you read through the following list of "Top 50" agencies, you will notice that we have provided a numerical numerical expressed in numbers, i.e. Arabic numerals of 0 to 9 inclusive. numerical nomenclature a numerical code is used to indicate the words, or other alphabetical signals, intended. ranking of 1 through 44 (1 being the largest), but have not revealed the number of billable minutes used to arrive at this ordering. This was done out of respect for the confidential nature of this information to the many agencies included here that are privately held corporations Noun 1. privately held corporation - a corporation owned by a few people; shares have no public market close corporation, closed corporation, private corporation . This year, only 44 companies met our minimum number of billable minutes to be ranked in the "Top 50" inbound. You will notice that the "Top 50" inbound has been divided into three categories: A, B and C. Category A is composed of U.S. service agencies whose primary business function is provision of telemarketing telemarketing, the practice of selling goods or services to customers by means of the telephone or of surveying consumer preferences in telephone conversations. services for outside firms. If you are considering an international teleservices campaign, Category B consists of international teleservices agencies. Again this year we have separated out all international teleservices done by U.S. agencies and ranked those companies' international minutes in the International category, Category B. Domestic companies that are also ranked in the International category are marked with a dagger ([dagger]) in their domestic ranking. Category C, which was introduced in 1998, is comprised of companies that provide purely interactive inbound services (no live operators). We added this category to reflect the growing demand for such interactive inbound services. Companies that are in the Domestic and International categories that are also ranked in the Interactive category are marked with a double dagger double dagger n. A reference mark (  ) used in printing and writing. Also called diesis.Noun 1. ([double dagger]) in their Domestic and International rankings Country specific See: Economic
This year, to give you a better picture of what is going on in this ever-shrinking world, we here present a look a the Top 5 Global Performers, which combines the minutes from the U.S. Domestic rankings with those of the International rankings. In the inbound category, the Top 5 Global Performers are: 1. Convergys Corp. 2. Precision Response Corp. 3. SR. Teleperformance 4. SITEL Corp. 5. ClientLogic We hope you will use this "Top 50" feature, both inbound and outbound portions, for your outsourcing (1) Contracting with outside consultants, software houses or service bureaus to perform systems analysis, programming and datacenter operations. Contrast with insourcing. See netsourcing, ASP, SSP and facilities management. needs throughout the year, and be sure to tell the companies you found them in Customer Inter@action Solutions[R]. Companies with enhanced listing are regular advertisers in Customer Inter@action Solutions[R]. CATEGORY A 1. Precision Response Corp. * Ph: 954-693-3700; Fx: 954-838-4475 www.prcnet.com Year began providing teleservices: 1982 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 5,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 35%; B-to-C: 65% Inbound: 100% Specialization A career option pursued by some attorneys that entails the acquisition of detailed knowledge of, and proficiency in, a particular area of law. As the law in the United States becomes increasingly complex and covers a greater number of subjects, more and more attorneys are : telecom, financial services The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. , consumer services Consumer Services refers to the formulation, deformulation, technical consulting and testing of most consumer products, such as food, herbs, beverages, vitamins, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, hair products, household cleaners, [paints, plastics, metals, waxes, coatings, minerals, 2. Convergys Corp. * [dagger] [double dagger] Ph: 800-344-3000; Fx: 513-458-1315 www.convergys.com Year began providing teleservices: 1986 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 5,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 25%; B-to-C: 75% Outbound: 10%; Inbound: 80%; Interactive inbound: 10% Specialization: customer service and technical support, B-to-B sales and account management, IVR (Interactive Voice Response) An automated telephone information system that speaks to the caller with a combination of fixed voice menus and data extracted from databases in real time. and advanced speech recognition 3. GC Services Limited Partnership * [double dagger] www.gcserv.com 4. APAC Customer Services
APAC Customer Services, Inc. is a provider of customer interaction solutions to large corporations in the communications, financial services, insurance, healthcare, logistics, publishing, and hospitality , Inc. * [double dagger] Ph: 800-OUTSOURCE; Fx: 847-236-5490 www.apaccustomerservices.com Year began providing teleservices: 1973 Size of projects accepted: varies Type of calling: B-to-B: 32%; B-to-C: 68% Outbound: 27%; Inbound: 67%; Interactive inbound: 6% Specialization: CRM (Customer Relationship Management) An integrated information system that is used to plan, schedule and control the presales and postsales activities in an organization. , full lifecycle interaction management (inbound, outbound, multichannel Using two or more paths for transmission or processing. It can refer to a variety of architectures including (1) multiple I/O channels between the CPU and peripheral devices, (2) multiple wires in a cable, (3) multiple "logical" channels within a single wire or fiber or (4) multiple , BPO BPO Business Process Outsourcing BPO Benevolent & Protective Order (of Elks of the USA) BPO Benzoyl Peroxide BPO Business Process Optimization BPO Broker Price Opinions BPO Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra ) 5. ClientLogic * [dagger] [double dagger] www.clientlogic.com 6. SITEL Corp. * [dagger] www.sitel.com 7. Excell Agent Services, LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control * www.excellagent.com 8. Teleperformance USA * (part of the SR. Teleperformance Group) Ph: 801-257-5800; Fx: 801-908-5976 www.teleperformanceusa.com Year began providing teleservices: 1993 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 500 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 55%; B-to-C: 45% Outbound: 40%; Inbound: 55%; Interactive inbound: 5% Specialization: technical support, financial services, customer service 9. Aegis Communications Group, Inc. * [double dagger] www.aegiscomgroup.com 10. LiveBridge, Inc. * [dagger] www.livebridge.com 11. ICT (1) (Information and Communications Technology) An umbrella term for the information technology field. See IT. (2) (International Computers and Tabulators) See ICL. 1. (testing) ICT - In Circuit Test. Group, Inc. * [dagger] [double dagger] www.ictgroup.com 12. StarTek, Inc. * [dagger] Ph: 303-262-4531; Fx: 303-388-9795 www.startek.com Year began providing teleservices: 1989 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 2,000 hours Type of calling: Inbound: 100% Specialization: customer care, technical and product support, complex process management 13. RMH Teleservices RMH is a global telecommunications company, purchased in 2004 by NCO Group. RMH had locations in Saint John, and Oromocto in the Canadian province of New Brunswick as well as in Thunder Bay and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and Surrey BC. * [dagger] [double dagger] www.rmh RMH Ronald McDonald House RMH Rocky Mountain House (Canadian national park) RMH Rochester Methodist Hospital (Rochester, MN) RMH Real Manly Hug RMH Report on Macroeconomics and Health RMH Recent Medical History .com 14. AFFINA, The Customer Relationship Co. * [dagger] [double dagger] www.affina.com 15. TCIM TCIM Tivoli Compliance Insight Manager (IBM) TCIM Tactical Communications Interface Modem TCIM Tactical Communication Interface Module Services, Inc. * [dagger] [double dagger] www.tcim.com 16. Technion Communications Corp. * [dagger] www.technion.com 17. The Connection * www.the-connection.com 18. Cross Country Automotive Services, Inc. [double dagger] www.crosscountry-auto.com 19. Center Partners Ph: 970-206-9000; Fx: 970-282-9225 www.centerpartners.com Year began providing teleservices: 1997 Type of calling: B-to-B: 5%; B-to-C: 95% Outbound: 5%; Inbound: 75%; Interactive inbound: 20% Specialization: telecom, high-tech, loyalty and retention 20. Phase 2 Solutions, Inc. [double dagger] www.phase2solutions.com 21. Harte-Hanks, Inc. * [dagger] [double dagger] www.harte-hanks.com 22. Telerx * www.telerx.com 23. OSC O.S.C. n. short for Order to Show Cause. (See: Order to Show Cause) Teleservices [double dagger] www.osc.com 24. DialAmerica Marketing, Inc. * [double dagger] www.dialamerica.com 25. Global Response Corp. * www.globalresponse.com 26. USA 800, Inc. www.thecontactcenter.com 27. Call--Solutions [double dagger] www.callsolutions.com 28. InService America, Inc. www.inserviceamerica.com 29. InPulse Response Group www.inpulseresponse.com 30. Alpine ALPINE Antihypertensive Treatment and Lipid Profile in a North of Sweden Efficacy Evaluation (drug trial) ALPINE Advanced Logistics Program Integration and Engineering Access * www.alpineaccess.com 31. Advanced Data-Comm, Inc. * [double dagger] Ph: 800-582-9501; Fx: 800-829-9780 www.advanced-data.com Year began providing teleservices: 1988 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 100 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 71.5%; B-to-C: 28.5% Outbound: 41.5%; Inbound: 48.5%; Interactive inbound: 10% Specialization: third-party verification, customer service, blended IVR/live agent solutions 32. Alert Communications * [dagger] [double dagger] www.alertcom.com 33. CCC CCC A very speculative grade assigned to a debt obligation by a rating agency. Such a rating indicates default or considerable doubt that interest will be paid or principal repaid. Also called Caa. Interactive, Inc. * Ph: 713-289-8500; Fx: 713-289-8710 www.cccinteractive.com Year began providing teleservices: 1999 Size of projects accepted: varies Type of calling: B-to-B: 16%; B-to-C: 84% Outbound: 59%; Inbound: 41% Specialization: utilities, financial services, consumer products 34. Vision-X, Inc. [dagger] www.vxiusa.com 35. InfoCision Management Corp. Ph: 330-668-1400; Fx: 330-668-1401 www.infocision.com Year began providing teleservices: 1982 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 500 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 20%; B-to-C: 80% Outbound: 84%; Inbound: 15%; Interactive inbound: 1% Specialization: non-profit fundraising
36. Holden Holden, town (1990 pop. 14,628), Worcester co., central Mass., a residential suburb of Worcester; settled 1723, set off and inc. 1741. Manufactures include electrical and metal products, plastics, and machinery. Marketing Support Services support services Psychology Non-health care-related ancillary services–eg, transportation, financial aid, support groups, homemaker services, respite services, and other services * (formerly The Product Line) www.holdenmss.com 37. Answernet Network www.answernetwork.com 38. Americall Group Inc. * [dagger] [double dagger] (part of the SR. Teleperformance Group, includes former MarCom Technologies) www.americallgroup.com 39. Archway Marketing Services [dagger] www.archway.com 40. O'Currance Teleservices www.ocurrance.com 41. TeleSpectrum Worldwide [dagger] [double dagger] Ph: 610-878-7400; Fx: 610-878-7931 www.telespectrum.com Year began providing teleservices: 1996 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 1,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 15%; B-to-C: 85% Outbound: 78%; Inbound: 18%; Interactive inbound: 4% Specialization: telecom, financial services, technology 42. OKS OKS Oshkosh, Nebraska (airport code) OKS Oracle Service Contracts (software application) OKS Old King's School (alumni of the King's School, Canterbury, Kent UK) Ameridial www.oksameridial.com 43. Millennium Teleservices LLC www.mmtel.com 44. Creative Marketing Services, Inc. Ph: 856-384-111; Fx: 856-853-6859 www.cmsgrp.com Year began providing teleservices: 2000 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 500 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 22%; B-to-C: 78% Outbound: 68%; Inbound: 32% Specialization: financial, insurance, telecom CATEGORY B--INTERNATIONAL 1. Convergys Corp. * [double dagger] Ph: 800-344-3000; Fx: 513-458-1315 www.convergys.com Year began providing teleservices: 1986 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 5,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 25%; B-to-C: 75% Outbound: 10%; Inbound: 80%; Interactive inbound: 10% Specialization: customer service and technical support, B-to-B sales and account management, IVR and advanced speech recognition 2. SR. Teleperformance * [double dagger] www.srteleperformance.com 3. RMH Teleservices * [double dagger] www.rmh.com 4. SITEL Corp. * [double dagger] www.sitel.com 5. Client Center Alliance [double dagger] www.clientcenteralliance.com 6. ClientLogic * [double dagger] www.clientlogic.com 7. Atesia S.p.A. * [double dagger] www.atesia.it 8. StarTek, Inc. * Ph: 303-262-4531; Fx: 303-388-9795 www.startek.com Year began providing teleservices: 1989 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 2,000 hours Type of calling: Inbound: 100% Specialization: customer care, technical and product support, complex process management 9. ICT Group, Inc. * www.ictgroup.com 10. MsourcE Corp. * www.msource.net 11. eTelecare International * www.etelecare.com 12. PCCW PCCW Pacific Century CyberWorks PCCW Palmer College of Chiropractic West (San Jose, California) Contact Center Business * [double dagger] www.pccw.com/contactcenter 13. Technion Communications Corp. www.technion.com 14. Archway Marketing Services [double dagger] www.archway.com 15. Help Desk NOW Inc. www.helpdesknow.com 16. Hispanic Teleservices Corp. * www.htc.to 17. Voxdata Solutions, Inc. www.voxdata.com 18. Vision-X, Inc. * [double dagger] www.vxiusa.com 19. AFFINA - The Customer Relationship Company [double dagger] www.affina.com 20. Americall Group, Inc. * [double dagger] (part of the SR. Teleperformance Group, includes former MarCom Technologies) www.americallgroup.com CATEGORY C--INTERACTIVE INBOUND 1. XO Communications XO Communications is a United States telecommunications firm and one of the largest Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) in the country. It is owned by XO Holdings, Inc OTCBB: XOHO. , Inc. www.xo.com 2. Voice-Mail Broadcast Corp. www.vmbc.com 3. Convergys Corp. * Ph: 800-344-3000; Fx: 513-458-1315 www.convergys.com Year began providing teleservices: 1986 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 5,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 25%; B-to-C: 75% Outbound: 10%; Inbound: 80%; Interactive inbound: 10% Specialization: customer service and technical support, B-to-B sales and account management, IVR and advanced speech recognition 4. Aegis Communications Group, Inc. * www.aegiscomgroup.com 5. ClientLogic * www.clientlogic.com 6. TeleSpectrum Worldwide Ph: 610-878-7400; Fx: 610-878-7931 www.telespectrum.com Year began providing teleservices: 1996 Size of projects accepted: Minimum 1,000 hours Type of calling: B-to-B: 15%; B-to-C: 85% Outbound: 78%; Inbound: 18%; Interactive inbound: 4% Specialization: telecom, financial services, technology 7. PCCW Contact Center Business * www.pccw.com/contactcenter 8. ICT Group, Inc. * www.ictgroup.com 9. Client Center Alliance www.clientcenteralliance.com 10. SITEL Corp. * www.sitel.com 11. DialAmerica Marketing, Inc. * www.dialamerica.com 12. Phase 2 Solutions, Inc. www.phase2solutions.com 13. OSC Teleservices www.osc.com 14. SR. Teleperformance www.srteleperformance.com 15. AFFINA, The Customer Relationship Co. * www.affina.com 16. GC Services Limited Partnership * www.gcserv.com 17. Harte-Hanks, Inc. * www.harte-hanks.com 18. Atesia S.p.A. * www.atesia.it 19. APAC Customer Services, Inc. * Ph: 800-OUTSOURCE; Fx: 847-236-5490 www.apaccustomerservices.com Year began providing teleservices: 1973 Size of projects accepted: varies Type of calling: B-to-B: 32%; B-to-C: 68% Outbound: 27%; Inbound: 67%; Interactive inbound: 6% Specialization: CRM, full lifecycle interaction management (inbound, outbound, multichannel, BPO) 20. Alert Communications * www.alertcom.com If you are interested in purchasing reprints of this article (in either print or HTML HTML in full HyperText Markup Language Markup language derived from SGML that is used to prepare hypertext documents. Relatively easy for nonprogrammers to master, HTML is the language used for documents on the World Wide Web. format), please visit Reprint reprint An individually bound copy of an article in a journal or science communication Management Services online at www.reprintbuyer.com or contact a representative via e-mail at reprints@tmcnet.com or by phone at 800-290-5460. 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