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Hosted virtual ACD: get more from your contact center without a large technology investment.


Now companies that have their own contact centers can have the latest call routing technology, more call capacity and dramatically improved

customer contact capabilities, all without paying for upgrades or relinquishing operational control. West gives companies the ability to link into their advanced technology without having to make significant infrastructure investments of their own. Using West's hosted Virtual ACD (Automatic Call Distributor) A computerized phone system that responds to the caller with a voice menu and connects the call to the appropriate agent. It can also distribute calls equally to agents.  enables companies to handle more calls, route calls to any location, add interactive voice response (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. ) to their infrastructure and improve the overall efficiency of their customer contact operations.

West's Virtual ACD makes it possible to route calls to any contact center location, even to agents working from their homes. Here are a few ways in which companies can quickly benefit from using West's Virtual ACD to host existing contact center operations:

* Transport flexibility. Whether the solution requires traditional TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) A technology that transmits multiple signals simultaneously over a single transmission path. Each lower-speed signal is time sliced into one high-speed transmission. , next-generation VoIP or a combination of both, West can support it. Using West's VoIP-enabled Virtual ACD to run a contact center allows companies to begin reaping the benefits of VoIP today, without significant up-front investments of their own. While a traditional call may be routed through several contact and data centers before reaching an offshore contact center, a call entering an IP port can be sent directly to the end point at a much lower cost.

* Remote agent support. West can provide companies with the technology infrastructure to run and manage their own home agent program. The Virtual ACD makes it possible to drive customer calls to agents working from home, significantly reducing their clients' office space and equipment costs.

* Fully integrated speech applications. With more than 130,000 ports, West's Virtual ACD can help improve call capacity and provide flexibility to manage spiky spik·y  
adj. spik·i·er, spik·i·est
1. Having one or more projecting sharp points.

2. Grouchy or cross in temperament.



spik
 call volume. Running speech or DTMF (Dual-Tone MultiFrequency) The type of audio signals that are generated when you press the buttons on a touch-tone telephone. See also DMTF.

DTMF - Dual Tone Multi Frequency
 applications through the Virtual ACD also ensures fewer missed calls and shorter wait times for customers.

* Systems integration. West currently supports hundreds of real-time remote host interfaces to unique back-end client and third-party systems. Whether integrating with a legacy or leading-edge technology platform, West can quickly and effectively integrate with a client's existing systems, such as CRM/knowledge base, workforce management Workforce Management (WFM) encompasses all the responsibilities for maintaining a productive and happy workforce. Sometimes referred to as HRMS systems, or even the larger ERP systems (Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP). There are many software vendors within this space. , quality assurance monitoring, or other back-database-driven applications.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

* Operational expertise. West's Network Operations Center See NOC.

Network Operations Center - (NOC) A location from which the operation of a network or internet is monitored. Additionally, this center usually serves as a clearinghouse for connectivity problems and efforts to resolve those problems.
 (NOC (Network Operations Center) A central or regional location for monitoring a large network. Also called a "network management center" (NMC), "service management center" (SMC) or "network control center" (NCC), a NOC may be used to manage a large enterprise network, ) unites numerous functional and operational business units to provide the most responsive and efficient call handling service in the industry. Collocation of key functions enhances communication, facilitates broader awareness of call handling issues and expedites response times. The NOC is focused completely on ensuring overall customer satisfaction. West's quality measures and industry-leading support infrastructure form the strong foundation to provide greater value to clients and their customers.

* Enterprise intelligent routing and reporting. The West Hosted Virtual ACD allows intelligent call routing to the absolute best available agent within a contact center enterprise, whether residing in a client/third-party contact center or working remotely from home or a satellite facility. West manages this by leveraging its geographically redundant, high-availability platform and database infrastructure to determine routing requirements in a highly efficient manner. Based on client business rules, West makes routing decisions based on any number of business criteria including: AHT AHT Animal Health Trust (Suffolk, England)
AHT American Hairless Terrier (dog breed)
AHT After Hours Trading
AHT Animal Health Technician
AHT Anchor Handling Tug
, average ticket value, upsell conversion rates and customer satisfaction survey scores, among many others. By utilizing West's Hosted Virtual ACD technology to conduct enterprise intelligent routing, companies can save millions of dollars per year by avoiding costly ICM ICM Intercom
ICM Integrated Crop Management
ICM International Congress of Mathematicians
ICM Information Classification and Management
ICM Intelligent Contact Management (Cisco)
ICM International Creative Management
 technologies and infrastructure.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

* Quality monitoring. West offers several leading-edge reporting and quality monitoring tools to ensure that clients have everything they need to provide ongoing agent/staff training and coaching. West records 100 percent of phone calls and makes these voice files available to Hosted Virtual ACD clients through several Webbased channels in near-real-time. In addition, West provides the ability for clients to monitor both the voice and data (agent screen) elements of a phone call in real time. By providing these capabilities, West helps clients provide the most positive customer experience possible.

* Scalability and reliability. Known for its highly scalable and reliable platform infrastructure, West is committed to R & D and reinvestment Reinvestment

Using dividends, interest and capital gains earned in an investment or mutual fund to purchase additional shares or units, rather than receiving the distributions in cash.

1. In terms of stocks, it is the reinvestment of dividends to purchase additional shares.
 into its platform and human resources The fancy word for "people." The human resources department within an organization, years ago known as the "personnel department," manages the administrative aspects of the employees.  to remain at the leading edge of technology.

Companies looking for Looking for

In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with.
 the most efficient and effective way to improve their customer contact operations without a huge technology investment need look no further than a hosted solution from West. For more information, please contact West Corporation at 1-800-841-9000, or visit www.west.com.

A Special Editorial Series Sponsored by West Corporation
COPYRIGHT 2005 Technology Marketing Corporation
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2005, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Title Annotation:INNOVATIVE IDEAS FROM THE TELESERVICES EXPERTS
Publication:Customer Interaction Solutions
Geographic Code:1USA
Date:Sep 1, 2005
Words:734
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