TMC Labs Innovation Awards, Part I.

The TMC Labs Innovation Awards were created to honor products that help carve a new market niche or start a new trend. The award also recognizes products that stand apart from their competitors due to one or more unique and innovative features. This is the fifth-annual installment of the TMC Labs Innovation Awards for Customer Inter@ction Solutions[R] magazine.

First, we should point out that customer retention is a key requirement to success, but unfortunately, many organizations cut back on the staffing requirements or technologies necessary to keep customers happy. It is therefore our intention to highlight the technologies and services that exist today to help enable call center and customer service agents to be as knowledgeable and productive as possible. As a result, TMC Labs has based our award selections on not only innovation, but also on products that will improve customer service, with a bottom-line return on investment (ROI) that even the most strident cost-cutting CFO would be hard-pressed to ignore.

We examined a plethora of applications, checked customer references, researched the products extensively, debated our selections, and finally came up with the creme de la creme: 26 winners within the customer interaction space. The results will be published in two parts in order to accommodate our in-depth reviews of the winners. The complete winners'list will be published in both the September and October issues; however, we will offer the detailed write-ups in alphabetical order beginning with Alcatel this month and ending with Jacada. Next month, we'll begin our company reviews with Kanisa and end with Witness Systems.

We offer sincerest congratulations to the winners.

Alcatel Internetworking, Inc.

OmniTouch Unified

Communications Suite

www.alcatel.com

TMC Labs was very impressed with Alcatel's OmniTouch Unified Communication (UC) suite. OmniTouch UC offers a full set of IP-based communication applications, enabling subscribers to customize, control and manage calls, messages, directories, collaboration tools and information from any location using any device and any interface.

This software suite implements a SOA (service-oriented architecture) and is based on a multitude of standards, including Java (J2EE), XML/SOAP and Web Services, VXML, SIP, RTP and RTSP. Alcatel claims this is the first product to make unified communication available as a Web Services tool for integration into third-party business applications such as sales force automation or employee portals (i.e., call log, calendars, etc.).

These new technologies, particularly XML/SOAP and Web Services, simplify and minimize the cost of this integration and maximize the interoperability with existing corporate resources and business applications. Alcatel informed us that OmniTouch has been successfully integrated with IBM WebSphere Portal server, Microsoft SharePoint Portal server, CRM applications such as Salesforce.com and Pivotal, and ERP applications such as NQI and SAP.

What's really cool is that these standards can be used in conjunction with Alcatel's IP Touch phones, which combine an integrated keyboard and a graphical display, allowing users to access applications and Web content.

Alcatel's OmniTouch UC provides flexibility to customize application development for unique business needs. OmniTouch UC is comprised of four applications that deserve a detailed description due to their unique features. The four apps include:

* My Messaging, a VXML-based unified messaging application handling non-real-time communications with a single multimedia mailbox (voice mail, e-mail and faxes). It enables remote access to e-mail via phone with text-to-speech (TTS) capabilities.

* My Phone, an XML/SOAP-based real-time communications management tool that allows a person on the move to transform any phone or multimedia PC into a business phone, complete with full telephony features such as conference calling, unified directory access and call log.

* My Assistant, a Web and VXML-based "find-me-follow-me" call routing and permissions application that defines when, where and by whom a person is to be contacted and diverts non-urgent calls to voice mail. It screens and intelligently routes calls based on caller I.D. and time of day.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

* My Teamwork, a sophisticated set of collaboration applications that facilitates conferencing and working together in real-time.

Aplicor Inc.

Aplicor CRM

www.aplicor.com

The Aplicor CRM suite was developed as a pure and lightweight Internet architecture. This object-oriented, Web-based thin-client product was built from the ground up with Microsoft's .NET (C#) development environment and operates on a scalable multitier (n-tier) architecture and processing platform. The use of .NET is one of the key elements in providing a hosted user experience that is just as good as if the application was installed locally as a typical CRM application. The Aplicor CRM suite includes sales force automation (SFA), marketing management and call center support.

Aplicor claims to be the first CRM hosting provider to replace the "one-size-fits-all" hosting model with unique systems for individual clients. Each Aplicor hosted client is afforded the same individualized processing capabilities as if the software was installed locally and for each client's exclusive benefit. Aplicor was quoted as saying, "Unlike the current generation of hosting providers that require all clients to use the same product version and upgrade to future versions en masse, whether the clients desire those upgrades or not, Aplicor allows each client to choose when to upgrade their CRM application."

The Aplicor solution is unique in that it's the first hosted solution to be functionally equivalent to the prevalent client/server or on-premise applications and still provide the advantages, benefits and capabilities of the hosted model. One of the oft-discussed drawbacks of the hosted model is the perception that users must navigate upward or downward through a series of pages in order to change account views or functions. To excel in ease-of-use delivery and earn quick user adoption, Aplicor pioneered one-click-access navigation throughout the application. This allows the user to leap from one account record to another in a single keystroke and offers the ability to go anywhere in the system without first having to back out of multiple screens.

In fact, we saw a demo of the product and we liked how the interface emulates the experience of a Windows application rather than a typical browser interface. Its ease-of-use features include user-defined tree and hierarchical structures, drag-and-drop data placement (very cool), visual queues such as color-coding intelligence, a progressive three-level help engine (functional help, page-level help and field-level help) and online self-paced tutorials.

The user interface also allows simple and quick modification so users may customize menus, tables and forms for individuals, roles or groups. For example: menus, tables and fields can be removed if they don't apply to certain users, or can be modified to display only those portions that do apply to each type of user. These are features typical of a CPE software application, not a hosted application.

Another unique feature is Aplicor's online test drive (a "try it before you buy it" program), as well as the absence of long-term contracts that are often associated with hosted CRM solutions. When TMC Labs discovered that the complete Aplicor solution is provided for $89.00 per user per month and includes customer support services, our jaws nearly hit the floor! This product is not only innovative, but it is certain to make some waves in the CRM industry with such a fabulous price point.

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AT & T

AT & T BusinessDirect

Portfolio

www.att.com

Who would have thought that a traditional phone company would open its network for access using Internet technology and standards for customer self-service provisioning, repair requests, billing access and more? Well, times have changed, and phone companies are trying to shed their proprietary images. AT & T's BusinessDirect portfolio is a collection of powerful e-commerce, e-servicing and e-care capabilities that empower customers from all market segments to enhance productivity and reduce costs as they manage their various AT & T services and accounts. This is accomplished by giving customers hands-on control over their telecom networks. The portfolio consists of:

* Secure AT & T BusinessDirect Web Portal and its online tools, which deliver round-the-clock e-servicing capabilities;

* AT & T eBonding and AT & T eXpress Bonding, which help customers with very high volumes of e-servicing transactions to maximize productivity by eliminating manual processes such as re-keying data into a Web browser;

* AT & T BusinessDirect's single, unified portal capability, which puts more control in customers' hands. This unified portal capability enables business customers worldwide to place orders and check their status, view and analyze bills, report service problems and track them through resolution, test circuits, re-route network traffic in real-time, manage DNS records and secondary domain names and perform other customer service-related tasks online. This means there is no more waiting on hold hoping to speak to an agent, and users can perform operations themselves. Access to information such as billing in a digital (versus paper) format lets users more easily bring the data into a reporting package, Excel or other formats.

With AT & T BusinessDirect, customers can improve the accuracy of their transactions, obtain faster service--including faster repairs and faster order fulfillment--and enjoy convenient, round-the-clock electronic access. These capabilities help customers improve productivity, cut costs and most significantly, meet their own business needs more effectively.

One excellent feature is that it shows customers a graphical map view of their entire network, integrated with ordering, maintenance, inventory and status capabilities. Simply point and click to manage any of your AT & T network nodes. In addition, BusinessDirect offers AT & T eBonding, a breakthrough capability that enables large enterprise customers to simplify inventory management, maintenance and ordering via direct computer links using eXtensible Markup Language (XML) over SOAP interface. It links the customer's ordering, inventory and maintenance systems directly into AT & T's provisioning, repair and inventory systems, thereby ensuring faster and more accurate service delivery, repair and billing.

Call Compliance, Inc.

TeleBlock Do-Not-Call

Blocking System

www.callcompliance.com

TMC Labs has never been known to become too excited over technologies that implement the national and/or state do-not-call (DNC) lists--give us a cool VoIP phone with presence or PDA with GPS any day! However, we do realize the extraordinary importance of implementing this sort of technology to avoid liability and hefty fines for non-compliance. This technology is especially important to service agencies, particularly outbound telemarketing organizations.

To ensure compliance, you need look no further than Call Compliance's TeleBlock. It has been commercially available for over five years, and the end-user telemarketing community has been incredibly receptive to the idea of a network-based DNC solution delivered via telephone lines and trunk groups. TeleBlock requires no additional hardware or software at the customer premise and is customized and managed by subscribers on their own behalf. The system uses Signaling System 7 (SS7) and Internet Protocol (IP) technologies, so there is no logging in or logging off required. An optional module called VoIPBlock works with Voice Over IP providers and works on all VoIP telephones, ATA adaptors and other IP applications.

The beauty of TeleBlock, as it relates to end-user subscribers, is that it functions the same way for a Fortune 1000 client as it does for a small office/home office (SOHO) client. One alternative to this blocking technology is list management or list scrubbing. List management firms do not physically screen and block calls in real-time across a subscriber's enterprise. They use a technique called "scrubbing" which was designed for calling efficiency and the targeting of specific geographic regions and/or demographics (and not for DNC compliance purposes). Scrubbing allows a subscriber to cleanse a calling list against available federal, state, third-party and in-house do-not-call lists prior to running a calling campaign.

Besides the "human element" of having to manually scrub a list, a major flaw associated with such a process is the continually changing nature of do-not-call lists. Any delay, minimal or substantial, can render a scrubbed list non-compliant. Larger firms utilizing this process must manage a number of satellite offices and outsourced call centers contracted to call on their behalf. These entities must clean their lists, distribute them across the corporation and/or to contracted calling parties and run the cleansed calling campaigns each time additional do-not-call numbers become available. With TeleBlock, subscribers do not have this concern. Regardless of whether an organization runs a campaign two days, two weeks or two months later, TeleBlock will still screen and block calls to numbers on available DNC lists in real-time.

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ClickFox

VIBE

www.clickfox.com

Many readers have probably heard of WebTrends, which is a provider of Web analytics for measuring and analyzing a Web site's trends, traffic, favorite links, demographics, etc. Consider the possibilities if there existed similar analytics that included not only Web, but other communication methods such as IVR, speech systems and enterprise applications such as ERP and CRM.

We were impressed with ClickFox (and we like the name, too), which has the ability to translate complex customer interactions across multiple self-service channels--such as interactive voice response (IVR), speech recognition, Web sites, kiosks and customer relationship management (CRM) systems--into fact-based decisions that optimize channel and cross-channel business performance. By using the ClickFox customer behavior intelligence system, companies can dramatically reduce operational costs, improve customer satisfaction and revenue generation and enhance the overall interactive customer experience.

ClickFox software is unique from that of competitors such as WebTrends in its ability to map customer interactions to a business-relevant model of the system, pinpointing customer successes and failures. ClickFox claims to be the industry's first customer behavior intelligence solution for optimizing self-service systems. It provides users with the ability to visualize the "big picture" of the customer's experience, not just a small sample. One really interesting feature is that it uses patented artificial intelligence and heuristics algorithms to recommend improvements in customer-facing systems. It also provides the ability to optimize across customer interactive channels, including IVR, Web and CRM (rather than focusing on each separately).

Most current tools provide only volume and traffic statistics. ClickFox provides strategic insight that static reports cannot, while improving the ability to align system goals with business objectives. ClickFox takes the guesswork out of understanding customers' needs, not by doing random surveys or usability studies, but through an automated, aggregate look at actual behavior.

Contact Center Compliance

DNCScrub

www.dnc.com

DNCScrub provides client access to a sophisticated application that manages, on the client's behalf, the federal do-not-call registry, all state DNC lists, the Wireless Database (including daily updates on wireless portability data), Canada TPS, DMA TPS, the client's internal DNC list(s), the client's existing business relationship database, branded DNC policy for each client project and complete state and federal DNC exemption support (including applicable preemptions) for vertical market exemptions.

An example of a vertical market exemption: newspaper sellers are exempt from the Florida state DNC list but not the federal list containing Florida residents. An example of proper preemption application is in Indiana, no existing business relationships (inquiry or sale) are recognized, therefore the system will not honor EBR records in that state because federal law is less restrictive than the state law.

The DNCScrub product is unique because it is not a merge/purge mechanism; rather, the system is intelligent. It "knows" state and federal law including state and federal exemptions, EBR durations and vertical industry exemptions available to clients. The system understands the relationships between a client's EBR database and the state laws that apply to that type of a campaign as well as how it is affected by other databases such as internal DNC lists.

Clients simply check a set of boxes to inform the system what type of project is being undertaken. For example, if the box is checked indicating this is a telephone company offer, the DNCScrub system knows the state of Idaho does not recognize any EBR exemption; as a result, when processing data, the system removes prohibited records under that state's law.

The ClickFox solution can use e-mail technology to allow clients to receive an e-mail on the DNC.com server from an authorized party and automatically scrub the attached zip or text file, forwarding it to whomever is on their distribution list. One innovative feature is SmartSniffer, which allows clients to submit data in any format. The system is able to take any text or zip file (password included) and the system will "sniff out" the phone number and scrub it, relieving the client of the burden of formatting the data prior to submission.

Control-FI

SupportBridge Self Service

Automation & SupportBridge Self Healing Automation

www.control-fl.com

Support automation solutions are designed to prevent, detect and repair computer problems before they cause significant disruption to operations. They eliminate support desk costs through problem prevention and reduce the time required to solve support incidents through problem deflection and optimization. SupportBridge Self Service Automation is unique in that it enables customers to help themselves through intelligent analysis of the computer's registry, drivers, network connections, active and idle processes, operating system properties (memory and control panel settings) and more.

SupportBridge Self Service Automation allows customers to resolve their own computer problems without IT staff assistance. From any entry point in your support system, such as a knowledge article, Web site or e-mail, customers can access automated tasks that will detect, diagnose and resolve computer problems. If a customer requires or desires escalation, Self Service Automation can deliver information about the problem to a technician, accelerating the resolution process. Any time a user can solve IT-related issues on his or her own means more productivity, quicker resolution and less of a load on the IT staff, all of which results in lower costs by reducing IT staffing requirements.

A single-click in a Web page, an e-mail, knowledge base articles or newsgroups can activate automated detection tools to gather and correct system data and initiate automated diagnostic tools to troubleshoot problems. With another single click, customers can escalate to live assistance, "carrying" along their history; entry route details; and any telemetry, knowledge content or additional details that have been gathered, thus expediting the live support process.

What is really innovative are the automated detection tools that gather information about a customer's computer such as operating environment details, memory, the status of currently running applications, installed applications, installed devices and network devices. Additionally, system information is gathered and sent to a knowledge base for more effective searches. Furthermore, the automated diagnosis tools analyze system information to pinpoint symptoms and problems. These automated diagnostics can be tailored by the support desk to diagnose symptoms of known issues, problems or thresholds.

SupportBridge Self Service Automation tracks and reports activities in real-time. Details such as what automated content is most accessed and executed and how it is accessed, plus escalation rates, are tracked to allow real-time improvements to the support response strategy.

One important consideration in any call center is the size of the application. Many call center PCs already run resource-intensive programs, such as a CRM application, on PCs that are two to three years old and with limited RAM, so it is critical to avoid slowing or crashing agents' desktop PCs. We were pleased to discover that the automation software is smaller than 150 kb and once deployed can be automatically updated and automatically uninstalled.

Finally, we should mention the very innovative SupportBridge Self Healing Automation module which can automatically detect and repair a PC with or without user intervention.

Now if only our PCs could automatically do our work for us, we'd be all set.

EADS TELECOM

Nexspan

Product Family

www.eadstelecom-na.com

We were impressed with Nexspan's feature-set, which delivers more than 400 standard telephony features--far more than most competing systems. It also provides a smooth migration path to IP by maintaining compatibility with TDM and digital phones, but allowing the transition of existing gear to IP sets at the user's own pace. In fact, an interesting and innovative feature is that Nexspan has digital phone sets that can migrate from digital to IP simply by adding a cartridge.

The suite includes four models: the Nexspan S and Nexspan L for small and large businesses, and the Nexspan 50 and Nexspan Communications Server. We were impressed that Nexspan systems also have embedded voice mail and auto-attendant features, which significantly lower acquisition and deployment costs.

Nexspan networked telephony solutions are designed with a unique and efficient method for processing calls and distributing information across the network. The result is a "single platform" network from which the entire system can be managed and maintained from a single location. If desired, all sites can have identical functionality without the time and expense of replicating the information at each location.

The Multi-switch Original Virtual Addressing Communication System (MOVACS) signaling protocol is a first in the industry in the way it handles broadcast messaging across the network. Nexspan's signaling protocol is designed so each node has a TCP connection to all other nodes, which enables tunneling, and each media gateway "sees" all others and can dynamically create direct connections as needed.

With Nexspan, intersite calls are routed over private links and least-cost routing (LCR) mechanisms substitute local for long-distance calls. In addition, Nexspan's signaling protocol can locate users anywhere in the network, eliminating the need for global routing tables.

With MOVACS, EADS TELECOM can provide geographically dispersed locations with applications and services from a single location. Some key features include real-time data exchanges, uniform numbering plan (no matter whether you're in Dallas or London) and mobile terminal integration, which means there is no need to update subscriber tables on every node. MOVACS is referred to as an intelligent broadcast network, meaning it can locate users anywhere in the Nexspan network, regardless of the network spanning, for example, from Dallas to London. MOVACS also optimizes costs for organizations by routing intersite calls over private links and least-cost routing (LCR) mechanisms substitute local for long-distance calls.

Eloqua Corporation

Eloqua Conversion Suite

www.eloqua.com

We previously mentioned that Webtrends is a very good Web analytics platform designed for measuring Web traffic and statistics, but it doesn't have any real intelligence to figure out what customers are looking for on your Web site, and it has no ability to wrap business rules around customers' Web site visits to perform automated tasks.

Eloqua takes Web analytics to the next level by incorporating business rules around Web analytics. Eloqua uses a sophisticated Web site tracking and analytics application that provides detailed reports on customers' Web site activities to both sales and marketing front-line users, while also enabling customized communications (e.g., e-mail or Web-based chat) to the individual prospect level.

Monitoring your customers' Web site visits may sound eerily like spyware, however, what Eloqua does is determine which marketing pitches work and what online information is the most useful to customers. Armed with this information, organizations can modify or tailor their information to provide customers with what they want. Unlike spyware, which is surreptitiously installed on your PC, Eloqua merely monitors Web site logs and uses unique identifiers (such as a unique URL per customer) to track customers' Web site visits.

The Eloqua product line is called the Conversion Suite and consists of four modules: Sales Conversion, which contains marketing and tracking tools used by sales reps to generate leads; Marketing Conversion, a campaign and Web site tracking tool used by marketers to generate leads; Site Conversion, a system that generates real-time Web site leads via rules-based triggering and instant messaging; and Hypersite, a personalized Web site system that leverages personalized URLs to create custom content for visitors and convert offline addresses to online addresses. On top of this is CS Enterprise Edition, which enables marketers to design sophisticated programs that include direct mail, e-mail, voice mail, microsites, Web site tracking and actions in third-party software systems.

Eloqua claims its product is the first to apply real-time business rules, wrapped around all details of Web activity, to a marketing automation system. For example, a marketer is able to send a direct (physical) mail campaign, and then dynamically define an e-mail follow-up based on what the recipient does on the Web site (i.e., look at product A versus product B) as he or she responds to the direct mail campaign.

The technologies for Web site tracking, custom business rule definition, direct mail and e-mail marketing and workflow automation all existed in various forms in other technology solutions, but Eloqua claims to be the first to integrate all these aspects to create a marketing solution that allows marketers to custom-define a fully automated campaign that integrates all these aspects for much greater effect than any technology alone.

Eloqua offers some other innovative features. For example, it provides real-time delivery of personalized and relevant e-mail and Web site analytics, customized to the individual visitor level. Another unique feature is that it offers sales reps the ability to identify their customers' Web site activities, available in real-time via e-mail reports that can be written automatically into reps' CRM systems (including salesforce.com, Salesnet and Microsoft CRM).

etalk

Qfiniti

www.etalk.com

Qfiniti is a comprehensive performance impact system designed to enable enterprise contact centers to deploy proven, scalable quality monitoring and agent evaluation programs. Qfiniti provides the tools to capture telephony and desktop events, evaluate and measure those activities, coach agents and analyze the entire quality program.

Qfiniti's superb features include fault tolerance, easy system administration and Qfiniti Observe's API. Additionally, it includes innovative playback features that allow supervisors to play recordings quickly and easily. Synchronized voice and screen playback ensures that both call and desktop activity can be simultaneously monitored for a complete view of agent performance. Innovative playback features including remote telephony playback, visual CTI and coaching markers and continuous playback.

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Observe's monitoring options include transaction-based monitoring of voice, screens or both simultaneously. Intelligent quality monitoring can be activated via CTI triggers or desktop events such as Web access, applications or keyboard activity. Playback markers simplify quality evaluations and support advanced coaching with voice and screen annotations. Observe employs an innovative presence-based feature that notifies the system when an agent is seated and performing a recordable activity, an approach that reduces management workload and conserves IT resources. An important design feature of Observe is that it uses telephony ports for recording but not for playback, which boosts efficiencies and system capacity.

Another module called Qfiniti Advise simplifies the evaluation process and improves the precision of measurement efforts. Through automation of many basic evaluation tasks, Advise improves evaluation accuracy and reduces the time needed to ensure optimum performance quality. Advise provides several evaluation tool capabilities, including online access, automatic scoring tabulation and sophisticated scoring with weighting options, automatic failures and multiple answer types. Managers simply establish the evaluation criteria and then employ Qfiniti's tools to analyze, review and strengthen the organization's quality performance.

Five9.com

VoIP Virtual

Contact Center

www.five9.com

Five9 provides a complete hosted contact center system on-demand (ACD, dialer, IVR, CRM, chat, recording and reporting) using full VoIP over the public Internet. In essence, Five9 allows any agent to connect anywhere in the world there is broadband connection, enabling users to build an IP-based contact center without the need for hardware, software or phone lines. (Yes, you read that correctly.) Five9 hosts the voice (VoIP) as well as the data by hosting a powerful and flexible CRM application to host critical customer data. Essentially, regardless of whether a business is comprised of two people in a garage or a medium-sized company, Five9 will give that company the soup-to-nuts solution to build everything needed to run a contact center. Amazingly, Five9 claims to be the first and currently the only hosted contact center company to have 100 percent of its customers running solely on VoIP. Pretty impressive!

Five9 leverages SIP and Linux to offer contact centers an affordable, feature-rich contact center system that uses the public Internet to deliver substantial cost savings on monthly long-distance and voice T1 costs, in addition to all the other feature benefits of a hosted contact center system.

Five9's SIP technology was built from the ground up specifically for contact centers. This SIP technology allows for proper detection of DTMF tones for IVR menu traversal; encryption security to protect communications involving sensitive information such as credit card numbers; and quality of service (QoS) algorithms that consistently monitor packet loss and audio quality to maximize both call center uptime and voice quality over the Internet.

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Five9 offers a fully featured VoIP contact center system without the need for any hardware, software or phone lines. In fact, it's only $125 to $200 per agent per month for inbound only, and $150 to $300 per agent per month for blended inbound/outbound centers. This doesn't merely lower the entry-level costs for a new call center, it virtually eliminates them. Also, one very important and unique feature we don't typically see is that Five9 does not oblige customers to sign term contracts, so customers can sign on for just a month to assess if Five9 will work for them.

GN Netcom Inc.

GN 6110

www.gnnetcom.com

iPods have built a loyal fan base because of their sleek interface, ergonomic packaging and excellent functionality. It's considered cool to own and be seen using an iPod. Today, call center agents want to use the most functional headsets, but they also want the coolest-looking headsets with the best functionality. This "hip factor" also holds true for salespeople, if not more so, due to their competitive nature.

The GN 6110 may fit both bills by offering a single headset that works with both desktop and mobile phones, eliminating the hassle of juggling multiple headsets for different phones. In addition to the productivity benefit (no need to switch headsets), there is a significant cost savings when one headset replaces the need for two.

GN Netcom developed the innovative DuoLink technology, which builds upon the Bluetooth wireless protocol by adding an additional software layer to the headset. The extra layer allows the headset to pair concurrently with both a desk phone and mobile phone. An included base station, which incorporates a Bluetooth transceiver as well as the headset's charger, is connected to the landline phone.

The GN 6110 boasts an incredibly tiny form factor: it weighs under one ounce and has a diameter of only 50 mm (under two inches) when closed. When in use, a folding silver boom arm extends out of the device, providing excellent sound quality and an unmistakable "coolness" factor. The GN 6110 provides the standard Bluetooth range of 30 feet.

The unit can be left on all day without fatigue and features a talk time of four hours with a standby time of one week. Also, the headset features a reversible ear hook, allowing it to work on either ear.

Users simply press the "answer/call" button on the GN 6110 headset if either the mobile phone or the desk phone rings--there are no awkward wires and no fumbling with two headsets. Similarly, users can initiate an outgoing call by simply pressing the same button. If the headset detects the base station in proximity, it will initiate a connection to the desk phone for dialing. If it doesn't detect it in proximity, it opens a connection to the mobile phone, which can be dialed manually or, if supported by the phone, by voice command. Did we mention this product is cool?

Jacada, Ltd.

Jacada Fusion

www.jacada.com

Many companies maintain disparate databases along with several CRM packages that require the user to switch between several applications. Application complexity negatively impacts many critical areas of call center operations, from call handling times to employee training and attrition to customer satisfaction levels. Application complexity and incompatibility also impede upsell and cross-sell opportunities as representatives do not have timely access to a "unified view" of the customer's information from various applications and databases. Even if "alt-tab" (the shortcut to switch between Windows applications) is your best friend, don't you wish there was an easier way?

Well, Jacada Fusion, just as its name implies, "fuses" applications together to deliver a simplified user interaction. Jacada claims to have developed the first robust, flexible and non-intrusive way to integrate Windows-based client/server applications. Jacada Fusion helps eliminate the costly problems arising from the complexity of applications that users must navigate in order to accomplish even simple business tasks.

In fact, Jacada Fusion fuses all types of applications--Windows, Web and host-based and they claim to be the first to offer all three. By fusing all three major types of applications, users can deliver a simplified user interface, eliminating the need to navigate through and between applications. Jacada Fusion eliminates redundant data entry, cuts keystrokes and streamlines process steps, all of which result in driving new revenue for the business and cutting costs associated with training and employee turnover.

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Jacada Fusion provides a non-invasive approach to reuse that enables the core components from any application to be quickly and easily fused with the components from other systems to dramatically improve the processes that a user performs. Jacada Fusion is flexible and non-invasive, which means users need not have access to the source code or APIs of the applications to be reused. Think of Jacada Fusion as providing the "last mile" integration of applications, or better yet, "the super glue that sticks disparate applications together" for a much more productive experience.

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RELATED ARTICLE: Companies and products to be honored in Part II of the TMC Labs Innovation Awards include:

Kanisa -- Kanisa5

KnowledgeBase Solutions, Inc. -- KnowledgeBase.net version 4.0

LumenVox -- LV Speech Tuner

Maximizer Software Inc. -- Maximizer Enterprise 8

NICE Systems -- Nice Perform

Nuance Communications, Inc. -- Nuance Caller Authentication 1.0

Raindance Communications -- Raindance Meeting Edition

RightNow Technologies, Inc. -- RightNow Service

Rockwell FirstPoint Contact -- FirstPoint Enterprise product leveraging Cisco Systems' CallManager

Siemens Information and Communication Networks -- HiPath ProCenter Agile

Symon Communications, Inc. -- Symon Enterprise Server (SES) (formerly Symon 2000)

Verio Inc. -- NTTNERIO PowerPlatform Hosting

Witness Systems -- eQuality Vision

Tom Keating, Chief Technology Officer & Executive Technology Editor, TMC