One of the more popular developments happening in IT departments worldwide is the growth of unified communications and collaboration (UCC) solutions. The cost-savings from integrating the many disparate communications software and hardware pieces typically found in a large organization is too compelling to ignore. But there is a danger in underestimating the effort needed to roll out a UCC implementation that runs smoothly and efficiently. One could watch Michael Jordan and marvel at how he made...

Avoiding The Perfect VoIP Storm Although now a mainstream technology, managing VoIP remains a challenge for even the most seasoned IT pro. The application’s sensitivity to packet loss and delay and users intolerance for anything less than audio perfection can create a troubleshooting nightmare. 1. Understand and measure call quality There are a variety of metrics and variables you can use to assess VoIP call quality, including jitter, MOS, R-Factor, gap density, burst density, Quality of Service...

As an IT manager, you need visibility into every corner of the network, from the edge to the core. A distributed analysis solution can provide the coverage you need, but where should you deploy probes for maximum visibility at minimum cost? This paper describes by example how to plan and implement a monitoring/analysis infrastructure based on distributed probes. Because every network is different, the examples shown may not look like your network, but the concepts demonstrated will be applicable...

When every second counts, buyers of hospital clock systems time and time again turn to Inova’s OnTime Ethernet clocks. Ok, so maybe there are too many puns in that opening sentence, but there are absolute truths buried in there. Take, for example, a hospital system in Indiana that needed around-the-clock support. (Ok, I’m done now) But seriously – when Reid Hospital in Richmond, Indiana purchased 450 Inova OnTime™ Ethernet clocks, they did so to fit their existing technology footprint. Reid Hosp...

The Biggest Videoconferencing Challenge? Real-Time Performance Management Did you know that according to Enterprise Management Associates EMA analysts, 95 percent of organizations have VoIP on their network- and more than half have deployed videoconferencing? IP videoconferencing has strong appeal to businesses through its promise of significant cost and time savings. But how simple is the transition to video? For end users, video communications are expected to be smooth, seamless, and simple. F...

Almost every contact center leader analyzes the rich data coming from their Avaya Aura system in order to improve the effectiveness of their agents, better determine trends, accurately schedule their workforce, lower costs and drive additional revenues. A good deal of the information used is based on historical data from previous intervals (ex. day/month/year) for planning purposes, and in terms of their ability to predict things like agent shrinkage and call volumes. However, that data doesn’t ...

The June 2013 issue of Contact Center Pipeline included “Underutilized Metrics,” an article written by Jay Minnucci. Minnucci highlights three metrics that could be used with more frequency and effectiveness to provide a more comprehensive understanding of contact center performance: Contacts per customer – While the expectations for this metric will vary across industry, understanding the contacts per customer within your center and industry can help you answer questions about your customer bas...

This one hour presentation from CMIQ brings together 4 panelists to help you understand the pitfalls of implementing new technology today. When implementing technology we are constantly asked to do more with less, while maintaining or drive better customer experience, and increase or improve our return on investment. The first challenge in implementing new technology is to get funding, especially when the center can be considered a cost center. We then have to pick the right technology, either a...

HeartBeat™ Availability and Performance Monitoring for Voice Communications Solutions Contact center and communications solutions offer companies a significant opportunity to control costs and improve customer satisfaction if maintained properly. If solution performance is not maintained after implementation, the opportunity becomes a risk and eventually customers are negatively impacted. With HeartBeat™ availability and performance monitoring, you validate the performance of your end-to-end con...

Proper forecasting and accurate scheduling are critical to the success of your contact center. But accurate scheduling, by design, doesn’t leave much room for error and puts most contact centers dangerously close to the edge in terms of being over-staffed or under-staffed. Given the random nature of the arrival of contacts, being ‘right-staffed’ can be a fleeting concept. More often than not, you will have too many or too little agents available to address current demand. Add in the normal daily...

Superstorm Sandy roared into our lives following more than a week’s worth of warnings. Warnings are great and give you time to prepare, cross your fingers, and fret about your contingency plans. But why fret about your contingency plans? You can be sure they work. And don’t you owe it to yourself to be confident? Think about it - If a key system component or an entire site fails, your contingency plans have to work. Period. Because if the plans fail, your entire solution may completely malfuncti...

A contact center often functions as the the face of a business, so it should provide customer service solutions that support and defend the company’s advertised brand promise. Call center evaluation solutions help companies assess and monitor the performance of call center technologies and ensure that they deliver seamless customer service, enhancing customer retention and the overall return on investment (ROI). IQ Services, a company that provides virtual evaluation services for contact centers...

Think about it - If a key system component or an entire site fails, your contingency plans have to work. Period! You can be sure they do work. And don’t you owe it to yourself to be confident? If your Disaster Recovery plan fails, your entire solution may completely malfunction, drop all current calls, shut down incoming calls & transactions across all your touchpoints, and paralyze customer contact altogether. Think of the impact on you & your company - upset customers, lost revenue, ul...