Author:  Jim Mitchell
In my last blog I spoke a bit about the overall results from the most recent Aspect Contact Center Satisfaction Index Europe, mostly as they relate to contact center personnel. I think it’s also important to explore the business impacts of automation as determined by the research.  Self service is a delicate topic [...]

Author:  Roger Sumner
Outsourcing contact center operations has long been cited for its pros and cons, but it’s not something that’s going away anytime soon. In fact, during the past decade or so outsourcing has expanded beyond country borders, giving companies the ability to tap into less expensive, highly-educated labor forces located anywhere in the world.  [...]

Author:  Jim Mitchell
Consumers across Europe are definitely not ambivalent when it comes to contact center experiences.  When their interactions are good, they’re really good, but when they’re bad, well … you can see for yourself.
This year’s Aspect Contact Center Satisfaction Index(tm) results for typical contact center experiences in Europe aren’t much different than last year’s, [...]

Author:  Gary Barnett
Walmart.com is getting a lot of attention, or I should say “flack,” for a story that recently appeared in the New York Times. According to the publication, the online retailer is embarking on a “Customer Contact Reduction” program, whereby it will virtually push its customers to help themselves - resolving issues or answering [...]

Author:  Roger Sumner
Regardless of whether they focus on customer service, sales and marketing, or collections, virtually every Aspect Software customer that I have spoken with during the last year has told me that they have, or are thinking about trialing an at-home agent program. I can say without hesitation that a lot of this interest [...]

Author:  Jim Mitchell
In my last blog, I talked a bit about the differences between integrated and unified.  I really believe in the concept of unified IP, and I truly think that unified products are the way to go – now and in the future.  Why?  Because I’ve seen firsthand how a unified approach can help [...]

Author:  Gary Barnett
This week marks an exciting time for Aspect Software and the contact center industry at large.  During the past 30 or so years, we’ve developed and delivered a number of innovative, best-in-class solutions that have enhanced our customers’ business processes.  Yesterday, we announced our latest - PerformanceEdge™, the industry’s first contact optimization suite [...]

Author:  Gary Barnett
Consulting company Accenture recently released the results of its annual technology industry customer support and service surveys.  The company reported that 78% of consumers still believe their provider’s customer service is at or below the level of service offered by competitors, and 57% of consumers describe themselves as somewhat upset, very upset or [...]

Author:  Roger Sumner
A leading wireless services provider recently “fired” some of its customers, news that was a little surprising to me.  Don’t get me wrong.  I believe that segmenting customers is a good practice, but firing customers outright can quickly become a very slippery slope.
There are basically two issues here.  First is this notion of [...]

Author:  Jim Mitchell
A common complaint that I hear is that companies are just spending too much time trying to get their disparate contact center systems to work together. Some contact center managers tell me that they dedicate too much energy and money to getting their systems to work together and they wish they could just [...]