Connections Magazine News
September 2005

CAM-X Convention to Feature Western BBQ Hoedown

Celebrating the spirit of our forefathers, the Canadian Call Management Association ( CAM -X) is hosting a Western BBQ and Hoedown as a part of their 41^st Annual Convention and Trade Show.  The event will take place in the heart of the Canadian west, beautiful Kananaskis , ; the theme of the conference is "Exploring Future Frontiers."

CAM -X members' number one request is for more opportunities to network throughout the conference.  Therefore, the 2005 convention committee is thrilled to announce the addition of an offsite dinner to the schedule of events, accommodating the membership's request.  CAM -X invites readers to dig out those cowboy hats and bandanas, and prepare to Explore Future Frontiers in Kananaskis, November 29 – December 2, 2005.

The Canadian Call Management Association encompasses call centers and contact centers across Canada and the US .  For more information, contact CAM -X at 800-896-1054.

 ATA Welcomes Two New Team Members

 ATA (The American Teleservices Association) has welcomed two new members to the management team.  Andrew Johnson has joined ATA as the Manager of Member Services, and Zach Rice has become Manager of Government Affairs.

Before joining the ATA, Johnson worked with the Indiana Academy of Family Physicians in their education department, coordinating the speakers and materials for the annual meeting.  Johnson also worked on the Congressional campaign for Indiana 's seventh district in 2002 where he managed the Rising Star Committee.

Rice has been involved in 's legislative process through several facets. He has worked for the Indiana Secretary of State, Indiana Auditor of State, and the Majority Caucus in the Indiana State Senate.

NAEO Announces Annual Convention

 NAEO (National Amtelco Equipment Owners) announced their annual conference scheduled for  March 26-28, 2006.  It will at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando ,   This year NAEO offers a "no rain" guarantee while at the Gaylord Palms Resort!  This four and a half acre luxury property is completely covered with a glass canopy, offering its guests a comfortable 72 degrees inside, all the time.  Especially designed with the conference attendee in mind, the resort offers abundant quality meeting space, networking areas, shops, and dining options.

Tentative topics include:

• Sessions designed to educate you about your Amtelco system features. 

• Real life ideas for sales and marketing. 

• Introduction of the latest Amtelco innovations.

• Learning more about solutions to staffing issues.

• Developing a plan to put it all together.

For those who decide to bring the family along, there is complimentary transportation to Disney, supervised activities for children, and a spa for relaxing on site.  The conference is open to first-timers and seasoned members alike. 

For further information, call Shannon at NAEO, 800-809-6373 x1.

PIN Plans Next Conference for September 11-12, 2005

Professional Inbound Network's (PIN) PInnacle users met during the ATSI Convention and Exposition in St. Louis. This year's meeting topic centered on PInnacleWeb, the PInnacle/Internet interface.  PInnacleWeb enables a client to access their account's on-call tables and current and archived messages. Access is via a secure password-enabled Website that provides either unlimited account access or a limited, read-only display.  Users also have the capability to design and generate custom reports based upon their data. The group is scheduled to meet next in Manchester, NH on Sept. 11-12, 2005. 

ASTAA Announces Convention Date Change

The Atlantic States Telephone Answering Association (ASTAA) has changed the dates of their convention to October 10-12, 2005 to make it possible for those observing Yom Kippur to attend.

For more information call 800-718-1712 or email astaan@mindspring.com.

 InfoCision Founder, Gary Taylor, Honored

 InfoCision Management Corporation Founder and Chairman of the Board, Gary L. Taylor, accepted two prestigious awards for his dedication to the telemarketing industry.  Taylor was a regional winner in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.  Taylor accepted the award in the Services category at a banquet in , .

Taylor started InfoCision in his home in 1982 after obtaining business degrees and working as a marketing director for Rex Humbard Ministries.  Taylor wanted to find a way to help similar organizations reach prospective donors and volunteers utilizing a more personal touch.  With no bank financing, he cashed in his retirement savings and began to prospect for clients.

Taylor also accepted the Direct Marketing Association's Teleservices Excellence Award.  The award is reserved for individuals who have shown a commitment to the teleservices industry, set positive examples, and show quality standards.

"It is overwhelming to be recognized in such a way by my peers," said .  "I am thankful to each and every one of the hard-working employees that have helped build InfoCision one call at a time."

Tele-Serve Adds Sales and Marketing Manager Position 

Norm Green recently joined Tele-Serve as the sales and marketing manager.  Green brings more than 20 years of business development and sales and marketing experience to his new position.

Tele-Serve has been providing telemessaging and inbound call center services to local and national businesses for more than 40 years.  With the recent upgrades and continuing investment to maintain their call center, Tele-Serve is positioned to grow its national account base and expand its service offerings.  Tele-Serve is headquartered in Eau Claire , , with a secondary location in , FL.  

Polly Craik Named Entrepreneur of the Year

Polly Craik, President and CEO of FineLine Integrated Response Solutions, has been named "Entrepreneur of the Year," by Manitoba Business Magazine, after her company registered a five-fold increase in revenue over the last five years.  Craik, whose company provides call center, data management, and payment processing solutions to clients throughout North America , topped the list of 15 entrepreneurs under consideration for the 2005 award.

Manitoba Business Magazine's editor-in-chief Ritchie Gage said the winner must possess strong leadership qualities and vision, be a risk-taker and master strategist.  In Craik's case, what most impressed Gage was her ability to overcome the technological and marketing challenges associated with entering the U.S. market where long sales cycles complicated the transition.

Craik said, "What I'm most proud of is the business we've built, that our services and products are unique and different from our competitors, that we build relationships with our clients, and that our staff understands the impact they have on our growth."

Tele-Response Acquires TeleStar Marketing

Tele-Response Center, Inc. ( TRC ), a provider of call center and direct response outsourcing services, has acquired TeleStar Marketing, a Media, Pennsylvania-based call center firm specializing in cable industry sales and support programs.  This transaction was completed on July 1, 2005.  The acquisition gives TRC an expanded suite of capabilities, including inbound call center outsourcing and cable industry-related expertise. 

"This acquisition continues the track record of growth in both the size and the scope of capabilities that we can offer our commercial and nonprofit clients," said Stuart Discount, CEO of TRC .  "Historically, we have excelled at providing direct response analytics, direct mail fulfillment, and outbound customer/donor acquisition telemarketing services.  The TeleStar acquisition not only adds inbound call center outsourcing support capacity, but also brings with it an excellent group of employee talent that has a history of outstanding performance in the cable industry."

"By being part of TRC we have access to a diverse group of clients that should help us continue to expand our presence in the cable industry," said Mickey Diamond, Senior Vice President of TeleStar.

Professional Teledata Adds Profitability Analysis to TBS Billing Program

Professional Teledata announced the release of Profit Finder, a profitability calculation and analysis tool that operates in conjunction with their TBS (Total Billing Solution) program. The effect of various changes to a rate structure or billing methods may be input to discover the optimal setting for any particular client. Inputs may be considered retroactively to not only model future "what-if" scenarios, but also "what-if-we-had" scenarios. Profit Finder is included in the TBS 3.0 upgrade as part of Professional Teledata's software maintenance program.

For more information, contact Karen Black at 800-344-9944 x112 or kblack@proteledata.com.

Alston Tascom Releases Hosted Version of the Evolution System

At the 2005 ATSI convention in June, Alston Tascom released a hosted version of their Evolution system, called Evolve.  Evolve provides a hosted telemessaging VoIP system for any number of workstations.  With Evolve, all a telemessaging call center needs is a PC and DSL connection for each workstation. 

What is not needed is paying system equipment costs, monthly phone bills, system maintenance, service agreements, and buying spare parts or finding someone to install the parts and maintain the system.  This makes Evolve ideal for startups, an alternative to replacing an aging call processing system, providing an easily and quickly scalable platform, or implementing home based agents to replace a traditional centralized call center.  The host system is located and maintained at Evolution headquarters in Chino , .

For more information, contact Wayne Scaggs of Alston Tascom, Inc. at 909-548-7300 or wayne@alstontascom.com.

Amtelco Announces Infinity ANI Auto Routing

Amtelco announced ANI auto-routing for Infinity v5.3.  For telemessaging call centers, morning check-in and evening check-out times are extremely busy.  To save agent time, Infinity can now route calls, based on the caller's ANI.

Based on the ANI data received, if the call is forwarded from the call center client, the call is routed to an agent.  If the call is coming in directly from the client, the behavior will change and the call goes to the Infinity voice processing to give the client choices.  The client hears a recording (which can be customized with their name) then plays a recording such as "Our system has detected that you are calling us from your office.  If you are calling to forward your calls, press 1 now.  If you need to speak with us, press 0 or stay on the line."  If they press 1, they hear another message such as "You have successfully forwarded and may hang up now."  This feature can also be used for routing calls from on-call personnel directly to a specific Infinity account.

Contact Amtelco at 800-356-9148 or info@amtelco.com.

CadCom Announces Release of Contact Center Software Products

CadCom Telesystems released Version 2.1 software for its AccuCall product line.  Its AccuScript Pro offers both outbound and inbound calling to provide new opportunities for call centers.  Call center managers can create call flow scripts for inbound and outbound applications.  Additionally, AccuCall Version 2.1 offers features that support Web-integrated client portals and distributed agent configurations.

"A rapid and emerging trend in the call center industry is centered around generating new revenues and increasing productivity by transitioning into more distributed agent configurations, so that qualified talent can be employed without geographic restrictions", said Ray S. Naeini, Chairman and CEO of CadCom's parent company, OnviSource, Inc. "Our CadCom strategy is to pioneer products that fully support such positive trends in the call center industry".

"Our new software package offers vertical revenue-bearing applications supported by a complete and integrated set of call center functionalities, including in-bound and out-bound call handling, agent productivity tools, quality assurance, and voice logging", said CadCom Chief Operating Officer, Stan Jasinski.  "We have utilized advanced Internet, unified messaging, and portal technologies to bring real solutions to the emerging requirements of today's call centers."

Telescan Enhances Spectrum Agent

Telescan has recently introduced the first in a planned series of enhancements to their agent-interface software, Spectrum Agent.  These enhancements are designed to take full advantage of the advanced capabilities of Telescan's new Spectrum Data Manager.  Noteworthy in the new Spectrum Agent software release are enhanced support for time and time zone display for in-bound and out-bound calls, enhanced call-control functions, and one-click access to short-cut command "buttons" that make the system easier to operate and reduce agent time for each function. 

Introduced earlier this year, Spectrum Data Manager, a Windows-based telemessaging system, has exceeded all Telescan's projected sales goals.  Telescan is continuing to introduce up-grades that will reduce operator time and increase productivity.

To find out more about Telescan's Spectrum Systems and the Spectrum Agent, call Telescan at 800-770-7662.

Mercom Offers Valuable Resources for Contact Center Professionals

Mercom Systems, Inc. announced an addition to its recently redesigned Web site, the Mercom Insight Center.  The Mercom Insight Center is an extensive education portal and supplement for contact center associates and users.  The site includes links to call center news, tips of the day from Mercom Product Manager and contact center expert Kristyn Emenecker, a monthly newsletter, benchmarks, case studies, and news articles related to the contact center industry and Mercom Systems. 

"The updated look more accurately reflects the technology and services that Mercom provides," Emenecker said.  "Mercom customers, partners, and contact center professionals will have more resources to help them gain knowledge and insight into the goings-on of the call center industry."

Startel Appoints Denny as Vice President of Service

Startel Corporation announced the appointment of Sheryl Denny as Vice President of Service.  As Vice President of Service, Sheryl Denny and her organization will focus on offering Startel customers a high-level quality of service.  She continues to report directly to David Chuchinsky, President of Startel.  Chuchinsky stated, "We are truly fortunate to have had Sheryl on the team for the past 21 years.  She has brought with her a combination of experience, understanding and knowledge that has proven invaluable to our customer client base."

"I love the challenge that working with the Startel customers affords me and the steady growth that Startel, as well as myself, have experienced over the past few years.  I have enjoyed being a part of the relationships that have been built with our clients and the sense of trust that they have in Startel," said Denny.

Before joining Startel, she worked for Canyon Communications Center, in Palm Springs, CA.  The experiences she had there in the general management of their three call centers helped her to better understand and focus on our customers' needs and find a successful solution.

Almond Hill Takes Stand Against Offshore Labor

Almond Hill Enterprises, based in Anaheim Hills , announced a new corporate policy in which resellers will be prohibited from employing low-cost offshore labor when using the TurboSchedule™ Virtual Front Office Solution.  Douglas T. Duncan, Almond Hill Enterprises' President said that TurboSchedule, it's patented, Internet based scheduling and task management application, may not be utilized by individuals or corporations seeking to exclude US-based employees by shipping jobs to third world countries that employ labor in unfair competition to the American workforce.

Duncan said that future agreements with licensed resellers of TurboSchedule will contain language to this effect and that he will seek to amend agreements with all presently licensed TurboSchedule resellers in 30 U.S. states and several Canadian Provinces.  "It is our intention, that resellers who will not agree to protect the North American worker in this way are not suitable partners for our company and their license agreements will not be renewed," he stated. 

For more information, visit call 800-398-6100 or email cs@turboschedule.com.

ARS Introduces Record Triggering Capability

Alliance Recording Systems (ARS), manufacturer of the Alliance Express and Alliance Enterprise digital voice recording systems, introduced a new feature that allows users of all the Alliance recorders to trigger recording by the pressing of a line appearance button on their phone instruments.  This new feature is available in systems configured to accept direct input from most digital phone instruments.

"We ran across applications where agents who used headsets were constantly being recorded, whether they were talking on the phone, or talking to the person sitting next to them," said Lee Slocum, one of the owners of ARS.  "By making it possible for them to trigger recording by pressing the line appearance button on their phone, we eliminated the ‘hot mic' that is often associated with the use of headsets.  Now only their phone calls are recorded, not their conversations with others in the office."

Alliance Recording Systems is located in , TX , and is involved with the manufacture, sales, and service of voice recording equipment in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. 

For more information about Alliance Recording Systems, call 281-579-1600, x311.

 Amtelco Announces Scripting Prize Winners

Amtelco announced the winners of the scripting contest held for users of the Infinity Intelligent Messaging scripting software.  The winners of each category are: Best Script: Tory Johnson of ACT Teleservices, Most Complex Script: Joe Adam of Athens Regional Medical Center, and the Most Scripts Entered: Mercedes Kristal of World Class Communications.  Intelligent Messaging is being used by call centers to reduce operator errors and training time, as well as simplify difficult call processes.  Winners receive gift certificates and the Best Script wins an iPod mini^® MP3 player.

The contest was launched to encourage users sharing of scripts in the online Amtelco TechHelper Resource Library. The Resource Library is a unique compendium of training videos, Webinars and PowerPoint^® presentations, and scripts available to Amtelco product users as a major benefit of their support contracts.

For more information on Amtelco's Infinity Intelligent Series and the Resource Library, contact Amtelco at 800-356-9148 or send an email to info@amtelco.com.

Cary Oakes Joins Telescan/Axon

Telescan recently announced the addition of Cary Oakes to their staff.  Oakes will hold the position of Axon Technical Services Specialist.  He will assist and support Axon customers including repair or replacement of system boards and answer support-related questions.  Oakes will make sure Axon users receive uninterrupted service 24/7.  A graduate of Vatterott College, Oakes previously worked for Bausch & Lomb as a Technical Support Specialist.

To find out more about Telescan or Axon, call at 800-770-7662.

CadCom Delivers Compact Call Center Solution

CadCom Telesystems, a wholly owned subsidiary of OnviSource, Inc., announced the addition of the newly released AccuCall LDX server platform to the AccuCall product line, completing a full line of scalable solutions for call centers.  With the addition of the AccuCall LDX server, CadCom Telesystems now provides a cost-effective solution with advanced vertical applications for small, distributed, and virtual call center operations.

"Providing call center products that offer new and innovative solutions to the growing needs and trends of the industry, such as small, distributed, and virtual call centers, is part of our core strategy to empower contact centers to transition to new levels of incremental revenues and productivity," said Ray S. Naeini, Chairman and CEO of OnviSource, the holding company that owns CadCom Telesystems.  "Introduction of AccuCall LDX is a big step toward successfully executing our strategy."

The AccuCall LDX platform is built on client/server architecture with digital network compatibility and incorporates all the software features of larger AccuCall configurations, such as call processing, group-based routing, on-call scheduling with automatic paging, custom messaging and ordering formats, message histories, reporting features, and remote management capabilities.

FCC Delays Date For Rules Concerning Unsolicited Faxing

The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) has delayed until January 9, 2006, the effective date of the Commission's July 2003 determination that anyone sending an unsolicited advertising fax obtain a prior signed, written statement as evidence of the recipient's permission to receive the fax.  Until January 9, 2006, such faxes may be sent without prior written consent to people with whom the advertiser has an existing business relationship (EBR).

On July 3, 2003, the Commission revised its telemarketing rules including those concerning advertising faxes and reversed the original rule, adopted in 1992, that an existing business relationship provided companies with the necessary express permission to send facsimile advertisements to their customers.  To give companies time to secure the written permissions and to have time to consider any petitions for reconsideration of these rules, the Commission extended the effective date until January 1, 2005.   The effective date was subsequently extended to June 30, 2005.  This action was taken the Commission June 27, 2005 (by Order (FCC 05-132).

[Editor's note: President Bush recently signed into law, a bill to make the EBR clause permanent.  Look for more information in our next issue.]

Join a Global Customer Experience Benchmark Study

Every year the Strativity Group conducts a global customer experience study.  To ensure diverse and complete coverage of opinions, they invite readers of Connections Magazine to join the study.  The survey takes about ten minutes to complete and allows participants to join the industry benchmark study and be part of the market trends.  

The customer experience management study became an industry standard.  Readers of Connections Magazine can obtain a free copy of the 2005 study results by simply participating; all responses will remain confidential.

To receive your free copy of the 2005 study results and a free copy of their new white paper "Drivers For Performance Excellence" simply include your email address at the end of the survey or send an request email to info@StrativityGroup.com.

CallCenterTechs List Serve Hits 10,000

In July, Kevin Bachelder's popular list serve for call center technology issues reached a milestone of its 10,000^th message.  This free list serve, CallCenterTechs, was founded in November of 2001 by Bachelder in order to better address technical questions and facilitate problem resolution within call centers. 

Over 200 members whose computer skills range from novice to expert are currently involved with this list serve.  They willingly and openly share their technical knowledge with each other on a daily basis, both giving and receiving feedback, as needed, to resolve problems quickly and effectively, thereby saving their organizations time and resources. 

This list serve has proven itself to be a great resource for everyone in the teleservices and call center industry. 

Pennsylvania 835 Area Code Overlay Halted

Earlier this summer, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission rescinded its plan to overlay the 484/610 area codes in southeastern Pennsylvania with the 835 area code.   The North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA) will reclaim the 835 area code and return it to the pool of available area codes within the North American Number Plan and place it in "reserved" status.

Genesys Study Indicates Growing Popularity of Self-Service

A study commissioned by Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc. revealed that self-service customer interaction systems are becoming a standard method of communication between organizations and customers.  The study also discovered that consumers are demanding and expecting easy-to-use, sophisticated technology to expedite their customer service inquiries.

More than 200 North American customer service executives and 300 consumers participated in the self-service study, lending insight into how leading contact centers are using self-service technologies.  Key findings from the study, along with anecdotal insight from both management and consumers, are available in the report, "Contact Center Realities: Industry Insights for Success with Self-Service." 

"This industry study confirms that consumers are growing used to and preferring self-service applications for getting questions answered and issues solved," said Wes Hayden, CEO, Genesys.  "The study provides valuable insight about customer expectations for self-service via the telephone and Web."

To receive a copy of the study, contact Ali Finer at 612-455-1751 or afiner@psbpr.com.

ICCM Keynote Speakers Announced

ICCM 2005, for contact center and customer management professionals, announced their the keynote speakers for this year's event.  Attendees are invited to hear:

• John Cleese, Actor, Author, Comedian, as well as a Learning and Training Expert

• Ann Rhoades, Culture Transformation Guru and Former Executive Vice President of JetBlue Airways 

• Dr. Jon Anton, Director, Center for Customer Driven Quality, Purdue University 

• David Batstone, Entrepreneur, Professor, Journalist, and Author of "Saving the Corporate Soul"

ICCM delivers practical advice and insight into what contact centers really need to develop customer-focused business processes and what people who manage them need to be successful. ICCM also serves as an important forum for contact center professionals to network and share ideas with their peers.   The event attracts more than 3,500 people and is expected to have 120 vendors in attendance this year.  ICCM 2005 will be held September 25-28, at The Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas , NV.

 Concerto Software and Aspect Communications to Merge

Concerto Software Inc. and Aspect Communications Corporation announced a definitive agreement to combine the companies.  The transaction will form the largest company solely focused on contact center products and services.  The merger combines Concerto's predictive dialing and unified contact center systems with Aspect's workforce management applications and performance analytics.  Both companies provide traditional voice and voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) automatic call distributors (ACD).

Under the agreement, Aspect shareholders will receive $11.60 in cash for each share of common stock, which represents an approximate 15% premium to the average closing price over the last 30 trading days.  Based on the number of shares of Aspect common stock outstanding on July 4, 2005 , the transaction is valued at approximately $1.0 billion.

The transaction has been approved by Aspect's board of directors and is anticipated to close as early as September 2005, subject to customary conditions.  Upon closing, Aspect will no longer be publicly traded; the new company will be privately held by Concerto's investors, Golden Gate Capital, Oak Investment Partners and management.

For more information, call 800-480-2299.

Security in the World of VoIP

Security is a never-ending threat on the Internet and the proliferation of Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, increases these risks to a new level.  Service providers must grapple with the reality that the voice transmission they are providing their customers "will never be 100 percent secure," cautioned Yaron Raps, a solution partner at BusinessEdge Solutions.

"There are hackers today focused on the PSTN and the Internet, but VoIP, which unites the worlds of voice and the Internet, exacerbates the existing security vulnerabilities inherent in both," Mr. Raps added.  This includes:

• Hackers who tap into a network to get free phone service or make international calls.

• Users who are able to ‘draw' multiple dial tones but appear as a single line to the carrier .

• Individuals who hijack the IP-Phone profile can replicate that across multiple devices.

• Callers who spoof their identity and become impossible to track .

• Hackers who tap into the network just for fun.

• Quality that can be compromised because of the real-time nature of VoIP transmissions.

DirectoryNet Enhances Web-Based Directory Assistance Offerings

DirectoryNet, LLC enhanced its Web-based directory assistance information offerings, expanding the search options available to collections professionals and others who require quick and easy access to the most current contact information available.  Enhancements include:

• ID SSN – new service enabling online social security number-based searches.

• ID Plus Express Web – new contemporary look with pull-down menus for easy navigation.

• ID Plus Global – 20 new countries added to international directory assistance listings.

 "Our goal is to deliver the most robust and easy-to-use directory assistance information and contact intelligence tools possible," said Michael J. Musso, President and CEO, DirectoryNet.

For more information about DirectoryNet's products and services, call 800-733-1212.

Strativity Bridges Gap between Expectation and Execution

Strativity Group, Inc. launched Experience Gap Analysis ™ (EGA™), a customer expectation assessment tool that goes beyond the traditional, measurable elements of transaction-based relationships.  By measuring four critical dimensions including capability, willingness, knowledge, and attitude, EGA calibrates responses pertaining to customer and employee perception, identifies the performance gaps, and pinpoints areas for organizational change.

"Customer statistics are typically abstract and can't tell you what you should do, said Ginny Danforth, a manager of customer satisfaction with Honeywell International.  "Strativity Group's EGA assessment tool gives us the insight we need from our customers and employees as well as practical guidance on bringing expectation and execution closer together." 

"Our clients were struggling with traditional customer statistics that pointed to the problem but not the solution", said Lior Arussy, Strativity Group's President.  "EGA delivers execution guidance by identifying the solution and required changes."

Strativity Group, Inc. is a global research and consulting firm.

Select International Sets New Standard for Call Center Recruiting

Select International's Contact Center Division, introduced Select Assessment for Customer Service and Sales (SACS).  The product is designed to help recruit and retain call center agents.  SACS measures 40% more employee competencies and attributes than other assessments.

Because labor is the call center's greatest expense, employee turnover is an expensive reality for any call center.  SACS minimizes costs related to call center consultant recruiting, training, and turnover by identifying the right, motivated people for the job.

"We are seeing more executives recognize the urgency of getting and keeping the right talent as a way to fortify their businesses," stated Paul Stockford, Chief Analyst for Saddletree Research.  "An effective selection strategy also directly and positively impacts the issue of employee turnover and can radically improve contact center morale, efficiency, and profitability."

National City Call Centers Earn Certification

National City Corporation announced that its Direct Banking unit, with telephone banking call centers in Columbus , OH ; Kalamazoo , , PA has been named a "Certified Center of Excellence."

The certification is based on best practice measurements drawn from the world's largest database of call center performance information. The database is owned by the Center for Customer-Driven Quality at Purdue University and managed by BenchmarkPortal. 

BenchmarkPortal is the source for best practices information about call centers. BenchmarkPortal collects data from more than 20,000 call centers worldwide and selects those in the top 10 percent to be classified as "Centers of Excellence."  National City Direct Banking shares the "Certified Center of Excellence" designation with acclaimed national institutions such as Microsoft, Dell, New York Life, eBay, IBM, and the University of Michigan.

Kerin Dorris, executive vice president and direct banking manager for explained, "This certification is a result of the commitment to world class service from our call center employees.  We are dedicated to our role as a one-stop resource for National City customers and take great pride in the continued excellence of our call center teams."

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