ice from ComputerTalk turns complexity into simplicity, inefficiency into efficiency, and disparity into uniformity. The ice solution is a powerful, all-in-one contact center platform that focuses on adoption of Microsoft Lync Server 2010, SharePoint Server, and Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and builds communication-enabled business process (CEBP) applications that produce a measurable return on investment. Business Needs Common business goals across various industries include improving staff performance, collaboration, and communication; reducing operating costs; increasing competitiveness and productivity; simplifying communications by unifying disparate systems; and profiting by capitalizing on existing technology. Many companies with these goals are using unified communications platforms like Microsoft Lync Server 2010 for instant messaging (IM) and presence information. However, they have yet to take full advantage of what the platform has to offer. Solution The unified communications product suite from ComputerTalk—called ice—solves business challenges faced by organizations of any size and any complexity. The ice unified communications solution also unleashes the powerful potential of integrating Microsoft Exchange Server, voice, IM, Microsoft SharePoint Server, and Microsoft Dynamics. The solution is vendor agnostic, which means that regardless of the systems that an organization is using (PBX, IVR, CRM), ice will integrate with it seamlessly so its value can continue to be realized. As an all-in-one contact center, the telephony, automatic call distribution, interactive voice response, call recording, and email routing features are all on the same platform. This means reduced overhead in terms of number of vendors, fewer support headaches, and true unification across all media. The ice solution is the contact center of choice for Lync customers by virtue of its telephony options. Let’s say there’s an organization with an existing telephony infrastructure where all the users are TDMs and the goal is to switch to VoIP. With ice and Lync Server 2010, the company can reap the benefits of IM and presence across the organization while optionally keeping users on TDM voice. As the company begins to adopt Lync voice and move users over, it can do so at its own pace, without disruption to their operations. The ice unified communications portfolio of solutions provides advanced contact routing to contact center agents, corporate users, and subject matter experts both inside and outside the organization. ice comes with
detailed analytics, sophisticated reporting, skills-based routing, and real-time monitoring. Its workflow application development toolkit enables a range of integration points to add context to communication including Microsoft applications such as SharePoint Server, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and Lync Server 2010. For example, let’s look at a citizen 311 helpline. ice takes a call through Lync Server 2010 and accesses Microsoft Dynamics CRM for caller information to display on the agent screen. The agent is then directed to an appropriate link in a SharePoint knowledge base to share information with the caller. Another solution in the ice unified communications portfolio is iceIM. Companies can use it to extend the IM capabilities of Lync Server 2010 to include customers or partners through a link on their corporate website. They can add self-service through IM, or queuing to the right individual with the right skill set, or use it as an easy, effective way to collaborate via web meetings. Customers can continually enhance and develop effective communications strategies to achieve their business goals. ComputerTalk that its customers’ goals align well with those of Microsoft. “Bringing together e-mail, instant messaging, voice communications, and web conferencing is a matter of productivity and competitiveness. We recognize the enormous potential of this convergence in the market, and so does Microsoft,” says Mandle Cheung, Founder and CEO of ComputerTalk. Benefits Immediate benefits of using ice contact center solution with Lync Server 2010 include: Staff performance and collaboration improve. Customer information stored in SharePoint Server or Microsoft Dynamics CRM is suddenly unlocked and fully taken advantage of. Competitiveness and productivity increase. Reporting and monitoring capabilities previously limited to call center agents become available to the organization as a whole.