Call centres function according to a simple principle: the amount of time an operator spends on one call affects the amount of calls an operator can take in a day. The amount of calls taken by a single operator has a direct effect on the operator’s productivity and the call centre’s profit.
Call centres should ensure that operators are equipped with the right information so that they can help customers as swiftly as possible. This solution sounds simple enough, but is difficult to implement when information is stored on more than one database.
The information that operators require to answer customer queries often come from third party systems. This is especially true for outsourced call centres that deal with multiple customers on behalf of multiple clients.
Data relevant to the customer is not always available as queries can’t always be predicted accurately. This is especially relevant to complex service offerings like software support or insurance products. To be effective, the operator needs access to both the customer’s information and the data required to complete the query.
Business Intelligence (BI) tools have long promised to be the solution to this problem, but they have some shortcomings. Running reports can be time-consuming and require IT department resources. Relevant reports are not always up to date, nor are they accessible to everyone that needs them.
New generation BI tools overcome these problems by extracting data in a different way. One such tool is Progress Software’s EasyAsk. It runs an intelligent search of the whole system and puts keywords into context. All this tool requires is a dictionary that contextualises phrases instead of the traditional On Line Analytical Process (OLAP) tables.
This system overcomes traditional BI limitations by almost instantly producing up-to-the-minute reports, based on questions asked in natural English. The call centre operator therefore has access to data without any additional IT training. The benefit to the call centre is that queries can be answered while the operator is online, eliminating the need to refer unusual queries that may require a call back.
Gustav Piater, Marketing and Sales Director for QBCon, a business solution provider that implements EasyAsk in South Africa, says: “We have installed EasyAsk in two very large call centres in South Africa with great success. The simplicity of the system makes it possible for operators at both companies to access information that would previously not have been available. It has given both centres’ customers a competitive advantage that I believe will soon become a prerequisite for call centre profitability.”
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
QBCon Excited About the New Version of EasyAsk®
QBCon is pleased to announce that we now sell and implement the latest version of Progress EasyAsk® Operational Business Intelligence (BI), namely version 11.0. The upgraded version of EasyAsk® sports a unique querying and analytical system, allowing the user to type a question in natural language to receive immediate results.
Call centre users will need no additional IT training, as the application functions much in the same way as an internet search engine. The new version of EasyAsk® also features a customisable dashboard, which ensures that relevant information is available to the user at all times.
Users will be pleased to find out that any information required can be accessed by typing in a question by using natural language (as if you were asking a person a question). EasyAsk® will automatically suggest answers related to the user’s query and offer relevant available information.
Information users who wish to monitor queries can ask for additional functions which can be included in the customisable dashboard. The information is constantly updated, allowing the user to analyse statistics and make further inquiries.
Alta Cornelissen, Business Excellence Manager for Europ Assistance, a company that provides medical, legal, roadside and funeral assistance to a variety of clients, is experiencing the benefits of EasyAsk® at first hand.
“EasyAsk® for Operational BI has saved our company countless man-hours by allowing us to easily create saveable and searchable reports rather than re-creating the query each time information is needed. Because the reports can be saved as graphs or charts, it is easy to share the information and track changes in the data,” said Cornelissen.
EasyAsk® is accessible to contact centre users, requires no additional training and provides required information quickly and easily.
Call centre users will need no additional IT training, as the application functions much in the same way as an internet search engine. The new version of EasyAsk® also features a customisable dashboard, which ensures that relevant information is available to the user at all times.
Users will be pleased to find out that any information required can be accessed by typing in a question by using natural language (as if you were asking a person a question). EasyAsk® will automatically suggest answers related to the user’s query and offer relevant available information.
Information users who wish to monitor queries can ask for additional functions which can be included in the customisable dashboard. The information is constantly updated, allowing the user to analyse statistics and make further inquiries.
Alta Cornelissen, Business Excellence Manager for Europ Assistance, a company that provides medical, legal, roadside and funeral assistance to a variety of clients, is experiencing the benefits of EasyAsk® at first hand.
“EasyAsk® for Operational BI has saved our company countless man-hours by allowing us to easily create saveable and searchable reports rather than re-creating the query each time information is needed. Because the reports can be saved as graphs or charts, it is easy to share the information and track changes in the data,” said Cornelissen.
EasyAsk® is accessible to contact centre users, requires no additional training and provides required information quickly and easily.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
New Age BI Tools Address Contact Centre Gripes and Wish Lists
Regardless of whether you think the future of Contact Centres lies in self-service, interaction management or agent productivity, there is a common solution: to improve access to information. Most Contact Centre operators already know this. A recent Deloitte and Touche survey shows that Contact Centre operators list Management Information Systems (MIS) and reporting as two of their top five technology gripes.
New age Business Intelligence (BI) tools like Progress Software’s EasyAsk promise to change this by making BI much more accessible. The tool, which is implemented by QBCon, delivers Contact Centre wish list items such as improved agent knowledge and decreased call-handling times.
EasyAsk increases the number of calls an agent can handle by giving them access to the information they need instantly, without any additional training. The software simplifies the BI process by interpreting natural English questions and translating these into meaningful answers. By asking questions in natural English, the agent can handle ad hoc queries while the caller is online, thereby answering queries that would otherwise have required a call back.
Contact Centre managers can make short-term and medium-term business decisions using the same tool. Managers can ask questions that are relevant to management. Just imagine getting the answer to: “show me the agent who handled the most calls in the last hour?” or “which topics keep agents online the most often?”
One Contact Centre that does this with great success is Europ Assistance. QBCon implemented EasyAsk at Europ Assistance in under a week. The company provides medical, legal, roadside and funeral assistance to a variety of clients. EasyAsk helps Europ Assistance to allocate resources to ensure optimal interaction management and consequent customer satisfaction. These EasyAsk benefits are in accordance with the trends identified by in Dimension Data in their quarterly review of the industry.
EasyAsk promises to empower those who make the small decisions that make a huge difference to the customer’s experience and the agent’s productivity.
New age Business Intelligence (BI) tools like Progress Software’s EasyAsk promise to change this by making BI much more accessible. The tool, which is implemented by QBCon, delivers Contact Centre wish list items such as improved agent knowledge and decreased call-handling times.
EasyAsk increases the number of calls an agent can handle by giving them access to the information they need instantly, without any additional training. The software simplifies the BI process by interpreting natural English questions and translating these into meaningful answers. By asking questions in natural English, the agent can handle ad hoc queries while the caller is online, thereby answering queries that would otherwise have required a call back.
Contact Centre managers can make short-term and medium-term business decisions using the same tool. Managers can ask questions that are relevant to management. Just imagine getting the answer to: “show me the agent who handled the most calls in the last hour?” or “which topics keep agents online the most often?”
One Contact Centre that does this with great success is Europ Assistance. QBCon implemented EasyAsk at Europ Assistance in under a week. The company provides medical, legal, roadside and funeral assistance to a variety of clients. EasyAsk helps Europ Assistance to allocate resources to ensure optimal interaction management and consequent customer satisfaction. These EasyAsk benefits are in accordance with the trends identified by in Dimension Data in their quarterly review of the industry.
EasyAsk promises to empower those who make the small decisions that make a huge difference to the customer’s experience and the agent’s productivity.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Easy Access to Info Reduces Phone Time for Call Centres
The more calls a call centre operator can handle, the greater the operator’s productivity and consequently the greater the call centre’s profit. The irony for outsourced call centres is that they would like their operators to spend less time on the phone. The shorter the amount of time an operator spends on the line with one client, the more calls he or she can take in a day.,
Information is the key. This sounds simple enough but is difficult to implement, especially where information is stored on more than one database. Most of the information that operators require to answer customer queries come from third party systems. This is especially relevant for outsourced call centres that deal with multiple customers on behalf of multiple clients.
To be effective the operator needs access to both the customer’s information and the data required to complete the query. The data supplied about the customer by the client is not always sufficient as not all queries can be accurately predicted. This is especially true for complex service offerings such as software support or insurance products.
New generation Business Intelligence (BI) tools overcome problems by extracting data in a different way. One such tool is Progress Software’s EasyAsk. It does an intelligent search of the whole system and puts words into context. This does not require the traditional OLAP tables, but only that a dictionary that contextualises phrases is set up.Traditional BI tools have long promised to be the solution to this problem, but they have several shortcomings. Reports can take a long time to generate and require IT department resources. These reports are also not always up to date nor are they accessible to everyone.
EasyAsk empowers the call centre operator by giving him or her access to data without needing IT knowledge. This benefits the call centre since queries can be answered while you are on the phone, eliminating the need to refer unusual queries that may require a call back. This lightness overcomes traditional BI limitations by producing up-to-the-minute reports almost instantaneously based questions asked in natural English.
QBCon is a business solution provider that implements EasyAsk in South Africa. Gustav Piater, the Marketing and Sales Director for QBCon, says: “We have installed EasyAsk in two very large call centres in SA with great success. The lightness of the system and the ease of use have made it possible for operators at both companies to access information that would previously not have been available. It has given both customers a competitive advantage that I believe will soon become a prerequisite for call centre profitability.”
Information is the key. This sounds simple enough but is difficult to implement, especially where information is stored on more than one database. Most of the information that operators require to answer customer queries come from third party systems. This is especially relevant for outsourced call centres that deal with multiple customers on behalf of multiple clients.
To be effective the operator needs access to both the customer’s information and the data required to complete the query. The data supplied about the customer by the client is not always sufficient as not all queries can be accurately predicted. This is especially true for complex service offerings such as software support or insurance products.
New generation Business Intelligence (BI) tools overcome problems by extracting data in a different way. One such tool is Progress Software’s EasyAsk. It does an intelligent search of the whole system and puts words into context. This does not require the traditional OLAP tables, but only that a dictionary that contextualises phrases is set up.Traditional BI tools have long promised to be the solution to this problem, but they have several shortcomings. Reports can take a long time to generate and require IT department resources. These reports are also not always up to date nor are they accessible to everyone.
EasyAsk empowers the call centre operator by giving him or her access to data without needing IT knowledge. This benefits the call centre since queries can be answered while you are on the phone, eliminating the need to refer unusual queries that may require a call back. This lightness overcomes traditional BI limitations by producing up-to-the-minute reports almost instantaneously based questions asked in natural English.
QBCon is a business solution provider that implements EasyAsk in South Africa. Gustav Piater, the Marketing and Sales Director for QBCon, says: “We have installed EasyAsk in two very large call centres in SA with great success. The lightness of the system and the ease of use have made it possible for operators at both companies to access information that would previously not have been available. It has given both customers a competitive advantage that I believe will soon become a prerequisite for call centre profitability.”
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
New Generation BI
The concept of Business Intelligence (BI) has changed. Once referred to as a “tech-savvy only” access tool, it has now evolved into an accessible natural language data processor. The new generation BI tool answers English language questions, in real time and without having to rely on the IT department to configure systems for reports.
Progress Software saw the need for an operational BI rebuild, and developed EasyAsk®, an Operational BI application that return queries in seconds instead of in hours or months. EasyAsk does not merely focus on the decision-making needs of senior management but is accessible to all users. Employees will no longer review only snippets or irrelevant packets of data. They can now get data designed by them, for them, by using plain English to ask a question, for example “show me the average sales from January 2007 to January 2008” and EasyAsk will provide the answer.
In the past, BI Solutions helped organisations with strategic decisions via routine reporting, altering and monitoring.
BI has now become an operational tool which accesses massive quantities of data, stored in data warehouses, which were previously only available to power users in the company. In other words, BI makes access possible for everyone, from the shipping clerk to the chief executive. Companies no longer have to rely on backroom involvement to produce company data.
Gustav Piater, QBCon’s Director of Sales and Marketing says “employees and organisations need to quickly identify issues, weaknesses and opportunities for improvement”. QBCon is the biggest implementer of EasyAsk. Traditional BI tools could access information to determine weaknesses and threats, but the data was never at the correct level or available in time to do anything about it
QBCon implemented EasyAsk at four top South African companies, including Nedbank, Europ Assistance, Matrix Vehicle Tracking and Integrated Healthcare Distribution enabling them to make quicker business decisions, which saves time and costs.
Progress Software saw the need for an operational BI rebuild, and developed EasyAsk®, an Operational BI application that return queries in seconds instead of in hours or months. EasyAsk does not merely focus on the decision-making needs of senior management but is accessible to all users. Employees will no longer review only snippets or irrelevant packets of data. They can now get data designed by them, for them, by using plain English to ask a question, for example “show me the average sales from January 2007 to January 2008” and EasyAsk will provide the answer.
In the past, BI Solutions helped organisations with strategic decisions via routine reporting, altering and monitoring.
BI has now become an operational tool which accesses massive quantities of data, stored in data warehouses, which were previously only available to power users in the company. In other words, BI makes access possible for everyone, from the shipping clerk to the chief executive. Companies no longer have to rely on backroom involvement to produce company data.
Gustav Piater, QBCon’s Director of Sales and Marketing says “employees and organisations need to quickly identify issues, weaknesses and opportunities for improvement”. QBCon is the biggest implementer of EasyAsk. Traditional BI tools could access information to determine weaknesses and threats, but the data was never at the correct level or available in time to do anything about it
QBCon implemented EasyAsk at four top South African companies, including Nedbank, Europ Assistance, Matrix Vehicle Tracking and Integrated Healthcare Distribution enabling them to make quicker business decisions, which saves time and costs.
Monday, February 4, 2008
QBCon cuts Business Intelligence costs
Even very sizeable businesses can now install a business intelligence tool in under three weeks – without having to make any significant changes to their current database systems. QBCon, the business solution provider who makes this possible, has already accomplished the feat five times in the past two months. Europ Assistance, Nedbank, IHD, and Matrix vehicle tracking have all benefitted from EasyAsk® installations by QBCon.
EasyAsk® is a natural language database search engine that returns results fast and without the need for the IT department to configure systems for new reports. In layman’s terms, an employ can type a normal English language sentence such as: “show me all the Johannesburg sales greater than one million rand?” or “what did JB Smith buy in March?” and EasyAsk® will produce the report in seconds.
This function makes it possible to access all the data in the database and is a valuable business and trend analysis tools. The EasyAsk® format makes it an ideal help for strategic planning and customer service. Call centre staff can now access specific information while online with the customer. The EasyAsk® functionality is also available to the consumer directly, making sure that the probability of an online sale becomes significantly higher.
QBCon is able to configure EasyAsk® for most servers and database systems. The cost varies depending on the size and complexity of the installation, but is significantly lower than competing programmes, especially since it has a short implementation time.
QBCon is the first company in South Africa to be certified as an EasyAsk reseller.
EasyAsk® is a natural language database search engine that returns results fast and without the need for the IT department to configure systems for new reports. In layman’s terms, an employ can type a normal English language sentence such as: “show me all the Johannesburg sales greater than one million rand?” or “what did JB Smith buy in March?” and EasyAsk® will produce the report in seconds.
This function makes it possible to access all the data in the database and is a valuable business and trend analysis tools. The EasyAsk® format makes it an ideal help for strategic planning and customer service. Call centre staff can now access specific information while online with the customer. The EasyAsk® functionality is also available to the consumer directly, making sure that the probability of an online sale becomes significantly higher.
QBCon is able to configure EasyAsk® for most servers and database systems. The cost varies depending on the size and complexity of the installation, but is significantly lower than competing programmes, especially since it has a short implementation time.
QBCon is the first company in South Africa to be certified as an EasyAsk reseller.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
What is the benefit of integrating site search with the product recommendation for my company?
Product recommendations are the customers’ preferences toward particular features of a product that are analyzed and copied into the database. The customer
interest profiles form rules within the site search. Recommended customer products will act as potential attraction for other customers. This is a valuable tool for companies who are looking to increase sales.
Companies that do not have this type of product recommendation database may experience a low interaction by the customer. Reasons for this may be that the potential customer may lose interest with a standard online retailer catalogue.
interest profiles form rules within the site search. Recommended customer products will act as potential attraction for other customers. This is a valuable tool for companies who are looking to increase sales.
Companies that do not have this type of product recommendation database may experience a low interaction by the customer. Reasons for this may be that the potential customer may lose interest with a standard online retailer catalogue.
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