Lassoed! Texas school board association ropes in member responsiveness and call agent productivity with advanced contact center capabilities

Communications News, July, 2004

With a VoIP platform and HiPath ProCenter Agile, agents and experts working remotely outside Austin will be able to use the organization's IP virtual private network (VPN) to access the call center and log onto the Agile system.

For Tillotson, best practices mean hiring the best, wherever they may be. "With Agile and VoIP, I can find the best agent wherever he or she may be. We're no longer limited to who lives locally," he says. "If the best person for the job lives in Three Rivers, Texas, and can get a decent broadband connection into the VPN, I can hire her."

Of course, the ability to hire good people translates into better customer service, Tillotson says. "And now, because we can respond more efficiently to inquiries from trustees and school district staff, yon can almost hear the smiles in our members' voices on the phone," he adds.

The Siemens story

Siemens Information and Communication Networks is a supplier of networks and real-time applications for enterprises and network operators. Siemens ICN reported sales of $7.7 billion globally and $1.3 billion in the United States in fiscal year 2003. Globally, 33,000 ICN employees (3,400 based in the United States) serve more than one million customers in 160 countries.

Siemens' LifeWorks leverages second-generetion IP for network operators, enterprises and end-users. Siemens ICN supplies: real-time communications, next-generation switching, next-generation access, next-generation optic and comprehensive services.

Joseph Licate Jr. is president of the enterprise networks division of Siemens ICN. Licata is responsible for all Siemens enterprise activities in the United States, He has held this position since March 2002 and is based in Atlanta, Ga.

Licata joined ROW Corp., later acquired by Siemens, in 1983. He has held various executive positions, including management of the southern, central and western United States sales regions. He assumed overall responsibilities for sales in the United States as senior vice president of sales in 1998. Licata holds a B.S. degree in management information systems from Florida State University.

For more information from Siemens: www.rsleads.com/407cn-255