Genesys Launches Initiative to Connect eServices, Contact Centers and Next-Generation Communications Into a Single Customer Conversation

Market Wire, April, 2009

Genesys, an Alcatel-Lucent company (Euronext Paris: ALU) (NYSE: ALU), today announced a key initiative, called Cross Channel Conversations, designed to eliminate the silos between traditional contact centers, the Web and next-generation communication channels. The new initiative, launched at its annual G-Force conference, will result in solutions that bring together critical elements of the contact center; enterprise resources in the branch and back office; and virtual technologies, including the Web, chat, SMS, video, avatars, virtual assistants and smartphones with mobile applications.

In outlining its Cross Channel Conversations initiative, Genesys said that major changes are needed if companies are to successfully adapt their businesses to serve a growing wave of consumers who interact across multiple channels. To support Cross Channel Conversations, Genesys will provide an integrated platform to serve as the hub of these interactions and enable enterprises to deliver a differentiated customer experience blending all of the possible communication channels -- voice, Web, mobile, IM and others -- into a single conversation. Cross Channel Conversations will allow a customer to seamlessly hop from one channel to another according to his/her preferences without losing the context of the interaction, resulting in a differentiated experience and the proactive management of "moments of truth."

This vision builds on Genesys' intelligent Customer Front Door (iCFD) initiative, introduced in 2008, that integrated virtually all of the key technologies in speech recognition, self-service innovations, and business processes. This initiative marked a shift from frustrating IVR menus and "voice mail jail" to a single intelligent self-service and live-service user experience, enabling customers to easily move from a voice-activated, self-service system to a live agent without delay.

With Cross Channel Conversations, Genesys is moving to break down similar barriers between a variety of emerging communications channels. The initial emphasis is on blending Contact Centers and eServices in order to enable consumers to interact with an organization with whatever technology is most appropriate and efficient.

"One of the greatest difficulties in customer service is to federate the context and history of the request based on past interactions on the same topic that might have been over different channels. Genesys' Cross Channel Conversations addresses one of the key challenges in customer service today by preserving continuity and consistency over multiple channels," said Nicolas de Kouchkovsky, president of Genesys. "As the conversation moves, numerous systems must be orchestrated to help the consumer navigate and to proactively offer the most relevant resources in the enterprise to solve an issue."

"Genesys is addressing one of the key issues companies face today as they see a generational shift in customer service. Consumers prefer having the choice of a variety of channels as they move from initial research, to purchasing, to service. As companies add more channels, they need to provide consistency in a complex environment. To deal with this complexity companies must move towards integrated, multichannel customer interaction platforms," said Ian Jacobs, senior analyst at Datamonitor.

"The Genesys Cross Channel Conversation initiative was developed because a growing number of our enterprise customers are asking for a comprehensive solution," Nicolas de Kouchkovsky said. "We have drawn from the best practices of companies from around the globe who have provided valuable experience in how to unlock value through this type of integration."

For example:

--  In the Middle East, a 3G service provider has created advanced
    multimedia contact centers that combine video, voice and SMS, with voice
    recognition, avatars and other advanced self-service choices. The video
    call center and IVR technology has enabled seven million Egyptian customers
    to access self-help videos or to interact live with agents via video-
    enabled mobile phones.
--  In Latin America, a leading telecommunications provider has integrated
    SMS text to complement their live customer service and automated voice self-
    service platforms. The company leveraged its traditional contact center
    business processes and customer relationship management software to create
    a single environment for all customer interactions. As a result, it has
    enabled both inbound and outbound SMS, giving customers a greater number of
    choices for interaction while avoiding silos and customer disconnects
    throughout the process.
--  In Europe, one of the region's fastest growing banks has extended
    customer service to virtually anywhere within its organization. By
    leveraging a unique combination of presence and availability to Unified
    Communications and customer service, the company can give customers access
    to virtually any of the 6,000 key employees in a branch or back office,
    improving its responsiveness.
--  In South Africa, a leading premium television entertainment provider
    improved its customers' experience by creating an intelligent customer
    front door that leverages sophisticated speech recognition to improve
    customer satisfaction with voice platforms and to break down the barriers
    between self service and live service when customers need to talk to a live
    agent. Using speech technology coupled with built-in business processes,
    they can quickly identify the customer's needs and intent, and make a
    determination on using automated or live service.