Convergence Plus Journal

NEW DELHI -- Concerto Software recently bagged Frost & Sullivan's "The Company of the Year" award for unparalleled excellence in several areas. Convergence plus met up with James D. Foy, president & CEO, Concerto Software, to learn more about this prestigious award, the firm's product lines and plans for the coming year, and strategies for the Indian market. Excerpts from an interview:

Convergence Plus: What were the main reasons for Concerto being awarded the "Company of the year" by Frost & Sullivan?

James D. Foy: The "Company of the year" award is presented annually to one company in a given industry that has demonstrated unparalleled excellence in several areas, including financial performance, business development, competitive strategy, customer service leadership, technological innovation, management and marketing.

This year, Frost & Sullivan has honored Concerto Software for its consistent growth and outstanding management following the merger of Davox Corp. and CELLIT Technologies in January 2002, its strong and growing market presence, its execution of innovative strategies within the competitive contact center market and demonstrating the ability to combine technology with successful marketing initiatives.

During the past year, Concerto Software has achieved two very significant goals. It demonstrated a well-executed acquisition and successful integration of technologies resulting in the launch of EnsemblePro, and sustained profitability in a down economy. Either one of these achievements alone would cause the company to stand out among its competitors. It demonstrates our position on the path to market leadership.

CP: How do you think your software and products will give call centers a competitive edge?

JDF: In a short span of time, we have been able to gather a considerable market share and position ourselves as a total contact center solutions provider. Our solutions help companies to manage customer interactions more effectively via voice, email, the Web and fax. Concerto Software's CIM products are the most comprehensive solutions available in the market. Our growth in India is a proof of the success of Concerto's solutions. We have four key products:

EnsemblePro -- Built from the ground up to incorporate all of the functionality required by multimedia contact centers -- including ACD, predictive dialing, IVR, email, Web chat and collaboration, universal queuing, recording and reporting -- while also offering the ability to connect with, and add value to, existing contact center point solutions.

Ensemble inbound/outbound solution -- This customer interaction management suite seamlessly integrates inbound and outbound calling. Ensemble is a modular platform, allowing companies to deploy the product in stages and increase its functionality as needs expand. It leverages on a company's existing investments in telephony and systems, while enabling rapid deployment.

Unison outbound solution -- Our industry-leading outbound and blended call management solution automates proactive customer contact activities. It manages outbound and blended calling campaigns, and provides high-productivity tools to increase the number of calls handled and the quality of each customer contact.

All solutions are linked with LYRICall -- Harnessing the power and simplicity of browser technology, the Concerto's browser-based scripting solution delivers robust, platform independent agent screens and scripts. The software links frontline agents with backoffice customer information systems, enabling agents to quickly and seamlessly access data to execute successful customer contacts.

CP: Do you provide turnkey solutions to call center needs in products?

JDF: Concerto provides unified solutions that incorporate all of the functionalities required by today's multimedia contact centers. EnsemblePro significantly reduces implementation time from several months to just a few weeks, and minimizes the complexity often associated with purchasing, implementing and maintaining multiple contact center point solutions.

Concerto believes that training is a critical component in the success of any technology investment. The company's training programs include a comprehensive range of classes that help users maximize the power and capabilities of their investment. Concerto Software also offers advanced classes for managers to help them use the solutions more effectively and strategically. Courses provide users with actionable ideas that meet the needs of their unique contact center. With leading-edge training facilities around the world, Concerto is committed to delivering superior training how, when and where customers need it.

CP: Is it economic to use your product in small call centers? Is it size-neutral?

JDF: Our solutions are cost-effective and suit the needs of all contact centers that span the range of size and technology requirements.

CP: Are you planning for upgradations and how much are you spending on your R&D?

JDF: R&D is the backbone of any technology company. We are committed to delivering high-quality and cost-effective solutions to our customers and invested $16.4 million on R&D in 2002. Anticipating market demands, we envisioned creating a next-generation CIM solution that would make implementing and operating a true multimedia contact center attainable and affordable for users, regardless of their existing infrastructure and business requirements. The result was EnsemblePro.

EnsemblePro incorporates the functionalities required by multimedia contact centers. These include ACD, predictive dialing, IVR, email, Web chat and collaboration, universal queuing, recording and reporting. It also offers the ability to connect with and add value to existing contact center point solutions. Users have the flexibility to use any or all of the product's capabilities as appropriate for their contact center and customer service strategy at any given point in time.

CP: What are Concerto's plans for India?

JDF: Concerto's CIM products are the most comprehensive solutions available in the market and our growth in India is a proof of the success of our solutions. We have been growing annually at 80 percent to 90 percent. The Indian market contributes around 30 percent to 35 percent of Concerto's Asia Pacific revenues. India is very significant in Concerto's plans for the future. We are looking toward making India the hub for our clients in the Gulf and the Middle East regions, and toward this goal, we have plans to strengthen our Indian operations by making strategic investments of up to $5 million over the period of next two years.

We will also strengthen our sales and support center from 25 seats to 100 seats in New Delhi and Mumbai, catering to clients in India and North America. Steps to strengthen our relationship with our distribution partners Network Solutions, Wipro and IBM, apart from engaging new marketing partners, are on the anvil.

James D. Foy, president & CEO, Concerto Software.

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