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Implementing the IT Service Catalog & CMDB Together

Many service organizations recognize the benefits of ITIL, but struggle with how to effectively and practically implement it. Following an ITSM Roadmap can help. This SupportIndustry.com webinar on July 17 will examine the business case for implementing an IT Service Catalog, in conjunction with the CMDB, as a core part of your service management implementation.

RightNow Technologies and Transera Communications Unveil Integration for Global Contact Centers
Jun-29-2008

Clarabridge’s Content Mining Platform 3.0 Makes Customer Experience Feedback Analysis more Flexible and Intuitive
Jun-29-2008

Survey Reveals Scandal of Snooping IT Staff
Jun-29-2008

51 of the Nation’s Top 60 Metropolitan Areas Add High-Tech Jobs
Jun-29-2008

Are Remote Agents in Your Staffing Future?
Jun-29-2008

Ten Trends in Contact Centers
Jun-29-2008

White Paper: Improving Customer Service Using Web-based Support Tools
By Parature and SupportIndustry.com
Jun-29-2008

The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures
by Dan Roam
Jun-22-2008

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Are Remote Agents in Your Staffing Future?

Ten Trends in Contact Centers

Identity Protection and the Contact Center

Eight Reasons why Companies Still say 'No' to SaaS

Google Needs to Rethink its Customer Service Strategy

Most Companies don't have a Mobile Device Management Plan

The Problem with IT Project Management

The Practical Visionary

Believe the Hype about Hosted Contact Centers

Clearing the Air: How Companies Operate in a Climate-conscious Era

Managing Daily Staffing and Service in the Support Center

Time to Give Enterprise Software the Boot?

Five Ways CIOs can Impress their CEOs

Customer-Service E-Mails: Getting It Right

Translating Performance Metrics into Frontline Knowledge

Research Finds Business Needs Customer Experience Management
Most businesses today have not advanced very far in how they manage their customers’ experiences with them, according to newly released benchmark research from Ventana Research. The research confirms that businesses are only beginning to advance towards managing the customer experience across the broad set of customer interactions that occur every day. Ventana Research defines customer experience management as a focus on improving the effectiveness of the people, processes, information and technology involved in the customer interaction at every touch point in the organization. The new research evaluated the maturity of customer experience management and found that only 12 percent of organizations are truly mature in their focus on ensuring the optimal customer experience.

The research report notes that customers are one of a company’s key assets, and the way they behave will have a strong impact on the success or failure of the company. If they remain loyal and continue their purchasing, the company’s prospects will be good, but if the costs to support them exceed the revenues they generate, prospects will look bad. Nearly all interactions occur through a customer service agent in a call center or through the Web, and the research shows that customers are less than satisfied with the results of their calls, and only 40 percent of participants reported that issues usually are resolved during the first call. Curiously, though, only slightly more than one-third of the organizations participating in the research said they intend to upgrade the desktop technology on which agents rely in the next 12 months.

U.S. State and Local Government IT Market To Grow From $48.4 Billion In 2008 To $64 Billion
According to a recent report from INPUT, the authority on government business, budget deficits will suppress state and local IT spending in 2009, and budgets will remain tight throughout the forecast period. However, demographic pressures will force states and localities to seek new administrative efficiencies in order to redirect money toward priorities areas. Professional services and outsourcing will account for 48.4% of the market's $16.5 billion in growth as state and local governments seek to automate manual processes, augment staffing, and take advantage of private-sector competencies.

INPUT expects tight budgets to put further pressure on hardware investments as state and local governments consolidate IT infrastructure in an effort to eliminate duplicative spending. This will call for tighter relationships between hardware manufacturers, value-added resellers (VARs), and the major integrators helping governments identify savings points and scope out solutions. Where major implementations are not required governments will increasingly look toward hosted software (software-as-a-service) options.