Interview with Gideon Hollander of Jacada

Posted on November 8, 2011 by

A conversation with:

Gideon Hollander, Co-Chief Executive Officer and Founder

Kicking off with a discussion about launching his business in Israel, we talked with Gideon about his mission of helping call centers provide better customer service, and their focus on human beings, not web-based or automated call systems.

Jacada is deploying technology to make live callers better. Jacada focuses on two main service tracks:

1. Improved call flow, which helps live callers better track the anticipated flow of a typical call, and provided more efficient access to the data a live needs to provide premium service.

2. Developing a customized Unified Desktop – which takes all the misc. apps and platforms on a live callers machine, and simplifies the process with one user interface.

The three keys to the puzzle, according to Gideon:

You may have great knowledge and experience applying technology to a process, but you must still get to know their business – and this requires time and attention. And, a more careful focus on training can reduce ramp-up time and turnover. Finally, there is a real science to proper measurement – do not neglect it…

About Jacada…

Jacada (NASDAQ: JCDA) is a leading provider of agent desktop and process optimization software solutions for the customer service and support market. Our products and services are focused on two of the most important issues facing companies in today’s uncertain marketplace – customer retention and cost reduction. Jacada projects often deploy in less than six months, and our customers can realize a complete return on investment within 12 months of deployment.

Jacada unified service desktop solutions simplify and automate customer service processes – bridging disconnected systems into a single, intelligent workspace, without requiring modification or replacement of existing systems. Contact centers worldwide are using award-winning Jacada agent desktop solutions to automate complex processes, improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, reduce operational costs, and enforce and monitor compliance with regulatory policies and procedures. Our solutions empower customer services operations to “deliver the perfect interaction.”

Founded in 1990, Jacada operates globally with offices in the Americas, Europe and the Middle East.

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Interview with Simon Angove of Verint Systems

Posted on November 7, 2011 by

Ever get frustrated – even annoyed or angry – standing in a long line or being placed on hold for what seems like forever? If your bank does that to you, it might make sense to switch to one using a Verint Systems work force management solution.

Simon Angove, Senior Vice President & General Manager Retail Financial Solutions of

As Simon put it, this “uber company” serves retail financial services institutions from the biggest banks to smallest credit unions.  70% of US banks, and 5 of the top 5 banks in both Canada and Australia are Verint clients.

How’s this for a success story:

  • Re-assignment of 40+% of tellers to sales roles
  • 43% reduction in teller payroll expense
  • 10% increase in sales
  • Customer service wait time maintained at under 1 minute

And the future as Simon sees it?  Really, really fascinating.  Video banking is a great example.  Imagine sitting at a video terminal with a voice hook-up anywhere at any time, and interacting real time with a banking professional.  You could be at home, at an airport, in a hotel (even inside your bank!) and be connected with a real, live, honest-to-gosh banking pro who can accommodate all your needs and address all your questions.

Finally, it’s always interesting to hear the perspectives of a “serial entrepreneur.”  Don’t miss this insight-filled interview!

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Inteview with Bill Joyce of Prenova

Posted on November 4, 2011 by

Enterprise Energy Management…  What if you had the right tools to enable tight management of your energy spend?  You could reduce utility cost, produce efficiencies, reduce energy consumption and remediate problems remotely,  You could manage and control both the supply side and the demand side.  Oh… and shave 15-20% off your energy bill.

Bill Joyce, Senior Vice President, Operations of


Bill shared a fascinating set of perspectives about deploying management systems with the SAAS (Software As A Service) model.  Specific examples he mentioned included:

  • Decision Point, a Business Intelligence overlay for terabyte-farms-full of data
  • Meter Point, to monitor energy usage in real time
  • Energy Point, to standardize energy management across many facilities

What’s cool is that any of these tools can be used by your own personnel or executed via add-on services; whatever makes more sense in the specific installation.

I was particularity fascinated by Bill’s story about applying super-high tech tools to the mundane task of auditing energy bills.  A mountain of energy bills for example, across the 100s, even 1,000s of locations that a retail chain might have.  What a simple, easy way to save serious cash for your business!

The perspective on the value of operations to a fast growth, high tech organization alone is worth the listen.  As Bill put it, unless “the guy at the caboose” is getting product out the door and keeping the systems up and running, the sales guys can’t sell!

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Interview with Lindy Benton of EA Holdings

Posted on August 8, 2011 by

A $30 Billion opportunity is enough to get anyone’s attention.  That certainly includes Lindy Benton, CEO of EA Holdings.  Through its operating units, National Electronic Attachment, Inc. (NEA) and Medical Electronic Attachment, Inc. (MEA), Lindy aims to eliminate paper from the medical and dental fields to not only save a ton of money, but also enable medical and dental professionals to focus more on health care.

Lindy Benton, CEO of


Think about your last visit to a medical or dental practice.  Think about on all the paper.  Now think about the vast amount of effort and people-time required to print, scan, fax, copy, file and find all those medical/dental records.  X-rays, MRI scans, blood tests, diagnoses, prescriptions, office visits, insurance forms, invoices, and on and on.  And don’t forget all those mail rooms in every medical provider’s office, hospital and insurance carrier.  Boggles the mind…

No wonder it’s a $30 billion problem!  Or as Lindy sees it, a $30 billion opportunity.  She’s leading NEA and MEA with a focus on three core strategies:

  • Provide Outstanding Customer Service – Users must know how to use the system, and the system itself has to work smoothly and consistently.  Anything short of that and the whole thing begins to break down.
  • Take Advantage of Every Advance in Technology – Smart phones, tablet computers and equipment to network connectivity are only the tip of the iceberg.  Further, merely knowing about the flood of new technology is just a start.  Integrating it all into an easy-to-use, coherent whole is the real key.
  • Be the Process Experts – The mountains of paper and the processes to handle them might be inefficient and cumbersome, but they’re not without purpose.  There’s a reason behind every aspect of each component.  Automating the sensible parts, eliminating the flaws and unnecessary steps and coordinating the sweet spots in such an incredibly complex system, is central to success.  It only looks easy!

What’s the “next big thing” for managing medical and dental records?  Connectivity.  Lindy Benton has a vision of all the health systems, all the physicians and medical providers and all the insurance payors connected in one seamless, global system.  Can she pull it off?  Don’t miss this discussion!  (…and I wouldn’t bet against her!)

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Interview with Bert DuMars of Newell-Rubbermaid

Posted on July 21, 2011 by

When it comes to figuring out what sort of background you’d want in your digital marketing maven, Bert DuMars is an interesting case study.  He’s now Vice President of e-Business and Interactive Marketing for Newell Rubbermaid, but got there via stints at a nuclear power plant, Dell, Intel and the IRS!  …or as Bert put it, “the fun side of the IRS,” focused on the e-file program and getting the refunds sent out.

Bert DuMars, Vice President of e-Business and Interactive Marketing of

He shared a wealth of digital marketing insights with us including the notion, “Work with those that are ready to be worked with.”  Different people, brands and companies are at different stages of understanding and adopting these strategies, so very clearly one size does NOT fit all.  That applies particularly for global brands.  What works digitally in the US, simply won’t in China or Brazil or France.  To successfully market digitally, “you have to be the culture.”

How to get started?  According to Dumars it’s essential to clearly define the goals of the web site first.  Is the primary purpose brand building/brand awareness?  Or is it customer engagement?  Or commerce?  And is that commerce direct to consumer or via retailers and other channels?

He also noted how physical shelf space in a retail store is still where the real action is; where the vast majority of the real money is exchanged.  That said however, the web presence is now very much the “home base” of the brand.  It’s where the buyer goes for information both pre- and post-sale.  Consider the fact that, “60 to 85% of all purchases are influenced by digital in some form or fashion.”  Makes it pretty clear that the digital presence is the core marketing engine for any brand.

From a technology perspective, Bert advises a concentration on managing services provided by others, particularly cloud-based services.  Hiring and retaining that sort of talent is and will become an even more daunting challenge, so it makes a lot more sense to orchestrate partners rather than stick to a build-it-yourself model.  It might be the only way, for example, to understand how a diapers.com enjoys a 13+% conversion rate compared to the typical 1-4%.  Keep an internal focus and risk missing out on the next big thing.

One more note; and I wish I had asked him why…  When telling us about the best way to get in touch, Bert noted Facebook, LinkedIn and @bwdumars at Twitter.  On old guy like me always starts with my phone number!   Not even part of his answer.

Anyway, Bert Dumars “gets” digital marketing.  Listen and learn!

PS   Digital Atlanta is a week-long series of events celebrating the technology and new media marketing achievements of Atlanta this November 7-11.  Newell Rubbermaid is a sponsor.  Well worth checking out this event.

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Interview with Matt McConnell of Knowlagent

Posted on July 7, 2011 by

We are proud to present our first interview with Matt McConnell, CEO and founder of Knowlagent.

Matt McConnell, CEO and founder of

McConnell provides some fascinating insights into the dramatic productivity and morale enhancements possible for “transaction” employees.  That is, folks engaged in delivering personalized service like those in sales, customer service, claims processing and contact centers.

The Business Problems

Knowlagent addresses three really knotty contact center business problems:

  • High turnover – as much as 100% annually
  • Low Effectiveness – only 50-60% of inquires are solved in the first call
  • High cost – personal service is expensive!

In a contact center, 10-15% of an agent’s time is idle, but it comes in 2 minute chunks.  All of those 2 minute chunks of time not only get wasted, they also generate a boat-load of boredom, and therefore lower morale and increased turnover.  Bored agents are less effective and take more time and more separate and distinct calls to fix customer problems.  That’s expensive!  That’s why so many contact centers got outsourced overseas.  But that only made things worse!  They’re moving back.  Only about 2% of contact center employees are, for example, in India.

What Knowlagent Does

They use their technology to:

  • Analyze that huge number of wasted 2 minute time chunks
  • Rearrange and reschedule them into 15 minute time chunks
  • Deliver training, coaching, other tasks, or maybe just a break for the agent into those highly productive 15 minute chunks

The Value

  • Lower turnover – a productivity bump
  • Better, more and more effective training – another productivity bump
  • Convert 20-33% of unproductive wait time into “Active Wait Time (Overall that’s yet another 5% productivity bump)
  • Enables investment in more training, tools and employees

Matt also shared a few really exciting new capabilities that could have an impact on literally hundreds of millions of transactional employees around the world.  Listen to the show to learn about that!

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