Workforce Management Featured Article
Top 8 Things to Consider When Evaluating a Cloud Contact Center Provider
With all the buzz surrounding the cloud contact center, chances are you’ve considered the possibilities for your own environment. Like with any change, however, it can be daunting to determine the right path to ensure you get what you need for a cost you can afford. One of the perks associated with the cloud contact center is that it can easily integrate into your workforce management solution and you only pay for what you use.
The key is to ensure you don’t select one with hidden fees or integration problems. Fortunately, Monet Software published a blog with guidance on how to avoid these costly errors. Here are the top things to look for when you consider a cloud contact center software provider.
Upgrades – this is an important question to ask the vendor as all upgrades should be included without extra cost. They should also be automatically managed and provisioned by the vendor.
Multi-tenant architecture – if the platform is not multi-tenant, it’s not a true cloud deployment.
Integration – the platform should be one that is a managed integration system.
Availability – while this should be a conversion with any provider, your cloud vendor should be able to meet the 99.5 percent uptime, if not more.
Security and Compliance – world-class security and data privacy should be included, as well as complete backup and disaster recovery.
Implementation – the typical implementation time should be 30 to 60 days. If a vendor tells you to expect much longer than that, consider another provider.
Ongoing Costs – there’s more to the cost of the cloud solution than what you may need to put upfront or a monthly cost. Ask for an estimate on total cost of ownership.
ROI – you should be able to realize tangible business value much more quickly with a cloud solution than the fake or on-premise solution. The best way to get down to the real numbers is to ask a current customer.
When you’re investigating vendors and asking about integration, be sure to list all of your critical platforms, including workforce management. If you should have problems getting the solution up and running, you could run into more cost if you can’t access business-critical applications. At the same time, be sure everyone on the team knows why you’re making a change. They will have to learn a few new things along the way. If they understand the value they get as a result, they’re more likely to jump quickly on board.
Edited by Stefania Viscusi