VERTEX CASE STUDY
Vertex is a global leader in the field of business process outsourcing and contact management solutions and manages millions of customer interactions every year on behalf of major organisations in the commercial, financial, utilities and public sectors.
The company, a FTSE 100 company, which is part of United Utilities plc, has an annual turnover of £300 million. Its 9,000 employees manage more than 34 million client customer accounts from its Manchester head office and 30 other UK locations, covering the North West, Midlands, South East England, Wales and Scotland. It also has international operations in India and Canada.
Vertex works in partnership with organisations to help tem deliver operational and customer service excellence through the implementation of step change in performance. Typical activities include customer call handling, billing services, HR and financial services for utilities, telecommunications, retail and public sector organisations.
In 2001 the company launched a strategic alliance with Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, creating a unique blend of outsourcing, IT skills and experience. In December 2002, it acquired the UK contact centre operator, 7C, and the shareholding of 7C India.
With an operation that handles more than 204 million UK customer transactions, sends out 65 million documents and processes 95 million payments totalling £6 billion every year, Vertex needed an integrated solution that could handle current demand and keep pace with next phase of its strategic development.
And to ensure that it remains at the forefront of technological advancements, it headed to Central Telecom, a market leader in the design and installation of dedicated contact centre solutions, backed by superlative levels of customer service.
Vertex's brief was clear - implement a dedicated communications solution, which would address its specific immediate requirements, secure for it a major competitive edge and enable the company to increase market share across all areas of its operation - and without compromising service levels.
It also required a solution that would improve delivery speed and reduce costs by off-shoring agents, whilst maintaining overall control in the UK.
Utilising the very latest in IP technology, Central Telecom has developed an integrated solution - in the form of a new Avaya Definity G3r Call Centre platform, which links a 790 seat contact centre in Liverpool, a 170 seat contact centre in Wirrall and a 450 seat contact centre in New Delhi.
Central has implemented a hosted solution, which serves both Vertex's UK operation and its offshore agents via traditional TDM and VoIP. The solution incorporates the following:
- Definity G3R call centre with 11 EPNs and critical reliability
- Version 11 Software
- 2 CMS Enterprise 3500 Servers
- 2 Conversant IVR
- Telegenix IP Wallboards
Remote offshore agents in New Delhi are now served from a single switching platform in the UK, allowing distribution from a single client across multiple sites.
Central Telecom recommended the new G3R platform with the latest version 11 software in order to allow effective migration of existing clients from stand alone call centre sites to a hosting environment.
And in order to achieve optimum reliability, multiple C LAN and media processor cards were also installed. This provided clients with comfort and resilience and offered the same level of security as traditional TDM architecture. This has worked well and proved convincing for customers.
Thanks to the Central Telecom solution, Vertex now has a sound hosting platform, which enables it to serve multiple sites with fast deployment, and facilitates the distribution of calls anywhere within its infrastructure. From a resilience point of view this has resulted in reduced costs and an increased 'pool' of personnel who are available to carry out existing tasks.
The solution has dramatically improved Vertex's speed of delivery. Operating from a single platform has also enabled Central Telecom to reduce Vertex's long-term cost model by introducing off-shore operations in India and Canada, whilst maintaining control in the UK.
In addition, employing the latest IP technology on a site hosted in the UK avoids the growing problem of introducing offshore divisions, as customers still have the perception that their offshore clients are based in the UK.
Central Telecom's solution for Vertex is quite unique - Central has fully utilised Vertex's existing infrastructure and has combined it with a reliable, leading-edge solution and proven technology, which offers ease of deployment.
Central Telecom's technical team worked closely with Vertex to ensure that the project was delivered on-cost and on-time. The installation and commissioning was achieved in just three days with the first live operation within five days - which is quite a feat and something which has not gone unrecognised by Vertex:
"Our delivery timescales for both the on and off shore services would simply not have been met without the commitment and partnership we have forged with Central Telecom," commented Andy Scott from Vertex Transformation and Technology.
"Their knowledge and experience of the Avaya product suite and the relationship they have with Avaya has not only enabled delivery within timescales, but has also maximised the investment in both kit and RTU's to significant commercial benefit," added Andy.
The entire project has been a true partnership between the two companies and Central Telecom are now considered by Vertex to be a crucial part of their team. The design, implementation and installation of the solution have proved a shared learning experience, with both teams exchanging knowledge and problem solving techniques.
As a result of the solution's success, clients have asked Vertex to help them deploy their own IP Technology, which, in turn, has further reduced Vertex's infrastructure costs. Vertex is now networking its own Definitys with those of third party clients both in the UK and recently in North America utilising IP trunking. This has succeeded in reducing the number of end points 2-megabit voice circuits and eliminating the need for expensive monthly line rentals.
Vertex is now working with Central Telecom and Avaya to exploit the potential benefits of AIC (Avaya Interaction Centre) across both its Definity environment and contact centre applications in Hull.
Central Telecom's solution for Vertex is a flexible one, which offers scope for future growth and vertical market development. This is backed by the company's customer care programme, which is one of the best in the business.
Andy concludes by saying:
"I look forward to continuing our relationship with Central Telecom in the development of the Avaya infrastructure worldwide."
