ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL QUARTER

By Ari Sonesh, CEO - Last month I didn't get to contribute one of these columns, and today's column will be shorter than usual. There are many things I would like to share with our readers, but the fact is I've been very busy. It's important to add that it has been the "good kind of busy!"

We are now through the third quarter of the year, and all the "busyness" has paid off. We achieved another profitable, record quarter. Revenue came mainly from our two sweet spots: service providers and enterprise call center consolidation. There is no doubt that CosmoCom is the global leader in enabling service providers, including Telcos, plus SI's acting as service providers, to deliver call center as a service, which is a particular case of SaaS. CosmoCom is also a leader in what we call Consolidation 2.0, whereby an enterprise implements all of its customer communication infrastructure centrally to support and manage all of its call center locations globally.

It also interesting to note what vertical markets we've see the most traction in, yielding large, marquee customers:.

• Insurance
• Healthcare
• Travel
• Utilities
• Manufacturing (Automotive and High-Tech / Software)
• Telecom
• Higher Education
• Transportation

It seems that all of these verticals have one thing in common. They tend to have many locations and call centers, and they recognize that by investing in advanced technology they can realize huge business benefits. They understand the ROI of consolidation and how improving and unifying their customer communication improves their competitiveness, both top-line and bottom-line. These concepts are summarized well by the two terms that we often use to describe what we do, "Unified Customer Communications" through "Consolidation 2.0."

The readers of this newsletter play a vital role in helping us to get the word out. Thank you so much for telling your friends and business associates about CosmoCom and how we help businesses communicate better with their customers.

COSMOCOM WINS BEST OF SHOW AT IT EXPO WEST

CosmoCom received the prestigious "Best of Show" Award at the recent TMC, INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West 2007 in Los Angeles, California. CosmoCom won for  the "Best of Call Center 2.0" category at the September show

"This award again acknowledges CosmoCom's product innovation and leadership in promoting the business benefits of IP Contact Center technology and Call Center Consolidation 2.0," said Ari Sonesh, CosmoCom's Chairman and CEO.  "Call Centers benefit from our technology by deploying it themselves, or or working with one of our many global service providers."

The Best of Show awards are presented to companies unveiling the most impressive new products or new releases at the show. Each winner displayed and demonstrated their product on the INTERNET TELEPHONY Expo show floor.

Read the the best of show release.

MISSED THE "CONSOLIDATION 2.0" WEB CASTS?

Recordings Now Available

CosmoCom recently hosted a pair of web casts, in conjunction with TMC, on the next generation of call center consolidation, also known as Call Center Consolidation 2.0.

The first in the series called "Call Center Consolidation 2.0: What the Next Wave in Customer Care Means for You" took place on September 25. Steve Jackson did a wonderful job of educating the hundreds of attendees on the fundamental concepts of consolidation 2.0, outlining the bottom-line business benefits, including reduced total cost of ownership and greater customer satisfaction.

On October 25, CosmoCom EVP Steve Kowarsky presented part two in the series,  "Call Center Consolidation 2.0 in Practice: How enterprises are implementing and benefiting from Consolidation 2.0" that delved deeper into consolidation 2.0 with examples of companies that have successfully implemented the strategy,  including how they built their solutions, what problems they solved and the benefits they realized.

Whether or not you attended the live web casts, you can now register to view recordings of both by following the links below.

• Call Center Consolidation 2.0 (Sept 25)
• Call Center Consolidation 2.0 In Practice (Oct 25)

REPORT FROM RECENT CALL CENTER SHOWS

September was a busy month on the road for CosmoCom and our partners with numerous shows on several continents. Since we didn't get to share some of the highlights in the September CosmoChronicle, here is a brief recap of a very packed and productive show schedule...

We kicked off the month off with a bang in Sao Paolo alongside regional partner NEC of Brazil, at CONAREC 2007. The event, which is the major enterprise CRM event in Brazil, took place on September 4 - 5 at the Hotel Transamérica. NEC did a fantastic job of putting the event together with an inviting exhibit space (see picture) that was a perfect vantage point to demonstrate CosmoCall Universe and answer  the many questions from excited visitors interested in CosmoCom technology and Consolidation 2.0. In addition, CosmoCom President for the Americas, Ben Eisner, participated in a well-attended round table discussion about using technology to enhance the customer relationship.

Later that week CosmoCom partner Intertec Systems in the Middle East showcased the latest customer focused solutions in contact centers based on CosmoCom technology at GITEX (see the story below).

Moving North, in the Netherlands, CosmoCom hosted a gathering of partners in the inaugural CosmoCom EMEA Sailing Challenge. The day was a huge success and a lot of fun as well. You can read more and view some photos in the article in last month's CosmoChronicle.

Moving back across the Atlantic to the West Coast of the US during the second full week of September, you could find CosmoCom simultaneously at ACCE in San Diego and IT Expo West/Call Center 2.0 in Los Angeles. In addition to exhibiting at both events, we also had a chance to participate on two panel session at Los Angeles show. CosmoCom's Brian Davidow shared his expertise in "Transition Your Contact Center to IP" and "Video in the Call Center." We even took home a best of show award (see above) from IT Expo.

Finally we wrapped up the long month with a presence at the ATA (American Teleservices Association) in Scottsdale, Arizona where we educated prospective enterprises and outsourcers on the benefits of consolidation 2.0 and unified customer communications.

As this issue goes to press you can see us in the Unified Communication pavilion at Fall VON in Boston where we hope you took advantage of the VIP discount codes we shared in previous issues. We'll tell you how it went in our November issue.

SHOWCASING CCU IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Partner Intertec Exhibits CCU at GITEX in Dubai

As we mentioned in our show recap above, CosmoCom's premier partner in the Middle East, Intertec Systems, once again impressed the crowds at Gitex 2007, held from September 8 - 12 at the Dubai International Convention Centre where the spotlight this year was on select customer focused solutions.

In line with its commitment to innovation and meeting customer needs, Intertec exhibited an advanced range of product offerings including world-renowned contact center solutions from CosmoCom.

The Intertec booth (A7 22) drew a good response thanks to meticulous planning  and recent investments by Intertec in the design of the stall to attract attendees into the space where they could be treated to demonstrations of cutting-edge technology at its best.

Demonstrations were made for every product and customers got the opportunity to discuss their pain points and explain their requirements to the staff.

According to one Intertec, "Gitex has always been an excellent platform for meeting like minded people from across the globe. With every passing year the spirit of Gitex seems to be growing with greater enthusiasm and every year it is a new learning experience."

 WALKING FOR A CURE

What does Jennifer Kidd do when she is not at CosmoCom taking care of employees in her role as Human Resources Manager at HQ? Well besides taking care of a family, she also extends that great sense of care into the community. On October 6 and 7 Jennifer was one of more than 3900 participants who walked in the fifth annual Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in New York that raised $10.2 million to advance access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer.

The two-day, 39 mile journey kicked off early in the morning on Saturday, October 6. After an inspiring, and tearful, opening ceremony at Hudson River Park's Pier 84, Jennifer and the other walkers began their journey supported by a volunteer crew and cheering friends, family and supporters along the way. After the end of the exhausting first day many walker spent Saturday night in tents in the Avon Walk "Wellness Village" at Mackay Park in Englewood, NJ. Bright and early on Sunday, walkers continued the journey back to Pier 84 where they greeted by thousands of family, friends and breast cancer survivors who shared in a celebratory and moving Closing Ceremony.

When a tired and blistered Jennifer returned to CosmoCom HQ after the event she thanked the co-workers who supported her and shared these thoughts, "I compared the walk to childbirth in 2 ways - 1) I knew 39 miles was long and would be difficult, but it wasn't until I actually walked it that I realized just how long and difficult it really was and 2) As painful as it was, I know I will soon forget the pain and do it all over again next year!"

Jennifer, we're proud of you. Thanks! For additional information about the Avon walk series, please visit www.avonwalk.org
 

IMPROVING SUPPORT COMMUNICATIONS

CosmoCom is continuously finding new ways to improve the support experience for our growing base of customers and channels partners. In addition to a world-class technical support from our global TAC (Technical Assistance Center) and information-rich online support portals, the support team has just launched the CosmoCom Support Advisory. The advisory is new monthly electronic publication that will be proactively pushed out to registered support customers to keep them up-to-date on significant news that impacts CosmoCom software and technical support polices.

WHO'S TALKING? RECENT INK

Remote agents require special care
Jeremy Nedelka of  Peppers & Rogers Group wrote an interesting article in 1to1 Magazine (also appearing in SearchCRM) about how remote workers or CSRs need special support in order to make global contact center successful. Among the points he makes in the first half of his article are the need for standardized procedures and uniform training for agents. Then he points out the importance of treating, "a diversified contact center as a single operation," with everybody having access to the same customer information, history, etc. That is where IP contact center architecture like CosmoCom's shines and Jeremy shares some of thoughts from CosmoCom EVP Steve Kowarsky on the subject. Read the article.

NEW MEMBERS OF THE COSMOCOM FAMILY

CosmoCom Americas

Bill Zane has joined the Americas sales team as our newest regional sales engineer in North America. His appointment represents another step in our continuing effort to build the best team in the industry. Bill had worked for CosmoCom in the past before pursuing other opportunities, but now he is back and better than ever. Prior to CosmoCom, Bill worked for a number of smaller Call Center equipment distributors and spent three years at Comverse Technology as program manager for AT&T Wireless, culminating a long and successful career with Comverse. Bill holds an MS in Management from Brooklyn Polytechnic.

Michael Light is CosmoCom as new Regional Sales Director, Mid-Atlantic US. Michael comes to CosmoCom with a proven track record in sales and business development in companies including Dimension Data, Alliance Systems and Bell South. He has also run his own very successful software companies in the communications space. He hold a B.Sc. from the Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina.

Mike Corbell  joins CosmoCom as our new Regional Sales Manager for South Central US. Prior to CosmoCom he held regional and national sales management positions at SER Solutions and Stratasoft. Earlier he held sales and call center management positions at  Executone, Communications Corp. of America and other telecom and communications companies. He holds a B.S. in Business Management from the University of West Florida.

Ana Figueiredo has joined us as our newest Administrative Assistant at headquarters in Melville. Ana's brings a wide range of customer-facing experience running the gamut from receptionist to client services in companies including Recovery's Unlimited East and KLD labs. Ana is fluent in Portuguese. She is a graduate of Katherine Gibbs where she graduated with honors.

CosmoCom EMEA

Vladimir Orsholits has joined CosmoCom as a Senior Systems Engineer Specialist (Switzerland).  He brings with him over 15 years of progressive software engineering, customer support and general management experience as well as an impressive record of individual technical achievements. He has worked on four continents in a variety of engineering and managerial positions including many in his long tenure with Comverse. Vladimir holds a B.Sc., Computer Science and Data Communications from University of Sarajevo.
 

CosmoCom Germany

Pitt Meyer has joined CosmoCom Germany as Manager of Partner and Sales Support Central & Eastern Europe, bringing with him a wide technical, sales and presales background. Prior to CosmoCom, Pitt spent nine years at Aspect in several senior pre-sales positions as well as overlay sales for Aspect IP Contact Center Suite. Before that, he was a sales executive at Siemens after spending many years as a design engineer for PBXs. He is a graduate of the Technical University of Magdeburg/Germany.

CosmoCom Asia

Beng Kiat Yeo has joined CosmoCom as Channel Director, SE Asia & ANZ. Beng Kiat comes to us after a nine year tenure at Aspect, where he was the most recently the Pre-Sales head for Asia Pacific and part of the initial start up team for Aspect Asia. He holds a Bachelor of Computing from Monash University in Australia, and diplomas in Computer Science and Information Systems from University of Oxford Delegacy and University of Cambridge, respectively.

HQ HAPPENINGS

TGIF with the CEO

Thank God It's Friday (TGIF) is a sentiment shared by many hard-working people around the world. After a long work week, it is important to shift gears, to welcome the weekend and [to recharge and refocus for a while with friends and family. CEO Ari Sonesh has always tried to promote friendship and a sense of family among CosmoCom employees. From holiday parties and company picnics to the Executive Barbeque and more, he is always finding new ways to build camaraderie among staff.

One Friday at the beginning of October, Ari decided to invite the entire HQ to stop by his office and to welcome the weekend with refreshments and conversation. The impromptu event was such a success, he decided to do it again the following week, and then again. . Each week, more and more people gathered to discuss CosmoCom business, weekend plans, and which CosmoCom employee had a bit part in a major Hollywood motion picture.

It's too early to say if this will become a regular event. If it does, Ari may need a bigger office!

TRADESHOW NEWS: COMING ATTRACTIONS

	Unified Communications Conference at Fall VON October 30 - November 1, 2007 Boston Convention Center Boston, MA, USA www.unifiedcommunicationscon.com See CosmoCom in Booth 928
	Call Center World - 2008 February 18 -21 2008 Estrel Convention Center Berlin, Germany Booth Hall 1: 1A16    www.callcenterworld.de
	RECORDED WEBINARS
	View recordings of our Webinar events including "Consolidation 2.0", "Hosted Contact Center for Outsourcers", "Contact Center On-Demand" and "Telecom Customer Care"

	SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
	Please pass this issue of CosmoChronicle on to others who might be interested. If you are not already receiving the monthly CosmoChronicle you can sign up now. This and past issue are also available in the CosmoChronicle Archives.

	TECH SUPPORT UPDATES
	CosmoCom has replaced SupportNet with a new improved support site, for customers and partners, called CosmoCom Online Technical Support. You can find the latest documentation, Hot Fix bundles, Microsoft updates that have passed QA for CosmoCall Universe deployment, discussion groups and more. In addition, you can now access your support tickets online. If you have not yet obtained your secure login information, please contact your CosmoCom representative or send support an email.

	LIAISON PROGRAM FOR CONSULTANTS
	If you are a call center industry consultant, join the CosmoCom Consultant Liaison Program for access to our consultant extranet, a dedicated newsletter for the consultant community and more...