There’s an old saying about there being more than one way to skin a cat - not, when you stop to think about it, the most pleasant of images.
Nonetheless, it is a phrase which seems apt for NEC’s MyCalls analytics suite. Although I’m assuming there is no direct equivalent in the company’s native Japanese, NEC clearly takes the view that there is more than one way to go about call management. With eight separate modules available, MyCalls is a seriously comprehensive take on the different forms call handling and analytics can take.
Developed as the reporting platform for NEC’s Univerge phone systems, MyCalls is billed as ‘the complete call management solution.’ Like the Univerge product range, it has gone through a series of versions and upgrades, building up a package of solutions for different sizes of business and different telephony uses.
To this end, NEC makes the point that MyCalls is not just intended for call centres - in fact, call centre solutions make up just two of the eight modules available. Fully compatible with the latest Univerge SV9100 PBX system, MyCalls is positioned as a call analytics and management all rounder, suitable for every type of contact centre, from sales rooms to help desks.
In this review, we will give an overview of what the different modules offer, and try to give some guidance on how they meet the needs of different audiences. We will also assess some of the business benefits NEC claims its call management suite can offer Univerge customers.
Please remember, the opinions contained in this review are those of the author only. UC Today is a completely independent news and insight service for the UK’s Unified Communications industry, and does not endorse, market or promote any particular brands or products.
How Does It Look?
Eight different modules means eight different interfaces, although there are some consistent stylistic themes. The visual layouts are all very clear, with large format numerical or text boxes displaying key data, and bold colour differentiation. Other information is displayed in a combination of graphs, charts, tables and lists.
What Can It Do?
At its core, the MyCalls suite is an analytics and CTI platform which plugs into the Univerge series of telephone systems and transforms the data generated by the network into actionable business insight. All data and call management options are available in real time on easy to navigate dashboards, so managers, supervisors and agents can see how they are performing against service KPIs, and take steps to improve performance accordingly.
The entry level module, MyCalls Basics, is bundled in with the Univerge SV9100 free of charge for the first 12 months. Basics logs every call in and out of the phone system, with key information recorded such as source and destination numbers, call duration, waiting times and extension activity. Straightforward reports can be generated from this information, for example analysing calls by a specific criteria such as waiting time. But this data is also aggregated in close to real time to display key stats on the dashboard, such as total number of inbound/outbound calls, queue, abandonment rate etc.
Above the Basics package, MyCalls Call Manager offers greater oversight of individual agent and group activity, such as who is on a call, who is available, which calls in the queue are abandoned etc. Alarms can be set so supervisors can see immediately where and how SLAs have not been met, and there is an in-depth range of reporting options which are able to analyse aspects such as call costs and staff performance.
MyCalls Enterprise performs similar functions to Call Manager but is designed to collect, consolidate and interpret data from across multiple sites, so is intended for larger distributed businesses.
MyCalls Operator Console is the latest addition to the suite and provides a call management platform specifically geared towards reception staff. It helps to support efficient call handling with lists of all active calls and agents, with a company directory and presence information so operators can find who they need to refer a call to quickly and check if they are available. It also gives reception staff oversight of calls waiting, transferred calls and parked calls, with a range of handling options.
The MyCalls Desktop integrates the phone system with a company’s CRM platform, so when a call is received, customer information pops up for the agent to view. This helps to streamline the customer journey much more efficiently, ensuring all contact history is always available whoever takes the call, and the thread of queries or assistance can be picked up immediately. Desktop also provides on screen call handling, for example with a company directory and presence information displayed, and one click options for transferring calls or placing a call on hold.
