Avaya Introduces Microsoft Business Solutions CRM Across Australia


SYDNEY , AUSTRALIA -April 23, 2004 /Wi-Fi Technology News/- Avaya Inc. (NYSE:AV) a leading global provider of communications networks and services for businesses announced the immediate availability of the Avaya Microsoft CRM Solution for small and medium businesses (SMBs) across Australia.

The solution is the result of a joint initiative between Avaya and Microsoft Business Solutions. Under the agreement, Avaya will provide integrated support for Microsoft? Business Solutions Customer Relationship Management (Microsoft CRM) in the Avaya IP Office solution to create a packaged applications and hardware solution.

The solution is designed to empower SMBs to manage and improve their customer contact functions, with new productivity tools that contribute directly to their bottom line. It is specifically tailored to the needs of SMBs which demand a full customer service experience.

Traditionally, CRM refers to formal call centres used by enterprises that rely heavily on telephone transactions to conduct business. The Avaya solution couples telephony data with CRM data, enabling a new set of applications to manage the entire customer experience. Customer-centric businesses across Australia have been eagerly awaiting this technology, which, until now, has only been built for larger enterprises willing and able to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"Microsoft Business Solutions CRM, like Avaya IP Office, is built specifically for the small and medium business market, enabling those enterprises to provide higher levels of customer service at a lower total cost of ownership," said Mark Wood, Sales Director, Small and Medium Business Solutions Group, Avaya, Asia Pacific & Japan. "Avaya is already an established leader in telephony solutions, and we are delighted at the prospect of working with Microsoft Business Solutions in Australia in order to strengthen our position in this market."

Through the integration with Avaya IP Office, customer and historical sales information in Microsoft CRM can be linked directly to incoming and outgoing calls, making it easier to personalise service, and bring customer information to the fingertips of call handlers and sales personnel. With the low total cost of ownership and speed of deployment, the new product suite is expected to significantly broaden the market opportunity in the SMB market for both Avaya and its channel partners.

"Microsoft Business Solutions' vision is to create applications that will enable them to better manage their sales and service activities and enable key decision makers to be more effective," said Ross Dembecki, lead product manager, Microsoft Business Solutions Australasia. "This partnership and collaboration with Avaya to integrate Microsoft CRM with Avaya IP Office will build on that vision to create great value for our customers."

"Our aim is to give a voice to Microsoft CRM," said Jean Mauck, Global Vice President, Business Development, Small and Medium Business Solutions Group, Avaya. "The solution is built around a new Avaya IP Office function featuring integrated Microsoft? CRM support, thus providing an automated way to capture and access customer information. This solution has been available since early 2003 in the US and the UK."

Avaya is a global market leader in contact centre solutions, with more than 20,000 customer care centre customers and 500 multi-channel contact centre customers worldwide.

About Avaya
Avaya Inc. designs, builds and manages communications networks for more than 1 million businesses worldwide, including over 90 percent of the FORTUNE 500?. Focused on businesses large to small, Avaya is a world leader in secure and reliable Internet Protocol (IP) telephony systems and communications software applications and services.

Driving the convergence of voice and data communications with business applications ? and distinguished by comprehensive worldwide services ? Avaya helps customers leverage existing and new networks to achieve superior business results. For more information visit the Avaya Web site: http://www.avaya.com or http://www.avaya-apac.com