With all the talk about open source solutions and ‘do-it-yourself’ approaches to providing voice self-service, it’s reassuring to discover that enterprise buyers still seek peace of mind when choosing “technology platforms.” This is a bit ironic, as the very term “platform” is both ambiguous and, sometimes generic. It used to refer almost exclusively to a preconfigured set of hardware and software that provides well-understood ‘out-of-the-box’ functions.

For example an interactive voice response (IVR) platform historically ships with a central processing unit (CPU), network interface cards, application software, application development tools and administrative software required to answer the phone, serve prompts, capture touchtone inputs and respond to that input either with data from external computers or by routing calls to the proper live agent.

In the new era of IP-telephony, web services and software-based solutions start to take the place of PBXs, ACDs and voice processing “platforms” making it out of step to seek pre-configured solutions. Yet the concept of “platforms” remains robust as solution purchasers for call processing and voice processing that is easy, non-disruptive and relatively inexpensive.

The Names Are Changed To Protect the Investment
Today’s short list of suppliers of ‘virtualized’ (meaning software-based) solutions bears a striking resemblance to those that thrived within the halls of the corporate switch closet over the years: Avaya, Intervoice, IBM and Nortel. Yet the ranks of the old guard have been augmented by a group new entrants specializing in IP-telephony based on standards like VoiceXML, ccXML, SIP and MRCP. At the head of that list are Genesys, VoiceGenie, Cisco Systems and Vocalocity (which holds a special position by taking a self-titled OEM approach to supplying components).

At Opus Research, we have observed some significant changes on the ‘buy side’ of the platform purchase equation. There are two major shifts afoot. First, as call processing and voice processing moves to the IP-based and XML-conformant platforms, the selection process (and ultimately system management) is firmly on the IT Department’s radar. Functional executives (in contact centers or marketing) more often initiate the specification of new applications or capabilities, and the specialized world of IVR, CRM and contact center automation has been supplanted by application servers, mark-up languages and workflow management.

IT’s involvement in both the selection and the administration processes makes virtually all vendor selection exercises a committee-based, consensus-building. When working efficiently, selection committees follow the path of least resistance when charting the course from legacy systems to the software-based solutions that involve standards-based components and off-the-shelf hardware.

Help Us Learn Your Preferences
The path of least resistance is a constantly changing construct: a product of the nature of the installed base (legacy systems), coupled with the design preferences of a growing team of decisionmakers. In all cases, preferences surrounding selection of vendors, definition of architectures, deployment of development tools and application management software become closely coupled with the all-important regarding the decision to deploy internal staff versus third-party resources.

Solutions Providers have few indicators of the true selection criteria. Many RFIs and RFPs look like “wish lists” that includes a superset of standards and capabilities that could be included in a technical solution. Providers are required to respond positively to every one of these “check list” items although it would be impossible for each to carry equal weight in the selection process.

To better understand and track the changes in factors that govern technology procurement, Opus Research is conducting a Web-based survey https://www.opusresearch.net/surveys/vss.php (thanks to sponsorship from VoiceGenie, which is offering all participants who complete the survey a chance to win one of three iPods) to help determine purchasing considerations and help guide both the buy and sell side through the path of least resistance. Our survey is designed to expose the relative importance of various selection criteria for the purpose of gaining insight into this year’s model of The Path of Least Resistance.

I encourage you to make your voice heard and preferences recognized by completing the survey during the month of February. All participants will receive a copy of the results (as will clients of Opus Research’s Continuous Advisory Service).

Thank you in advance for your participation. Good luck on winning that iPod.

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