Genesys - the Cadillac of Contact Center Technology Platforms
Updated December 18, 2014

Genesys - the Cadillac of Contact Center Technology Platforms

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

8.1

Modules Used

  • Inbound Call Routing (URS), SIP Server, Interaction Workspace, CC Pulse+, Informiam Contact Center Advisor, Infomart

Overall Satisfaction with Genesys Engage (formerly PureEngage)

Genesys Contact Center Portforlio is used throughout our organization by many departments. My department uses Genesys Universal Routing Server (URS) to intelligently route inbound phone calls to agents based on customer entered attached data from the IVR and from lookups into business databases using the call attached data. Calls are delivered to VoIP agents via Genesys SIP server and are presented to agents on their desktops, with attached data, via Genesys Interaction Workspace (IWS). Our agents use Interaction Workspace for all on-phone activities, including login/logout, agent status, and call control (answer/end, hold/retrieve, warm and cold transfer, conference). We use several Genesys components for contact center reporting - CCPulse+ for near-real time agent level reporting, Informiam Contact Center Advisor for near-real time queue level reporting, and Infomart for historical aggregate and detail reporting. Genesys Contact Center Portfolio allows us to: capture customer entered data and associate it with a call, use that data to fetch and attach more customer data from internal sources to the call, route calls to the best available agents, present relevant data to our agents, give our agents tools to efficiently handle customer calls, and view the data associated with calls from end-to-end.
  • Genesys offers integrated tools for every part of the contact center space - inbound voice, outbound voice, SMS, chat, social media, IVR, workflow, analytics, etc. If you choose to use all of their tools, you will minimize integration issues and avoid having to configure your contact center objects on multiple different platforms.
  • Genesys provides end-to-end visibility of customer contacts and maintains the context of these customer contacts with attached data. Analysis of Infomart data can provide great insights into your business.
  • Genesys solutions are extremely powerful and customizable. Companies can be very creative with their Genesys solution. The way Genesys is implemented at a company can be a competitive differentiator.
  • Genesys is committed to the contact center space. It is the only thing that the company does, so I feel confident that they will still be around in 5, 10, or 20 years.
  • Because their product spectrum is so broad, technical support can be spotty.
  • Full product integration of products that Genesys has acquired from other companies can take a long time.
  • Genesys does not prescribe how to use their products. Most companies will need to invest in a well-trained internal Genesys development and support team or outsource it to Genesys or a 3rd party VAR.
  • Genesys has reduced the need for our agents to ask customers for their account numbers again when they exit the IVR for agent assisted service, lowering Average Handle Time (AHT) and costs per call and increasing customer satisfaction.
  • Genesys has made it easier for agents to identify the type of call they are handling as well as the customer's account information with the attached data passed to them in Interaction Workspace. Bilingual agents can see the call type in Interaction Workspace and know whether to greet the customer in Spanish/Mandarin/Cantonese or in English.
  • Using Genesys has allowed us to retire legacy, end-of-life, proprietary, stand-alone, on-premise PBX phone systems with integrated Genesys SIP servers hosted in data centers transmitting calls phone via VoIP across our existing data network. The result has been reduced CAPEX and lower operational risk.
  • Genesys skills-based routing has allowed us to quickly deploy agents with defined skill-sets at any location within the Genesys contact center footprint with no additional user administration needed. The result has been a much quicker response in disaster recovery situations, lowering operational risk and increasing customer satisfaction.
Genesys was selected over Avaya because the Genesys Contact Center Portfolio is a 100% software solution, is fully standards compliant, and is hardware agnostic. Genesys also had more extensive product offerings across the contact center space, beyond just the core call routing component. Genesys was selected over Cisco because contact center is the Genesys core business and there was some concern over Cisco's long-term commitment to their contact center product line. Genesys also had more extensive product offerings across the contact center space, beyond just the core call routing component.
I believe that Genesys is most well suited to growing or large companies, especially at the point where they are considering a technology refresh. A company that is willing to go "all in" with one vendor will do the best with Genesys. In my view, a lot is lost in the contact center space when a "best of breed" solution is picked for each individual component, such as IVR, call routing, workforce management, chat, outbound. Integration between vendors in the contact center space is very difficult. I recommend evaluating the components that you need now and those that you believe you will need in the next 5 years. If Genesys (or another vendor) is in your top 3 for each of those components, you should seriously consider that vendor for all of your contact center technology needs. Also, as mentioned previously, if selecting Genesys you need to be prepared to to train and maintain your own development and support team or be prepared to pay for those services. The skillset is unique and a person who is a really good developer, say a Java developer, is not necessarily the best choice to be a Genesys developer. A telecommunications background and prior call center technology experience are important traits to look for when hiring Genesys development and support staff. An alterative is to invest in extensive Genesys training to give a good developer the Genesys experience necessary. Do not skimp on Genesys training for your staff, as doing so will jeopardize you investment in the Genesys Contact Center Portfolio!

Using Genesys Engage (formerly PureEngage)

Genesys Contact Center Portfolio is an expensive product to purchase and maintain. Once committed to, it is also an expensive product to replace. That said, our company is constantly evaluating Genesys and other contact center technology vendors to determine which will provide us with the best ROI.

Genesys Engage (formerly PureEngage) Reliability

There are occasional failures, but distributed and High Availability features work well when architected, installed, and configured properly. Thoroughly reading and understanding system documentation is a must.