Salesnet To Syndicate Online CRM
Salesnet announced details of its original equipment manufacturer (OEM), vertical market, and application syndication strategy. Salesnet is a CRM vendor that offers a private label edition of its application. The private label edition can be fully pre-configured to meet the business needs and best practices of OEM customers.

MicroStrategy Unveils BI Reporting Technology
MicroStrategy announced the release of a business intelligence reporting technology, MicroStrategy Report Services. MicroStrategy Report Services aims to simplify the deployment of business intelligence applications throughout a large organization -- to all its employees, customers, and suppliers. It provides reports that can enrich existing business intelligence applications and ease the creation of numerous new ones.

PeopleSoft Introduces New Hosting Offerings
PeopleSoft announced a new portfolio of application hosting and management services for PeopleSoft Enterprise, PeopleSoft EnterpriseOne and PeopleSoft World customers. PeopleSoft Hosting offers levels of availability and service for systems to enable companies to better deploy internal resources and focus on core business issues. PeopleSoft now offers three levels of service, enabling its software customers to select the solution that best suits the needs of their organizations.   (about PeopleSoft)

			Required Reading
		The Importance of Call Scripts    Outbound contact center managers face an array of challenges. Managing everything from employees and IT call solutions to business strategies and processes, today's managers have become multidisciplinarians, always on the lookout for new formulas and best industry practices. It is with this in mind that Elix decided to gather the Best Practices and Golden Rules of various outbound contact centers, from the telemarketing and collection perspective. more >>
Archive of past Required Reading articles

SEC Calls for Action Against Siebel
Siebel said that the Securities and Exchange Commission staff has recommended enforcement actions against the company and two of its executives. The SEC has been investigating statements that the two Siebel Systems officers allegedly made before and during an April 30 dinner with analysts, according to the company's third-quarter SEC filing.   (about Siebel)

NCR Online Survey Results
According to an online survey of banking customers in the United States, financial institutions could do a better job of anticipating their customers' needs for financial services and related products. Harris Interactive conducted the survey for NCR. It concluded that just 43 percent of the survey respondents agree that their bank anticipates their needs for financial services and products. Yet, when asked what elements of customer service are most important, 68 percent noted that it's extremely or very important that their bank demonstrate the ability to understand their needs.

Epicor Extends SRM Solution
Epicor announced feature enhancements to its enterprise suite with the release of Epicor eProcurement 7.3, a purchasing management solution that provides a connection between buyers and suppliers for the purchase of direct and indirect goods and services within the framework of predefined business rules. In this latest release, Epicor eProcurement 7.3 further enhances purchasing processes with the addition of automated, blanket orders and releases, integration with back office inventory and purchasing systems, and one-click order copying and other purchasing ease-of-use features.   (about Epicor)

University of Miami Improves Service RightNow
The University of Miami is deploying RightNow's solutions to improve the quality of services it delivers to its constituencies and to reduce administrative costs. RightNow will provide students and university employees with a centralized online knowledge base where they can find immediate answers to their questions about the university's policies and procedures. RightNow will also provide advanced management for the university's growing volume of email inquiries.   (about RightNow)

Blue Pumpkin Helps Star HRG Insurance
Blue Pumpkin announced signing on Star HRG as a new customer. Blue Pumpkin is helping Star HRG execute its business strategy of extending its reputation for legendary customer service while reducing costs and raising employee satisfaction.   (about Blue Pumpkin)

KBC Selects Courion
Courion announced that KBC has selected its password management solution PasswordCourier to automate the password reset and synchronization process for its 15,000 employees. KBC's help desk was fielding 3,000 calls each month requesting password resets. Automating these resets with PasswordCourier will provide KBC cost savings and increased productivity by empowering end users to resolve the issue themselves.   (about Courion)

Help Desk Institute Announces Event
Help Desk Institute announced the first event in its new Essential Insight Symposium Series, "Sourcing for the Support Center." Designed for service and support managers and directors, this event will address the exploding and continually evolving topic of sourcing by exploring every available strategy -- insourcing, outsourcing, co-sourcing, and sourcing to leverage existing resources. It is scheduled for February 2-4, 2004, at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo.   (about Help Desk Institute)