IEX Corporation announced the general availability of version 3.9 of the TotalView Workforce Management system at the Avaya Evolution Forum being held in São Paulo. TotalView 3.9 offers skill block scheduling features that make it easier to manage multichannel contact types and other back office work. The new version also heightens agent empowerment with new time off management and schedule preference capabilities.

RightNow announced fluid handling systems maker Graco has successfully improved the productivity of its sales staff by using RightNow Sales. The company has also improved visibility into its sales activity and eliminated downtime that had plagued its previous sales automation software. Graco implemented RightNow Sales to support its Contractor Equipment Division, which sells through distribution.

Concerto revenue for the second quarter of 2005 was $69.0 million, an increase of 73.8 percent and an increase of 3.4 percent compared to $66.7 million in revenue for the first quarter of 2005. The company has been successful in integrating the product sets acquired over the last year as evidenced by the addition of 39 new name global customers in Q2.

KANA IQ External Content Search (ECS) is an additional option for customers using the company's KANA IQ solution for enterprise knowledge management and customer service optimization. By combining external content search with the knowledge base, agents and customers are assured access to information no matter where it resides within the organization.

Pervasive Software announced results for the fourth fiscal quarter and fiscal year ending June 30, 2005. Revenue, as reported under GAAP, was $12.6 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2005, compared to $14.5 million for the fourth quarter of last fiscal year. Net income was $1.7 million, or $0.07 diluted earnings per share, for the fourth quarter.

Salesforce.com announced that ITA Audio Visual Solutions has selected salesforce.com to replace its CRM solution from Siebel. ITA chose Salesforce for its ease of use by sales and support staff and Sforce for its easy integration with the company's accounting and quote-generation systems.

Emperors Palace has selected SPSS predictive analytics software to enhance customer loyalty and increase its market share. The casino resort will use SPSS' PredictiveMarketing to better target its direct marketing campaigns to existing guests.

Empirix and Audium announced that they have partnered to help enterprises develop and deploy more reliable VXML IVR applications. Working together, the two companies are launching the first integrated testing and management solutions for VXML platforms and applications. The initial deliverable of this partnership is a solution designed to ensure the quality of Cisco Customer Voice Portal (CVP) applications called Hammer Service Assurance for Cisco CVP; similar testing and management solutions for other leading VXML platform vendors will follow.

Large contact centers with high call volumes can now use Aspect and TuVox technologies together to increase the number and type of transactions that can be automated with voice self-service. TuVox speech applications are deployed on Aspect's open standards-based IVR platform -- AspectCustomer Self-Service (CSS). Aspect recently validated TuVox technology on Aspect CSS.

Innovex, a provider of sales and marketing solutions for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, has selected Synergistix's Call Activity Tracking System (C.A.T.S.) as its sales force automation solution for two new customers in the United States. The application will allow pharmaceutical representatives to more effectively manage sales calls by receiving updated market intelligence about physicians, as well as the drugs they prescribe.

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8/3/2005 - Finding Fault With Your Outsourcer When outsourcing goes wrong, who's fault is it? Should we blame the outsourcer for non-performance or is it the fault of the outsourcing party?   At CRMAdvocate, we often see the reason for breakdown caused by a "bad hand-off." One reader wrote, "An issue about quality is often the fault of the outsourcing party not having their processes and knowledge management in order."   So here is some free advice. If you outsource, make sure you invest in transferring the processes and knowledge in such a way that you would like to receive them.   Gary Lemke, Publisher (Share your thoughts)