SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The agent performance optimization space is a rapidly growing sector of the contact center software market, characterized by high levels of innovation, low market saturation, and high end-user demand.

New analysis by Frost & Sullivan (www.frost.com), Agent Performance Optimization Software Markets, reveals that synergies between quality monitoring, workforce management and e-learning solutions, in combination with the emerging use of these products for business intelligence and planning purposes are driving future growth in this market.

``While other sectors of the enterprise technology market have been hit hard by the economic slowdown, sales of workforce management software remain brisk due to the compelling return on investment (ROI) benefits,'' says Frost and Sullivan Industry Analyst Katrina Howell.

Staffing normally represents 60 to 75 percent of call center operating costs, and workforce management solutions are able to provide quantitative data demonstrating productivity improvements. Ultimately, the software allows the management of more service requests without the need for additional agents.

Another segment of the agent performance optimization software market, quality monitoring, grew at impressively high rates during 2000 and 2001, making the industry one of the most dynamic in the enterprise technology sector. Quality monitoring software records and allows users to review the telephone conversations, multimedia interactions and data entries resulting from communications between agents and customers.

``Quality monitoring is enjoying rapid market acceptance, even in the midst of an economic slowdown,'' says Howell. ``This is in large part due to the fact that quality monitoring software is a relatively low cost solution that offers tangible and rapid benefits. The payback time for a quality monitoring solution is six months, comparing favorably to other CRM and call center investments that require 12 months to two years for the purchaser to realize a return on investment.''

Quality monitoring is most successful when offered in a cohesive platform with e-learning. In terms of addressing the challenges facing contact centers, e-learning begins where quality monitoring ends.

``The two solutions are very much complementary applications,'' says Howell. ``The quality monitoring system identifies when a contact center has a problem with agent performance. E-learning provides the means to resolve those problems, and ultimately improves quality such that performance problems will not occur in the future.''

Frost & Sullivan presents the 2001 Marketing Engineering Awards to companies that have worked diligently to make a positive contribution to agent performance optimization software industry. These market specific awards are presented to: Blue Pumpkin, Nice Systems, and Witness Systems.

Frost & Sullivan is a global leader in strategic market consulting and training. This ongoing research is part of the Contact Center Technologies Subscription, which also includes market analysis of Integrated CRM Solutions and E-Mail Management Solutions Markets. Frost & Sullivan also offers custom consulting to a variety of national and international companies. Executive summaries and interviews are available to the press.

               Agent Performance Optimization Software Markets
                               Report: 6317-62

After 11-28-01, please contact:
Kristi Grier
P: 210.247.2403
F: 210.348.1002
E: kgrier@frost.com