Interactive Intelligence IP Communications Software Suite Deployed by FirstCare Health Plans

2009 DEC 28 - (NewsRx.com) -- FirstCare Health Plans has reported improved customer service and increased productivity using an all-in-one IP communications software suite from Interactive Intelligence (see also Interactive Intelligence Inc.).

The software suite, Customer Interaction Center™ (CIC), has given FirstCare the ability to support multichannel communications, along with new quality monitoring, recording, and reporting applications.

"CIC has provided our customers with new ways of communicating with us, including the addition of e-mail and Web chat," said FirstCare's vice president of operations, Sylvia Garcia. "In addition, CIC's unique single-platform architecture has given us real-time visibility into all interaction queues so we can quickly adjust our workgroup staffing to optimize customer service while maximizing productivity."

FirstCare's use of the CIC add-on application, Interaction Recorder®, has added further value, according to Garcia. "Interaction Recorder® has enabled us to easily measure the effectiveness of our contact center representatives," she said. "Our supervisors now have the ability to listen to call recordings, score team member's performance, and coach them to increase their effectiveness and further improve service levels."

FirstCare replaced its Avaya system with CIC after evaluating systems from several other vendors, including Cisco and Oracle.

"Our Avaya system was no longer supported and after reviewing alternative solutions, CIC proved to be the most flexible, feature-rich, and cost-effective option," said FirstCare's IT project manager, Maurice Barnett.

FirstCare purchased CIC from Interactive Intelligence reseller, Automated Voice and Data Solutions (www.avds.com). AVDS provided the CIC implementation services, and is also responsible for ongoing system management.

"AVDS' knowledge and experience in deploying CIC proved invaluable in helping us configure the most effective work flows and, overall, ensuring a smooth installation from start to finish," Barnett said. "With such a flexible product, this type of expertise was essential in maximizing our return on investment."

CIC supports FirstCare's 50 contact center employees located in Lubbock, Texas. The company plans to deploy a redundant CIC configuration as part of its disaster recovery strategy, and is researching the use of CIC to take advantage of the product's extensive remote capabilities.

"We're optimistic about CIC's ability to support our company values, which include excellence and a passion for service," Garcia concluded. About FirstCare Health PlansFirstCare Health Plans is a for-profit managed care company owned by two highly-respected, not-for-profit health care organizations: Covenant Health Systems in Lubbock, and Hendrick Health Systems in Abilene. Founded in 1985, FirstCare has expanded its geography far beyond Amarillo, and currently provides cost-effective health care services and benefits to Texans in counties across the North, Central, and Western regions of the state. FirstCare's corporate headquarters are located in Austin, Texas with additional field offices in Abilene, Amarillo, Lubbock, and Waco. FirstCare has approximately 142,000 members and generates annual revenues of $400 million. In addition to offering a variety of HMO plans, FirstCare also owns Southwest Life & Health Insurance Company, which offers FirstCare PPO and life insurance products. FirstCare also acts as a third-party administrator to Valley Baptist Health Plans, an affiliate of Valley Baptist Health System in Harlingen, Texas. For additional information, visit www.firstcare.com or call 800-431-7737. About Interactive IntelligenceInteractive Intelligence Inc. (Nasdaq: ININ) is a global provider of unified business communications solutions for contact center automation, enterprise IP telephony, and business process automation. The company was founded in 1994 and has approximately 3,000 customers worldwide. Interactive Intelligence is among Software Magazine's top 500 global software and services suppliers, is ranked among Network World's top 200 North American networking vendors, is a BusinessWeek "hot growth 50" company, and is among Fortune Small Business magazine's top 100 fastest growing companies. The company is also positioned in the leaders' quadrant of the Gartner 2008 Contact Center Infrastructure, Worldwide Magic Quadrant report. Interactive Intelligence employs more than 600 people and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It has six global corporate offices with additional sales offices throughout North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. Interactive Intelligence can be reached at +1 317.872.3000 or [email protected]; on the Net: www.inin.com.