Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) selects Sabio to speech-enable key customer service application

SSE selects Sabio’s Voice Self-service Practice based on its unique user-centred design and deployment approach

Sabio helps SSE migrate to powerful Avaya Interactive Response (IR) platform and enhance its inbound Meterline self-service application

LONDON – 16 August 2005 – Sabio, the innovative contact centre services and solutions company, has been selected by Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) to speech-enable one of its key customer service applications. SSE, one of the largest energy companies in the UK, chose Sabio’s Voice Self-service Practice to help improve the overall customer experience by completely redesigning its major Meterline inbound customer self-service application.

Sabio’s team of Voice Self-service specialists have redesigned SSE’s existing Meterline service using the proven user-centred design approach. Sabio has deployed the new speech-enabled solution on Avaya’s award-winning Interactive Response (IR) self-service platform that allows organisations to broaden their customer self-service offering by adding the latest speech and VoiceXML applications to their existing IVR functionality. In addition Sabio will provide full training and support for SSE’s staff.

“At SSE we’re committed to providing our callers with the highest levels of service and satisfaction, and we were particularly keen to encourage utilisation for our automated inbound Meterline service,” commented John Turner, SSE’s Business Solutions Manager responsible for telephony. “A key requirement for SSE for this project was the need to retain much of the proven functionality of our existing IVR system, while extending the scope of the system and capitalising on the potential that speech-enabling Meterline could bring. Sabio’s Voice Self-service Practice clearly understood this important business requirement, and was also able to demonstrate the success of the user-centred design approach together with its in-depth expertise in contact centre systems and applications.

“Instead of simply replicating our existing IVR system on a speech-enabled platform, Sabio worked with us to design a new Meterline solution that combines key IVR strengths – such as the ability to enter account numbers using the phone keypad – with a more advanced IR speech-enabled approach that will allow us to add additional customer service options such as billing and account/service details as the project develops. Sabio also offered all the key skills we needed for this project, providing a one-stop solution for the business, design and technical elements of our Meterline project.”

“With over six million energy customers, it’s important that SSE continually enhances and improves its service offering, and we’re delighted that SSE chose Sabio to help upgrade and speech enable one of its key customer service applications,” added Adam Faulkner, Founding Director, Sabio. “Throughout the design and implementation of the project we focused on SSE’s requirement to improve customer utilisation of Meterline. With the new speech-enabled Meterline solution we’re helping to increase the share of fully automated calls, and are supporting SSE’s goal of providing the highest levels of customer service, and deploying state-of-the-art technology where applicable.”

SSE’s Meterline application receives around 180,000 calls per month, and is designed to provide the company’s customers with a more efficient, satisfying and comfortable experience. Key SSE goals for the service include generating more customer confidence and providing increased levels of meter-reading success. The application is part of SSE’s ongoing service development programme, which will later include additional functionality such as support for billing and account transaction queries.

About Scottish and Southern Energy
Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) is a vertically integrated utility company. Its main areas of businesses are generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity; energy trading; storage and supply of gas; electrical, environmental and utility contracting; domestic appliance retailing and telecoms. In the UK, Scottish and Southern Energy serves over 6 million gas and electricity customers operating under the supply brands Scottish Hydro Electric, Southern Electric, SWALEC and Atlantic Electric and Gas. For further information about SSE, please visit www.scottish-southern.co.uk.