CASE STUDY

Copyright ©2012, Carousel Industries® www.carouselindustries.comDEPTSTORECS-0112

Product List

IP Telephony• Avaya S8730 Media Server

• Avaya Communication Manager 5.2.1

• Avaya One-X Portal

• Avaya 9650D IP Phones

• Avaya Local Survivable Processors (LSP)

At A Glance

Major Department Store• Over 8,600 retail stores

• More than 2 million employees

• International presence in 15 countries

• Founded 1962

Challenge• Outdated telephony infrastructure impairing company growth

• Existing systems had reached manufacturer end of support

• Multiple standalone call centers lacked manageable scalability

• Personnel changes required simple and proven technology solutions

Solution• Migrate all U.S. call center facilities onto a single Avaya platform

• Convert call centers from digital to IP-based (VoIP) telephony

• Provide long term maintenance with Avaya Software Support Plus

• Implement Avaya LSP (Local Survivable Processors) at remote locations

Success• Upgraded call network, improved reliability and scalability

• Improved manageability by consolidating call centers into single platform

• Strong satisfaction of customer and users

• On time completion with full customer requirements met successfully

Challenge

With over two million employees and 8,600 shopping locations globally, this customer is one of the fastest growing retailing organizations in the world. With a reputation and success founded on the ability to keep prices low and ample inventory on shelves, this company depends on a highly efficient back office operation that quickly remedies unnecessary and costly complexities.

However, growth was coming at a price. Maintaining their mammoth network of international operations requires an equally extensive administrative and employee benefits infrastructure, in this case residing in thirteen separate facilities spread across the southern United States. Their Avaya G3R call center platforms had reached end of life status and were no longer being supported by the manufacturer. With each center operating on a separate phone network, taken as a whole the national network was becoming progressively harder and more costly to manage. To continue growing in pace with continually expanding market demand, this customer knew that it was time to rethink and redesign their national call center network.

A successful plan would not only have to be proven and cost effective, it would also have to be designed and implemented with a careful appreciation and respect for this customer’s corporate culture. Reluctant to authorize major technology initiatives that may introduce unnecessary complexities and uncertainties to their back office operations, this company sought a simple, reliable solution set that could be completed and managed in spite of regular personnel changes. They wanted a call center solution that made their growth easier, and that would deliver cost savings both in comparison to previous technology solutions and in reduced labor hours required to effectively manage it.

In the world of discount retail, today’s hypercompetitive climate drives everyone towards similar goals: lower cost, simpler design, and more manageable systems that facilitate the efficient delivery of inexpensive products to market. As an international leader in this industry, this Carousel Industries customer had by 2008 begun to outgrow their Avaya-powered North American telephony architecture, distributing call center activities among 13 locations and separate phone networks. When manufacturers began to end support for their aging equipment, this company contacted Carousel for a plan to implement an updated, consolidated national call center platform.

In any customer relationship, company culture and larger strategic business goals are often the governing principles that lead to wise technology decisions. In this case, this customer’s culture was one of trust, thrift and a deep appreciation for simple solutions that just work right: systems and processes that would provide long term value without expensive over-complexities. Eager to stay with Avaya solutions, this retailer wanted a plan that not only made sense, but saved dollars as well.

Major Retailer Updates, Consolidates National Call Network With Avaya VoIP Solutions

CASE STUDY

Solution

After a thorough review of this retailer’s telephony needs - and taking into account their satisfaction with their prior Avaya solutions - the Carousel Industries team proposed an upgrade to an updated platform of Avaya call center products. Migrating each of the remote call centers to a single consolidated Avaya S8730 Media Server platform and Avaya Communication Manager 5.2.1, the customer could integrate their call traffic, reduce complexities and introduce an extendible architecture that would enjoy active manufacturer support for years to come.

The team realized early in this project that the sheer size of this initiative, coupled with the conservative culture ingrained in the company, would necessitate a very gradual transition to the new systems. Centered on a main core at the company headquarters campus, individual call centers would be converted one at a time as business needs and budgets made each move necessary.

By the summer of 2011, three facilities have already been converted to a Voice Over IP (VoIP) infrastructure, replacing existing Avaya digital telephones with new Avaya 9650D IP phones. Connectivity in off-campus remote sites is provided via Avaya Remote Gateway LSP (Local Survivable Processors), integrating local phone networks with the Avaya S8730 systems located on the customer’s headquarters campus.

To provide long term maintenance and support for their new phone systems, Carousel Industries recommended Avaya Software Support Plus. This would deliver an extra level of dedicated quality support and ensure practical network manageability on a forward basis.

Providing comprehensive managed services and a willingness to match best fit technology solutions to this company’s specific business and cultural needs...

Carousel Industries, Inc.659 South County Trail

Exeter, RI 02822

800.401.0760 www.carouselindustries.com

Success

In the fall of 2011, the next and fourth major stage of this company’s nationwide Avaya upgrade project will begin. Focusing on their main employee benefi ts offi ce, this most recent implementation phase will include the installation of 290 Avaya VOIP phones with software supports. In the coming months, further upgrades are scheduled to take place at locations in Kansas, Texas and Mississippi. The full upgrade project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2012.

As this transition project has proceeded, this major retailer has been very satisfi ed both with the progress made and the benefi ts they have received. The new network is more reliable, less costly and better capable of keeping up with rapid company growth. End users have reported high satisfaction and productivity gains. The installation process has been smooth and relatively easy, a successful effort attributed mainly to careful planning and exceptional collaboration between the technology teams.

Carousel Industries continues to consult with this retail industry leader on future telephony and data network initiatives. Providing comprehensive managed services and a willingness to match best fi t technology solutions to this company’s specifi c business and cultural needs, our relationship with this customer continues to grow - deepening value, realizing new effi ciencies and ultimately strengthening their ability to excel into today’s highly competitive retail marketplace.

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