CASE STUDY
NIKO GROUP
ABOUT NIKO GROUP
·Lighting and home automation
·Based in Belgium
·2 company premises managed through
a central network
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
Create a virtual European contact centre
to enable availability on the same
number outside office hours. Existing
analogue exchanges needed replacing.
SOLUTION COMPONENTS
·2 x Mitel 3300 ICP
·3 x Mitel 5550 IP Console
·162 x MiVoice 5330 IP Phone
·10 x MiVoice 5302 IP Phone
·10 x Mitel Navigator
·85 x MiVoice DECT telephones
·27 x Ascom Messenger
·MiVoice Border Gateway
·MiCollab Mobile Client
·MiContact Center
RESULTS
·Hybrid model: analogue telephones
remain in use
·More direct lines through the
IP telephone exchange
·Log in from different Niko Group sites
using a personal telephone number
and facilities
·Integration of voicemail into Microsoft®
Outlook (Unified Messaging)
·Integration of CRM system
·A virtual Europe-wide contact
centre with increased availability
through intelligent routing and
Unified Messaging
NIKO GROUP BOOSTS INTERNAL AVAILABILITY WITH MITEL
IP TELEPHONE EXCHANGE
In mid-2007, Niko Group and EREA, two subsidiaries of Niko Group, started replacing their
analogue telephone exchanges. In the years running up to this decision, both companies
had struggled with the drawbacks of analogue exchanges. Flexibility and the limited and
time-consuming creation of additional internal direct lines were flagged as problem spots.
Expensive maintenance by a system integrator, as well as dependency on the system
integrator for system adjustments, were the main factors behind the decision to switch
to another solution. The companies also had a great need for additional functionalities in
telephones, and not only the ones used by receptionists and colleagues, but also by contact
centre staff. The objective was to create a virtual European contact centre that would also
be available on the usual numbers outside normal office hours, without employees having
to actually be at the office. So it was time to start looking for a solution that could meet
both Niko’s and EREA’s telephony needs.
INTERNAL MANAGEMENT
After requesting quotations from different IP telephony providers, Niko Group chose
Mitel®. The user-friendliness of Mitel’s management software was a key deciding factor
for Niko. According to Jan Van Moere, Network and Security engineer at Niko Group,
“We can now manage our own exchange with great ease. The use of Mitel’s IP and IP
DECT phones is highly intuitive, and they have a no-frills look. Anyone can pick one up
and start using it.”
Paridaens goes on: “Most other suppliers we talked to had an IT-based approach, while
Mitel offered a total solution that we can manage ourselves without any problems. Thanks
to the scalability of Mitel’s IP telephony system, Niko Group will be able to effortlessly add
new IP phones to the system in the coming years. We are using a hybrid model. Alongside
about 300 IP and IP DECT telephones, we are also using over 100 analogue telephones
that are linked to the Mitel exchange.”
CASE STUDY | NIKO GROUP
MOBILITY
Integration of CRM and efficient call handling
The Niko Group offices are spread across various sites,
meaning employees often do not work at the same physical
location. Thanks to Mitel, they can now take their telephone
numbers with them when they go to another site. Simply
logging in on the IP phone is enough to have access to all
personal contact details.
Siebel CRM data was also integrated into the contact
centre’s IP telephony system.
In 2010, Niko Group will also start using Unified Messaging,
teleconferencing and availability reporting services, which
will be integrated into Microsoft® Outlook’s calendar. That
will give colleagues immediate insight into whether the
required person is available and / or in the office.
Users can program telephones to reflect different availability
situations, based on a number of standard profiles. Whether
a colleague is on holiday, on a business trip or working
from home: it is easy to activate the correct profile. All calls
will then be efficiently forwarded to a colleague or mobile
phone, or the answering machine will automatically be
activated.
FUNCTIONALITY
“Most other suppliers we talked to had an IT-based
approach, while Mitel offered a total solution that we
can manage ourselves without any problems. Thanks
to the scalability of Mitel’s IP telephony system, Niko
Group will be able to effortlessly add new IP phones to
the system in the coming years.”
– Robrecht Paridaens, ICT Director
“The integration of voicemail and email, as well as the
facility for programming call diversion via a web interface
when an employee is out of the office, have enabled us to
extend our opening hours, which makes it easier for our
customers to get in touch with us,” says Jan Van Moere.
“Our staff can now also work from home, so that our Niko
Customer Service can also be made available outside office
hours. We are convinced that our customers will greatly
appreciate this additional level of service.”
Prior to making the switch to IP telephony, it was not
always possible, for technical reasons, to put end users,
fitters or distributors that needed support through to the
contact centre.
“Technical restrictions caused our Niko Customer Service
to fall short in terms of availability: making direct lines
available and providing for employee availability outside
office hours were problematic,” explained Paridaens.
The switch to IP telephony has now given Niko Group a
virtual contact centre, Niko Customer Service, covering the
whole of Europe. When a call comes in, the Mitel exchange
will immediately identify the customer. Intelligent routing
ensures that the call reaches the right employee. And at
the same time, enough lines are kept open for any other
incoming calls. The system also allows for the quick and
simple compilation of statistical data.
mitel.com
An employee taking a call will, therefore, know right away
who he is talking to. Siebel and Mitel integration also
ensures that the employee has an instant overview of any
previous contact with the customer in question, which
considerably increases the efficiency of the call.
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