Rating: 
Summary: Why it's important to improve and perfect your call center.
Review: A call center is a company's focal point for contacting customers. It's the spot at which a company has its one and only shot at making the customer happy...which means that a center that runs well will benefit the entire organization. It's short-sighted to see your call center as a money-pit; instead, forward-thinking companies see it as a way to enhance the customer relationship. They are seeking ways to incorporate other modes of communication into the center: things like fax, e-mail, and the web.But if you don't have a good basic grounding in the core technologies and procedures for running a center, you won't be able to get ahead, much less stay competitive. My book, The Call Center Handbook, is an attempt to lay out all the necessities -- how they work, why they're important, where to get them -- in a manner that's useful to anyone who works in (or around) a call center. It discusses technology without being too technical for a manager or marketing person.
Rating: 
Summary: Good intro to call center technologies; Editing needed
Review: Being new to the call center environment, I found the book useful as an introduction to the various vendors and technologies available to call centers. I was very disappointed in the organization of the book. The chapters jumped around from subject to subject with very few tie-ins between them. The book had numerous typos and did not inlcude an index or glossary. The index and glossary would have greatly increased the value of this publication. Overall I would still recommend it but only because I couldn't find another book that covered the same topics. I hope the 3rd edition published in June 1999 corrects some of the problems in the 2nd edition.
Rating:
Summary: Good intro to call center technologies; Editing needed
Review: Being new to the call center environment, I found the book useful as an introduction to the various vendors and technologies available to call centers. I was very disappointed in the organization of the book. The chapters jumped around from subject to subject with very few tie-ins between them. The book had numerous typos and did not inlcude an index or glossary. The index and glossary would have greatly increased the value of this publication. Overall I would still recommend it but only because I couldn't find another book that covered the same topics. I hope the 3rd edition published in June 1999 corrects some of the problems in the 2nd edition.
Rating: 
Summary: you don't learn anything
Review: Buy it only if you are a beginner.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but needs editorial work
Review: From a novice's viewpoint, this book affords a good overview of what a call center is, what types of technology can be utilized, and what problems can exist. However,even as an IT (Information Technology)person used to the frequent use of acronyms, I was constantly annoyed by the author's use of undefined acronyms. In a book obviously not geared to individuals proficient in the jargon of the call center, you would think that the author would strive for clarity of expression, not obfuscate meanings. This 3d edition still needs the work of a good editor: sentence fragments, poor grammar, and repetition of whole series of paragraphs verbatim exist. If you can get by these shortcomings, you will get a high level view of what a call center is all about.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but needs editorial work
Review: From a novice's viewpoint, this book affords a good overview of what a call center is, what types of technology can be utilized, and what problems can exist. However,even as an IT (Information Technology)person used to the frequent use of acronyms, I was constantly annoyed by the author's use of undefined acronyms. In a book obviously not geared to individuals proficient in the jargon of the call center, you would think that the author would strive for clarity of expression, not obfuscate meanings. This 3d edition still needs the work of a good editor: sentence fragments, poor grammar, and repetition of whole series of paragraphs verbatim exist. If you can get by these shortcomings, you will get a high level view of what a call center is all about.
Rating: 
Summary: A Stellar Handbook!
Review: Keith Dawson has written the seminal book on Call Center technology. Using spare, uncluttered language to illustrate otherwise complex ideas (rare in books about IT), he provides a comprehensive overview of the most rapidly growing facet of the global economy. I refer to the CALL CENTER HANDBOOK all the time and eagerly await the updated edition. Dawson knows his material (subscribe to his newsletter and you'll see what I mean), and masterfully distills his knowledge in an easily read, step-by-step format. The CALL CENTER HANDBOOK should be included in every IT library. A must-read!!
Rating:
Summary: A Stellar Handbook!
Review: Keith Dawson has written the seminal book on Call Center technology. Using spare, uncluttered language to illustrate otherwise complex ideas (rare in books about IT), he provides a comprehensive overview of the most rapidly growing facet of the global economy. I refer to the CALL CENTER HANDBOOK all the time and eagerly await the updated edition. Dawson knows his material (subscribe to his newsletter and you'll see what I mean), and masterfully distills his knowledge in an easily read, step-by-step format. The CALL CENTER HANDBOOK should be included in every IT library. A must-read!!
Rating:
Summary: Dawson's call center book still the best
Review: Keith Dawson was the editor of Call Center magazine for many years, and this book is still the best single-volume collection of information about call centers (or "contact centers" as they are also called). Dawson will never bore you with needless verbiage, instead always getting straight to the point. Call centers are a tricky combination of technology and people management, and this book will allow you to get a handle on the many aspects of call centers. A fine work by the field's greatest expert. -- Richard Grigonis, Chief Technical Editor, Computer Telephony Magazine
Rating:
Summary: Dawson's call center book still the best
Review: Keith Dawson was the editor of Call Center magazine for many years, and this book is still the best single-volume collection of information about call centers (or "contact centers" as they are also called). Dawson will never bore you with needless verbiage, instead always getting straight to the point. Call centers are a tricky combination of technology and people management, and this book will allow you to get a handle on the many aspects of call centers. A fine work by the field's greatest expert. -- Richard Grigonis, Chief Technical Editor, Computer Telephony Magazine
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