Siebel Gives Voice To CRM Apps

Siebel Systems Inc. has quietly started shipping Siebel Voice, a new module that adds voice technology to Siebel's customer-relationship-management apps. The company will unveil the new product along with its second-quarter earnings July 18.

Siebel Voice incorporates Fonix' Text-to-Speech 5.1 Framework and Speech Recognition Engine, letting sales personnel, partners, and customers access data stored in Siebel's CRM E-business apps via any phone. The Fonix technology vocalizes information using customizable pitch, speed, and volume settings in either a male or female voice. Fonix says the voice technology is more natural then past voice technologies because it pauses, incorporates inflections, and adds emphasis to words. Users can access the system with a password or voice authentication, Fonix execs say.

The new software will give sales staff access to customer account data, current account activity and history, revenue forecasts, and contact information. Using the software, an employee could call in and retrieve customer data and instruct the system to dial the customer's number without having to initiate a new call. Sales personnel would also be able to review their appointments over the telephone.