VAR500: Accenture Examines Customer Loyalty; TCS Opens Silicon Valley Center

VAR500 Solution Providers In The News

In the past seven days, North America's largest revenue-generating solution providers made headlines signing deals, implementing banking solutions, researching customer loyalty and getting schooled on technology in education. Here's what's happening at VAR500 companies, including Accenture, CDW-G, Insight, Fiserv and TCS.

CDW Study On Technology In Education

More than two-thirds of U.S. public school districts provide wireless Internet access, computing devices and interactive whiteboards, according to the CDW-G 2011 21st-Century Classroom Report. The government sales unit of solution provider CDW is participating in a three-year study of 58 school districts in Missouri and plans to address this need and provide a roadmap on how technology and professional development can improve student performance. Seventh- and eighth-grade teachers will be divided into three groups: One receiving two years of training, others receiving that training and professional development through the Intel Teach program, and a final control group, receiving no additional services until the research is completed in the 2014-2015 school year.

Accenture Research: Customer Loyalty Not A Sure Thing

An Accenture global consumer research study underscores the importance of customer service. The research found that 23 percent of consumers surveyed feel ’very loyal’ to the companies with which they do business, while 24 percent indicated that they had no loyalty at all. And, only 49 percent said they were strongly influenced by at least one loyalty program offered by their service providers. The customer service study also suggests how solution providers can help identify five potential blind spots that, when not recognized and addressed, may be hindering companies’ abilities to successfully engage with customers.

TCS Mobility Solutions Hub Opens

Tata Consultancy Services opened its Silicon Valley Customer Collaboration Center in Santa Clara, Calif., earlier this week. The center, an open, innovative and collaborative workspace, is the worldwide headquarters of TCS’ Mobility Solutions. That segment of the VAR500 solution provider's business aims to bring the benefits of emerging technologies such as big data, analytics and mobility to enterprises across all industries. The center will also be the base for TCS’ Next Gen Solutions, which applies the latest advances in software technology to real-world business problems that customers may face.

Fiserv Solution Aims For Happier Bank Customers

Financial services IT solution provider Fiserv has implemented a technology solution for First Financial Bank of Arkansas that will help improve bank customers' experiences. The solution, ConvergeIT: IVR, has a flexible, interactive voice response system with choice and control for messaging, call flow and functionality. The system scales to handle thousands of calls per day, optimizes current business processes and lets the bank leverage its investments in existing and future telephony solutions.

Insight Drops Bowl Game Sponsorship

Insight Enterprises will no longer sponsor the football bowl game bearing its name. The Insight Bowl, an annual game in which the third-place Big 12 team plays against the third or fourth-place team from the Big Ten Conference. First played in 1989 as the Copper Bowl, the game is now looking for a new sponsor. Any company that takes on the challenge ought to have big pockets: AZCentral.com reports that two years ago, participating teams were paid $6.65 million each. Insight gave no reason for its decision to drop the title sponsorship.