With the new year quickly approaching, Plantronics has informed us of the latest list of end of life product in 2016. If you see some of your favorite headsets on this list that are being discontinued, act quickly to purchase now before stock runs out! The EncorePro series is the suggested replacement for the headsets on the list; the DA70 and DA80 are the recommended replacements for the adapters on the list.

EOL Product in 2016	Replacement Product
DuoSet	EncorePro 540
DuoPro	EncorePro 540
Mirage	EncorePro 530
Tristar	EncorePro 530
DA40	DA70
DA45	DA80
DA55, DA65	No direct replacement

We will provide support on the discontinued headsets for as long as you have them.

Let us know how we can help! Contact us today.

With the introduction of the premium DA80 USB audio processor this year, Plantronics has created a product that delivers high-quality audio and contextual intelligence to provide the best possible customer experience out there. It replaces the DA45.

The solid, high-quality DA80 (MSRP $99.00) has intuitive rocker-style buttons with controls for most-used call functions: Answer/End; Volume Up and Down; and Mute – along with indicator lights that alert incoming calls (flashing green); active calls (steady green); and mute (red).

Plantronics Spokes software solutions take the DA80 one step further by revealing insights on CSR and customer communication to contact center managers through the detection and delivery of multiple pieces of intelligence, such as headset disconnections and frequent use of mute control. Several major ACD and CRM systems vendors will be integrating these events into their systems to help manage call center performance.

For example, Plantronics Hub software can automatically lock a CSR’s screen when the headset is disconnected, eliminating a process step and helping with security compliance. Simple incremental improvements like this add up to large overall gains in operational effectiveness, and improved CSR and customer satisfaction.

Now more than ever, customer satisfaction is of utmost importance; concerns must be worked through quickly and effectively. According to research by Lee Resources, 91% of unhappy customers will not willingly do business with you again. With the prohibitive cost of bringing in new customers – 6 to 7 times more expensive to gain a new customer than to keep a current one (source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs) – it benefits a company to pay attention to its first line defense: the contact center.

Bill Loewenthal, vice president of enterprise solutions at Plantronics told TMCnet.com that “the DA80 is far more than a simple step forward in performance and usability for a USB connection device. It helps our customers provide smarter customer service and impact business outcomes.”

By building the Plantronics DA80 into their softphone strategy, our customers will be on a platform that will provide unprecedented insight into CSR and customer interactions, leading to real business results.”

More great features of the DA80:

•Superior digital audio helps meet OSHA and Noise at Work regulations

•Plantronics technology that detects and reports on call events, revealing insights to make operations run more efficiently

•Downloadable firmware updates and the ability to carry unique serial numbers creating consistent, managed service levels across your center

•Open APIs add intelligence and inform work flows

•Unique serial numbers for asset management

•To train agents, or to include supervisors on calls, a Y-cord can be used with the DA80.

Check out this video that features the compatibility of the DA80 with Customer Interaction Center from Interactive Intelligence:
The DA80 is covered by a two year warranty.

In part 1 of this series about the open office environment, we established that open office work environments are pervasive, distracting and generally not conducive for work that requires concentration – in fact, a Plantronics study found that overall productivity is reduced by 40%.

As the saying goes, “the show must go on” and with deadlines to meet (plus the paycheck associated with the expectation of work being accomplished), here are some tips to help you navigate the environment to your advantage:

1. Establish expectations of a quiet office environment. Talk to your manager and ask if this policy can be implemented. If there is the expectation that the office will be quiet, conversations will be held at low volumes, and those walking through the environment should be quiet, with prolonged conversations held elsewhere. Reminders of this policy can be in the form of signs that are hung up throughout the entire work space.
   
   
2. Ear plugs. While this may look slightly ridiculous, sometimes it can be the only way to find true quiet, especially if you have no obligation to being on the phone. You can pick up ear plugs at any discount store for very little cost.
   
   
3. Headsets. With the variety of active noise cancelling headsets on the market today, and the “cool” factor that wearers of large headphones are enjoying, wearing a headset can provide a solid audial barrier. Active noise cancelling quiets ambient sounds by creating frequencies that block the noise at your ear. Not all sounds are blocked; overall, they will be significantly reduced.
   
   Headsets also serve a practical purpose in your business environment because you can answer phone calls with them. The headsets are equipped with noise-cancelling microphones so that your caller will hear you, and not your noisy neighbor who laughs a bit too enthusiastically.
   
   The Voyager Focus UC from Plantronics is a Bluetooth wireless headset that gives you dual ear coverage, an on/off Active Noise Cancelling switch, and an Open Mic button to tune into the environment when you need to. This headset connects seamlessly across PCs (with the included USB adapter), smartphones, and tablets. When you listen to music (delivered with incredible bass and natural midtones) the Focus UC pauses the music whenever you take the headset off, and resumes play when you put it back on. MSRP is $299.95.
   
   For a corded headset with Active Noise Cancelling, the Jabra Evolve 80 UC has speakers that are built for style and comfort with large leatherette ear cushions, specifically designed to reduce office noise. When combined with active noise-cancelling technology, you get maximum protection against office noise. A busy-light indicator on the headset signals user availability to colleagues. The Evolve 80 connects via 3.5mm and USB for use with smart phones, tablets, and PCs. MSRP is $329.00.
   
   Listening to music in your headset can be a great productivity booster. What type of music is best? Studies show that classical music or music without lyrics (such as an Ambient channel on iTunes Radio) can increase productivity, because it provides a mindless distraction. Music with lyrics can be distracting, especially when writing.
   
   Or, if music just isn't your thing, "white noise" can be a great alternative. The app Noisli (also available to stream at http://www.noisli.com/ provides 16 audio samples of nature, a coffee shop, a fireplace, white noise, and others). There is a special mix for Productivity, available by selecting that choice. Other options include Rainy Mood or Simply Noise. Ultimately, it is an individual preference and something that can be determined through trial and error until you find your concentration zone.


4. Use busy lights or hang a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your chair or in your office space. Use this judiciously; it may appear that you are not a team player if your “Do Not Disturb” sign is displayed more often than it isn’t.


5. Work from home. If this is a possibility, it may be worth looking into; however, a lack of infrastructure at your workplace might not allow for this solution.

Ultimately, we are responsible for how we react in any type of environment. How can we best adapt to this newer concept of open office space? Considering the variety of solutions available to combat open offices, hopefully you’ll find the right solution that helps you along the way. If you have any questions regarding this topic, please reach out to us. We’d love to chat!



Overcome noise challenges in the open office

Step into any business building today, and you will probably see an open office environment. Typically, phones are ringing, workers are typing, talking on the phone (sometimes on speakerphone!), and talking with each other over their desktops. The space looks busy, productive and efficient.

More than 70 percent of workers in the United States work in these barrier-free environments. Seen as the modern way of doing business (compared to a traditional work place

with offices and doors) the philosophy of an open workplace: to keep co-workers accessible and immediately available, is admirable. The open office “breaks down” the walls of status and division, keeping managers and employees in the same space.

There is a dark side to all of this openness, as open office floor plans have increased turnover and work-related stress, as well as lowered overall productivity (up to 40% as one Plantronics study found). For some workers whose senses stay on high alert all day, it is common to leave the office tired and stressed about not accomplishing daily tasks. Realistically, the open office doesn’t allow for concentration or private conversation.

There are both pros and cons to open offices. Some of the benefits are:

1. Easily adaptable and expandable
2. Greater collaboration
3. Workers appear to be busy
4. Not as unattractive as cubicle arrangement
5. Lowered square foot per person: more people in one space, and less real estate cost

On the other hand, the drawbacks include:

1. Distracting: employees unable to focus
2. Lack of privacy: Worry of co-workers counting bathroom breaks, overhearing personal phone calls, etc.
3. Noisy: Plantronics reports that 53 percent of employees say they are disturbed by others when trying to focus
4. Lack of control over lighting and temperature
5. Illnesses and germs freely spread
6. Fortune magazine asserts “age discrimination” in the open office – those age 55 and older seem to flee the business once an open office is implemented

With all of the research – both anecdotal and scientific – available today, some environmental changes can be implemented to meet needs of both the business, and the employees. For example, huddle rooms (for two or more people working in collaboration) with a table and a door are utilized by teams that need to freely discuss projects and other items. For solitary creative work, such as writing, project planning and more, secluded rooms with a door (similar to a traditional office) are a great solution.

Employees themselves are their best managers, as they know which environmental triggers distract them. Is there a time during the day when you need to unplug from the environment, and plug into your thoughts? A great active noise-cancelling headset can be the answer to your problems. Short of moving to a secluded island (which is inconvenient, and of course, offers no wifi connection!) what are some of the ways we can manage our environment, and not let it manage us?

What we have lost in privacy, silence, and the time to think, we have hopefully gained in collaboration; ultimately, however, it is up to each individual to manage themselves within the open office environment. In part 2 of this series, we discuss some solutions to surviving – and even thriving – in the pervasive modern open office environment.

Managing an inventory of antiquated and obsolete headsets can prove to be a losing proposition. Customer service agents become frustrated with defective, older equipment that breaks, making their jobs more difficult. The purchase of new equipment, especially headsets, can improve morale and simplify work processes.

When it’s time to purchase those new headsets, Plantronics has a sweet offer: buy any headset from the new and updated EncorePro series, and you receive $15 for each old headset you send in to Plantronics, up to the quantity of new headsets being purchased.

And Plantronics has made this process easier than ever, as they are providing you with the prepaid shipping label to send those old headsets in!

With four great options to choose from, the EncorePro headsets have something for every wearer and business environment. From the premium style features of the EncorePro 700 headsets, to the super-light EncorePro 530, and the complete flexibility of the EncorePro 540, the headsets feature superior noise-cancelling microphones that keep the conversation focused on the caller.

The EncorePro 500 series combines forward-looking design with comfort. High-quality custom polymers and structurally employed metals creates designs that are thoroughly robust, yet up to 22 percent lighter. Laser-welded construction and metal joints provide durability in all work place environments.

EncorePro 530 Lightest in its class, this headset is designed with wearing stability and simplicity. With a choice of two different sized soft bendable ear loops, users get all-day wearing comfort.

EncorePro 540 The unique convertible design provides the choice of three easily changed wearing styles for personalized all-day comfort, without compromised performance. The patent-pending C-clip system makes switching wearing styles very easy; this headset will satisfy all user preferences!

The EncorePro 700 series is Plantronics’ top-of-the-line quick disconnect headsets, designed for customer service representatives. Its distinctive design is slim and stylish with an elegant satin finish. The featherweight materials and leatherette ear pads ensure luxurious comfort, while its unique curved, telescoping microphone and pivoting boom deliver crystal-clear, private conversations.


EncorePro 710 The mono ear headset helps you to keep one ear on the customer, and the other on collaboration. The mic boom arm rotates up and down, as well as out and in, for superior microphone positioning. With a unique, extendable boom arm, further positioning can be achieved. The adjustable headband and extra-padded leatherette ear cushion provide optimum comfort!


EncorePro 720 The duo ear variant provides immersive focus for improved customer interactions.