SAN JOSE, Calif., May 31 /CNW/ - Nortel Networks (NYSE/TSE:NT) and IEX, a
Tekelec company (NASDAQ: TKLC), today announced an alliance to integrate and
cooperatively market Nortel Networks' Symposium Call Center Server with IEX's
TotalNet Network Call Routing and TotalView Workforce Management, enabling
companies to create virtual contact centers.
    By allowing consolidation of agents in multiple locations into a single,
virtual team, this combined Nortel Networks and IEX solution can help
companies improve the customer experience, increase contact center
effectiveness and lower operating costs.
    "To run a competitive business in the Internet world, organizations need
to manage global, multi-site contact centers in a way that provides a
seamless, consistent experience for each customer," said Susan King, vice-
president and general manager of customer care, Clarify eBusiness
Applications, Nortel Networks.
    "By taking advantage of true skills-based routing, intelligent-network
routing and sophisticated forecasting, scheduling and adherence, Nortel
Networks and IEX are now able to help our customers significantly enhance
their contact center operations and, ultimately, improve Return on
Relationship*," King said.
    "IEX's TotalNet intelligent call delivery and TotalView human resource
management solutions impact 90 cents of every contact center dollar spent,"
said Debbie May, vice-president and general manager, Call Center Division,
IEX. "By teaming with Nortel Networks, we can now provide executives a
powerful solution to plan, manage and deliver a superior customer experience,
one they can choose with an unprecedented degree of confidence."
    Companies already realizing advantages from the combination of these
Nortel Networks and IEX solutions include the Bank of Montreal, BC Hydro, Bell
Canada, Greyhound Lines, Nextel Partners, Sprint and Wells Fargo & Company.
Under the alliance, Nortel Networks and IEX are simplifying the implementation
of virtual contact centers and will cooperate to support joint solutions.
    A powerful contact center management solution, Nortel Networks' Symposium
Call Center Server provides flexibility, scalability and customized
applications.
    IEX's TotalNet Network Call Routing complements Symposium Call Center
Server with intelligent, skills-aware, network level call routing. Interfacing
with carriers and private networks, it creates a virtual contact center by
balancing calls and leveling service delivery across multiple sites, even when
sites utilize different ACD systems. The TotalNet product enables managers to
control the way calls are routed from the network to their sites; analyze and
control their customers' service-level experience through consolidated
enterprise level monitoring and call routing strategies; and use simulation
planning tools to achieve business objectives. IEX's TotalView Workforce
Management provides integrated, skills-aware workforce forecasting,
scheduling, adherence monitoring, daily exception management, vacation
planning, and team or office activity reporting and analysis.
    IEX, located in the heart of the Telecom Corridor in Richardson, Texas,
has been providing integrated management solutions to contact centers for the
past 12 years. IEX's customers include financial and banking institutions,
hospitality and travel companies, telemarketing centers, service bureaus,
public utilities, and telecommunications companies. Single and multi-site
contact center managers for more than 285,000 agents at over 1,100 locations
worldwide rely on IEX. IEX's award winning TotalNet Network Call Routing and
TotalView Workforce Management products comprise one of the industry's most
robust integrated virtual contact center solutions. IEX sells its products and
services in the USA and internationally through its direct sales force and
select distributors. For more information about IEX, please visit us at
www.iex.com.
    Nortel Networks is ushering in the second wave of eBusiness, delivering
complete solutions that leverage the high-performance Optical Internet,
customer relationship management and multimedia contact centers to enable
seamless, personalized customer experiences. Current offerings include Clarify
eFrontOffice CRM software, Periphonics customer interaction technologies, and
Nortel Networks' contact center solutions, providing companies with a single
view of all aspects of the customer lifecycle. Nortel Networks eBusiness
customers include American Airlines, Best Buy, BT, Charles Schwab, H&R Block,
Level3 Communications, Microsoft, Toyota and vitaminSHOPPE.com.
    Nortel Networks is a global leader in telephony, data, eBusiness, and
wireless solutions for the Internet. The Company had 1999 U.S. GAAP revenues
of US$21.3 billion and serves carrier, service provider and enterprise
customers globally. Today, Nortel Networks is creating a high-performance
Internet that is more reliable and faster than ever before. It is redefining
the economics and quality of networking and the Internet through Unified
Networks that promise a new era of collaboration, communications and commerce.
Visit us at www.nortelnetworks.com.

    * Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks logo, the Globemark, Unified
Networks, Symposium and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Nortel
Networks. Clarify and Return on Relationship are trademarks of Clarify Inc, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Nortel Networks. Periphonics is a trademark of
Periphonics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nortel Networks. TotalNet and
TotalView are trademarks of IEX.



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For further information: Susan MacCall, Nortel Networks, (408) 965-7581,
smaccall@nortelnetworks.com; Brian Spraetz, IEX, (972) 301-1255, 
bspraetz@iex.com;
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