Dubai Islamic Bank Enhances Customer Service and Cuts Costs with Avaya IP Telephony

Dubai Islamic Bank Enhances Customer Service and Cuts Costs with Avaya IP Telephony Avaya solution connects 80 bank branches with 3000+ extensions on a single corporate network reducing telecoms costs by almost 50% in just six months Dubai Islamic Bank - the world's first fully-fledged Islamic bank founded in 1975 - has reduced its branch-to-branch communications costs by almost 50 percent in just six months by deploying an Avaya IP telephony solution. Covering 80 branches and more than 3000 extensions, the new Avaya system also enables Dubai Islamic Bank to improve customer service via a single corporate directory, which allows customer enquiries to be resolved on the first call.

"There are three key benefits that Dubai Islamic Bank has already realized by moving to IP telephony from Avaya - improved customer service through a centralized communications system, enhanced employee productivity as all DIB staff can now be reached by their own extensions, and a reduced telecoms cost of almost 50% in less than 6 months," said Mr. Ali Al Basti, Head of Admin Affairs, Dubai Islamic Bank.

"The new IP telephony infrastructure has given the bank its fastest-ever return on investment for an IT/telecoms deployment, which is important at a time when the financial services industry is making every effort to maximize its technology spend. IP telephony has also empowered the bank to centrally manage, control and administer our communications, including a disaster recovery option should we experience any downtime. All of these elements combine into a more cost-effective communications strategy for the bank which also benefits our customers," he explained.

Olive, an Avaya partner in the Middle East, delivered the new IP telephony system to Dubai Islamic Bank, including a seamless integration of a multi-vendor voice messaging system to a single Avaya modular solution. Opting for IP telephony means that all of the banks calls from branch-to-branch are via extension, or 'internal' calls on the Avaya network, delivering substantial cost savings. Customers can also reach Dubai Islamic Bank's different service groups, including retail and private banking, business and corporate banking, investment banking and real estate finance, more quickly and easily via the new network.

"The banking sector is facing rigorous pressure to reduce costs and optimize its technology solutions while maintaining and even improving customer service. By moving to IP telephony, Dubai Islamic Bank can now more accurately forecast its telecoms costs while benchmarking savings from the new system, and benefit from increased staff productivity and customer service delivery," Nidal Abou-Ltaif, area vice president of Emerging Markets for Avaya(C) 2009 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)

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