Home > Call Center Software > Sharpen > Sharpen vs Cisco Contact Center

Sharpen vs Cisco Contact Center

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Our analysts compared Sharpen vs Cisco Contact Center based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Call Center Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Overview Pricing Benefits & Features Analyst Ratings Comparison Charts User Ratings Analyst Summary Screenshots
Sharpen Software Tool
Cisco Contact Center Software Tool
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Product Basics

Analyst Rating

we're gathering data
Detailed Analysis

User Sentiment

Great User Sentiment (116 Reviews)

Analyst Rating

94 Detailed Analysis

User Sentiment

Great User Sentiment (261 Reviews)
Sharpen is a cloud-based contact center platform allowing agents to interact with customers more efficiently and deliver better user experiences. The resources ensure agents are effectively trained and well-prepared to handle customer interactions. Other offerings include platform architecture, inbound routing, reporting and analytics, remote work support and more. .
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Cisco offers a vast portfolio of products, including calling, contact center, team collaboration, meetings and devices. It delivers call treatment, omnichannel contact management, contact routing and network-to-desktop CTI over an IP infrastructure. Its flexible cloud architecture offers integration and customization along with user experience management.

It gets praise for its varied features and intelligent analytics geared towards improving productivity and customer satisfaction. However, users report that some tools are complex to use. For information about pricing, contact the sales team.

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Product Assistance

Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Documentation
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Live Online
Videos
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Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
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Product Insights

  • Continuous Improvement: Get instant access to the product’s guide and learn how to analyze metrics for holistic customer experience, five KPI categories, how to improve EX and CX-based data analysis, methods to enhance service levels and more. 
  • Turn Data Into Meaningful Actions: Understand what’s happening with operations by seeking assistance from experts who review operational data with multiple customers regularly. 
  • Empower Agents: Coach agents inside their queue by offering tools and autonomy to work and perform best while tracking their empowerment, effectiveness and efficiency. 
  • Personalize Conversations: Equip the support team to solve any issues in time while personalizing every customer touchpoint. Offer client information to agents, so they take the most appropriate actions for better resolutions.  
  • High-Touch Partnership: Implement interactions and workflows with a partner who shares similar goals. Keep a hands-on partner as those goals change or grow to realize success, no matter what that means to the organization. 
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  • Boost Productivity: Automate everyday tasks to free your team to focus on your customers. Provide 24/7 support, resolve issues on the first contact, reduce wait times and personalize interactions with AI-powered tools.
  • Enhance Customer Experiences: Gain valuable customer insights through cloud data analytics and connect them with experts to improve first contact resolution. Offer proactive and personalized experiences with omnichannel support, predictive routing, CRM integration, outbound campaigns, expert collaboration and 360-degree customer journey analytics.
  • Empower Your Team: Enable your team to connect with customers anytime, anywhere. Quickly route callers to the most suitable agent or provide instant answers through virtual agents. Engage experts for complex interactions, building customer trust and providing context.
  • Optimize Workflows: Streamline team efficiency for consistent, high-quality customer service. Align your workforce management with business objectives. Ensure quality and compliance with robust quality management and call recording tools.
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  • Simplified Interface: Access detailed customer profiles and analyze data related to past interactions. Personalize experiences, serve faster and spend less time searching for customer data. 
  • Omnichannel: Interact with customers across multiple channels, including social media, call, video call, messaging, SMS and community using robust tools to boost customer satisfaction and team productivity. 
  • Workforce Engagement: Improve customer experience with better adherence management, scheduling and forecasting. Train agents with coaching sessions and real-time feedback to enhance productivity and team workflows. 
  • Remote Work: Help agents stay productive and cater to customer queries from anywhere via mobile apps. Let agents interact with customers across many channels and boost the overall client satisfaction rate. 
  • Analytics: Analyze an agent's performance across multiple channels and bring in data to create real-time, intelligent customer insights. Coach employees to become more productive, performance tracking, team processes optimization and make decisions for the company's customer operations. 
  • Implementation and Support: Get an onboarding session from an experienced professional while installing the system to optimize results, drive maximum results and learn about the product and its installation techniques better. 
  • Inbound: Create inbound routes that allow customers to communicate more effectively with agents without channel barriers via workflow routing and conditional automation. 
  • Customer Feedback: Understand customers better, measure satisfaction rates, understand product expectations through client surveys and get insights into everything that might generate more leads. 
  • Security: Get creative in CX and optimize interaction flows and empower agents while preserving customer trust and safety. 
  • Integrations: Eliminate the chances of a data breach via world-class integrations with robust customer database tools and CRMs such as Zendesk and ServiceNow. 
  • REST APIs: Get the flexibility and freedom to build customer-centric solutions and streamline customer journeys by securing data and improving interactions. 
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  • Cloud Contact Center
    • Unified Open Platform: Enhance workflow efficiency and business processes, and integrate with business tools with its open platform architecture, agent desktop, management and reporting.
    • Routing and Queue Management: Distribute calls intelligently across teams, agents and remote agents in multiple sites. Create routing strategies to leverage skill assignments at the agent or team level. Match agent skill set and availability with customer needs, priorities and values.
    • Call Distribution: Prioritize call distribution depending on agent capabilities, Designate the way calls are distributed to salespeople and reroute them to another available agent if the prior one is elusive. Put the non-responsive worker to an unavailable state to avoid sending them calls and toggle their status back to an active state once they’re back.
    • Flow Builder: Build custom contact flows over system-generated events, including transfer, hang-up and agent answer, while handling customers with precise routing and workflows. Create, edit or validate flows before publication through an automatic drag-and-drop UI interface. Configure Call Associated Data (CAD) variables, courtesy callbacks and transfer activity based on Estimated Wait Time (EWT) and Place In Queue (PIQ) while customers hear music. Enable custom flow requests, including Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF), playing prompts, touchtone menus, digit collection, screen pops, triggers for feedback and music in the queue with Webex Experience Management.
    • Wrap-Up Codes: Create deposition codes to track the reason for an agent’s inactivity and call’s end.
    • Callback Options: Offer customers the option to leave their contact numbers and receive a callback from agents rather than waiting in a long queue.
    • Disaster Recovery: Redirect traffic during unexpected emergencies such as transport facility outages, natural disasters and power disruptions. Be productive anytime and anywhere only with the availability of a computer, internet connectivity and phone.
    • Single Sign-On: With a one-time login, you can access all Webex applications. Integrate all call center solutions with your Webex Control Hub identity.
    • Webex Control Hub: Offer a blended administration experience for all collaboration services such as messaging, calling and contact center. Enable a simplified and seamless onboarding experience to users for multiple collaboration services through a unified interface along with security, control entitlements and compliance
    • Management Portal: Set up simple, flexible call flows and routing strategies, direct multi-skilled sales representatives to queues and administer a Default Outdial Automatic Number Identification (ANI). Monitor team performances in real time via call monitoring and dashboards, analyze customer trends by accessing historical reporting and analytics and log out team members who are inactive through the agent state dashboard.
    • Supervisory Features: Access calls and listen to conversations from a dial-in connection or corporate network without the agent or caller's knowledge. Barge in or coach during the call at any time and train the agent privately during a live discussion.
    • Email Channel Capabilities: Pull emails from multiple accounts, set up a template with signatures and greetings, route messages by the subject line keyword analysis and edit emails with rich-text capabilities. Access add-on capabilities such as attachment support with configurable limits, wrap-up codes, audible indicators for new emails, conversation history and grouping. Access email reporting in the analyzer and multi-session support for contacts.
    • Text/Social Media Capabilities: Access various features, including secure interactions, wrap-up code for chats, blind/consult transferring and conferencing, submission of customer satisfaction (CSAT) surveys, reporting on text/social interactions in Analyzer and customer satisfaction history on social channels.
    • Virtual Agent (Chat and Voice): Offer a 24/7 intuitive, self-service experience across multiple channels with a bot for less complex and simple inquiries to customers. Reduce calls to agents, leading to better customer experiences and improved productivity. Improve call containment with fewer calls escalating to agents, automate more business transactions using self-service and relieve agents from mundane and repetitive tasks.
    • CRM Integrations: CRM Integrations: Improve workflows with pre-built connectors for integration with several leading CRM systems, including Zendsk, Salesforce and MS Dynamics.
    • Flexible Cloud Migration: Take the first steps to the cloud with the "cloud-first-not-cloud-only” approach. With advanced hybrid cloud and flexible consumption services, you can achieve cloud innovation without disturbing existing on-premise models.
  • On-Premise Contact Center
    • Finesse Desktop: Improve agent performances through customizable supervisor and agent desktop layouts, personalized heading and logo, blended agents with outbound and inbound capability, screen-pop-ups with complete information about customers, phonebook, E 164 support, multi-session web chat, live data reporting, agent state and call history and drag and drop gadgets
    • Customer Surveys: Conduct surveys to understand the client’s needs and serve them better. View self-assessments and compare with other team members and boost productivity.
    • Home Agents: Use Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) phone devices to transfer, accept, disconnect and conference calls while Cisco Unified CCX handles interactions.
    • Workflows: Allow simple and easy configuration of complex screen-up actions via REST APIs and Finesse HTTP. Set up actions and workflows for digital and voice channels using an intuitive, logic-based interface that offers better service and reduces handle times.
    • Cloud Connect: Enable customers to connect an on-premises solution to the product’s highly redundant and secure Webex Contact Center and deliver new services and consistent reporting.
    • Next-Generation Reporting: Get live and historical data and dashboards along with flexible presentation options through the Unified Intelligence Center. View historical and live or custom reports depending on the information that needs tracking via existing studies.
    • Open System: Take advantage of hardware platforms to enable various benefits at a modest hardware cost. Access features, including Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)-compliant databases and Java interfaces for CTI applications and integrate them with existing solutions while preserving investments and offering a platform with modern applications.
    • Smart Licensing: Manage licenses across the business with a more agile method and let customers pool licenses across various sites. Redeploy when required and increase usage during burst requirements.
  • Cloud Applications
    • Predictive Analysis: Make informed decisions regarding improving customer and agent experience for positive business outcomes.
    • Financial Analysis: Access a one-page, boardroom-ready financial analysis to get budget and buy-in approval for customer experience initiatives.
    • Journey Path Analysis: Solve the attributes impacting financial metrics and customer experience to get better results.
    • Theme Analysis: Get 95% accuracy while analyzing the theme and sentiment of customers’ unstructured data through AI and machine learning.
    • Dashboards: Create a personalized dashboard and access real-time performances of agents through KPIs, comparisons and analysis.
    • Actionable Insights: Track customer experience and improve performances by turning mounds of data into real-time measurable actions through customer journey maps.
    • Closing The Loop: Improve customer experiences by listening to all customer responses and handling them in real time
    • Question Builder: Add, delete and modify questions easily. Create surveys to analyze customer experience across all channels and touchpoints.
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Product Ranking

#24

among all
Call Center Software

#76

among all
Call Center Software

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Analyst Rating Summary

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Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

Sharpen
Cisco Contact Center
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Calling Capabilities Call Routing System Collaboration Dialers Mobile Capabilities Phone System Voice Intelligence And Analytics Voicemail And Messaging Workforce Management 93 98 94 88 97 93 90 94 88 0 25 50 75 100
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User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 116 reviews
Great User Sentiment 261 reviews
85%
of users recommend this product

Sharpen has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 85% when considering 116 user reviews from 3 recognized software review sites.

83%
of users recommend this product

Cisco Contact Center has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 83% when considering 261 user reviews from 4 recognized software review sites.

3.6 (21)
4.1 (10)
4.44 (48)
n/a
4.4 (47)
4.5 (5)
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4.4 (116)
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3.9 (130)

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Easy to Use: Sharpen's interface is intuitive and user-friendly, making it simple for agents to learn and navigate. The platform's drag-and-drop functionality allows for easy call flow creation and modification, empowering supervisors to make changes without relying on IT support.
Agent Empowerment: Sharpen provides agents with tools to manage their availability and schedules, promoting a sense of ownership and control over their work. The platform also offers performance dashboards and analytics, enabling agents to track their progress and identify areas for improvement.
Supervisor Visibility: Sharpen offers supervisors real-time and historical data on agent performance, call queues, and other key metrics. This comprehensive visibility allows supervisors to identify trends, address issues promptly, and make data-driven decisions to optimize call center operations.
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Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Give customers a smoother, more efficient experience. Send calls to the right agent, monitor events and record conversations so customers get help faster and come back for more.
Better Teamwork: Make it easier for your team to work together. Allow them to share information and talk in real time, and help each other solve customer problems.
Business Growth: Expand your teams, connect with other tools you might use and set up the software in different ways to match your growing needs.
Smart Decision-Making: Use real-time data reporting tools to track what's happening in your call center, spot trends in customer questions and improve overall performance.
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Limited Reporting: Sharpen's reporting capabilities may not be sufficient for some Call Centers, especially those with complex needs or a large volume of calls. The platform may lack the ability to create custom reports or integrate with other business intelligence tools.
Integrations: Sharpen may not offer a wide range of integrations with other business tools, such as CRM or workforce management systems. This can limit a Call Center's ability to streamline workflows and improve efficiency.
User Interface: Some users find Sharpen's user interface to be clunky or outdated. The platform may not be as intuitive or user-friendly as some other Call Center software options.
Customer Support: Sharpen's customer support has received mixed reviews, with some users reporting long wait times or difficulty getting issues resolved.
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Added Initial Costs: While call center software can save you money in the long haul, it can be a bit pricey to get started, especially for smaller businesses. There are the upfront costs of buying the software and then maintenance, like paying subscription fees every month. Companies need to take a good look at their budget and make sure the benefits outweigh those costs.
Connectivity Issues: Cloud-based call center software relies on a steady internet connection for agents who work from home. If the internet goes down, so does communication with customers. Companies should have backup plans in case the internet goes out so they can keep helping customers.
Limited Adaptability: Call center software comes with many features and ways to customize it, but sometimes, it might not do exactly what a business needs. This can lead to figuring out workarounds or having to buy extra software to fill in the gaps, which can make things more complicated and expensive.
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Sharpen seems to be a bit of a mixed bag, with users highlighting both its strengths and weaknesses. On the positive side, many appreciate its user-friendly interface and intuitive design, making it easy for agents to navigate and find the information they need quickly. The platform's robust reporting and analytics capabilities also receive praise, allowing managers to track key metrics and identify areas for improvement. Additionally, Sharpen's omnichannel functionality is a major plus, enabling seamless communication across various channels like voice, email, and chat. However, some users point out that Sharpen can be a bit pricey compared to other call center software options. There are also occasional complaints about technical glitches and a lack of certain advanced features found in competing products. Some users mention that customer support can be slow to respond at times. So, who is Sharpen best suited for? It appears to be a good fit for small to medium-sized businesses looking for a user-friendly and comprehensive call center solution. Larger enterprises with more complex needs and higher call volumes might want to explore alternatives with more advanced features and scalability.

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Screenshots

Top Alternatives in Call Center Software

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