SAN DIEGO, April 19, 2006 – The Service & Support Professionals Association (SSPA) and J.D. Power and Associates announced today that Oracle has extended the coveted Certified Technology Service & SupportSM certification to include its worldwide technical support services. Oracle’s support business encompasses 5 continents and 17 support hubs. This distinction recognizes Oracle Corporation for delivering outstanding technology service and support for its enterprise database and business application product lines worldwide. Certification is based on independent J.D. Power and Associates audits of customer satisfaction as well as support practices across all modes of support. Oracle was also the first enterprise software provider to receive the certification in North America.
Jointly developed by the Service & Support Professionals Association (SSPA) and J.D. Power and Associates, this unique certification program combines validation of customer satisfaction and a rigorous audit of a company’s internal policies and procedures. Certification by J.D. Power and Associates, a leading marketing services firm and a recognized authority on quality and customer satisfaction, demonstrates a company’s elite status in the industry and gives their customers tangible evidence of excellent customer service experienced by other customers as they evaluate which technology products to purchase.
“Oracle’s effort to achieve worldwide certification of their support services demonstrates their commitment to their customers’ success,” said Bill Rose , founder and executive director of SSPA. “As the technology industry matures, leading companies like Oracle are recognizing the need to deliver world-class service as well as great products.”
Built by a blue ribbon industry committee of over 50 leading technology companies, the certification requires companies to rank in the top 20 percent of the industry, based on J.D. Power and Associates’ extensive technology industry benchmark customer satisfaction research. Certified companies must also pass an expert audit of its support policies and procedures. Certification must be renewed each year.
“Oracle has passed extremely rigorous standards, and earning this certification shows the company’s dedication to providing enterprise customers with the highest level of service and support,” said Vafa Akhavan, executive director at J.D. Power and Associates. “Customer satisfaction and loyalty ranked extremely high in our evaluations, indicating that Oracle clearly understands the importance of meeting the needs of a global customer base by supporting a successful service and support organization.”
Oracle passed a detailed audit of its worldwide service and support business processes on a wide range of industry best practices criteria, including: business strategy; talent management; tools and technology; and outsourced service management, as well as all components of its service delivery and other key service metrics. In addition, Oracle customers ranked their satisfaction with Oracle’s service and support in the top 20% of the industry, according to the industry benchmark maintained by J.D. Power and Associates.
“As a company we are committed to extending our industry leadership in Support Services by providing outstanding customer support,” said Juergen Rottler, executive vice president, Oracle Support and Oracle On Demand. “Our global support infrastructure gives us the power to deliver industry-leading support to help customers succeed. The global certification recognizes Oracle as an industry benchmark for delivering high-quality customer support and an outstanding customer experience anywhere in the world.”
J.D. Power and Associates is currently evaluating technology service and support organizations across the industry to determine if they are eligible for certification. Other companies that have achieved the prestigious certification include, HP North America Consumer Products Division, Internet Security Systems (ISS), Xerox and Cisco Systems.
The certification program, jointly developed by the SSPA and J.D. Power and Associates, features a unique certification structure that lets companies with different business models apply for certification under those modules that are relevant to their business. Under the program design, all companies will be required to be certified across a common set of core criteria. Companies will also be certified for additional service and support criteria – Assisted Support, Non-Assisted Support, Field and Depot Service – based on the way they deliver their services. In addition, the program will accommodate certification for companies who deliver their services through a services outsourcer or channel partner.
Queries about the J.D. Power and Associates Certified Technology Service and Support program can be made by calling 1-858-674-5491 or visiting www.thesspa.com.
