INDIANAPOLIS, May 3, 2021 – Sharpen Technologies, developers of the agent-first omnichannel cloud contact center platform, won a Bronze Stevie® Award for its Performance Tiles in the 19^th Annual American Business Awards®. Judges called the management tool “innovative,” “intuitive,” and a “game-changer” in the Data Visualization Technology category.

The American Business Awards are the premier business awards program in the U.S. This year, the organization received more than 3,800 nominations. The record number of applicants, ranged in categories, including Startup of the Year, Executive of the Year, Marketing Campaign of the Year, among others.

The judges recognized Sharpen for:

• The “innovative way” it put the goals of management directly into the hands of agents to “allow them to self-monitor, review, and course-correct based on the KPI’s set by the organization and thus drive excellence in their performance.”  
• Providing “real-time feedback to contact center agents on their performance and management expectations. This visualization is very important, especially during the COVID-19 era, where work-from-home lessens the in-person contact and feedback loop.”  
• The “very simple and effective” concept behind it, that “keeping performance metrics in front of call center agents, and updating at each transaction, will drive measurable efficiency improvement that directly results in cost saving.”

“We’re excited how Performance Tiles are changing the way our customers do business,” said Sharpen chief technology officer Kevin Schatz. “Because we built it into our core functionality, at no extra cost, the benefits of performance data are now affordable to small and mid-size contact center operations for the first time. The money they are saving has been truly amazing.” 

Sharpen Performance Tiles lets contact center leaders choose three key metrics to monitor, configured at a user group level, for a pre-selected timeline. By surfacing the performance metrics that matter most to an organization onto every agent’s dashboard, agents are empowered with the knowledge of what is expected of them, how their work is impacting the business, and where they need to focus their attention in interactions—all without having to leave their queue. Sharpen Performance Tiles also allows managers to easily coach agents and provide feedback, keeping their teams productive and aligned, no matter where they work. 

One customer using Sharpen Performance Tiles reported an average 8% reduction in handle times and a projected savings of $1.5 million annually. Another experienced a 20% improvement in wrap-up times, a 17% improvement in hold times, a 12% reduction in average handle times, and an 8% reduction in staffing required for a yearly savings of $630,000. Due to the product’s measurable benefits, Sharpen guarantees a 5-15% return on investment using Tiles, or money back.

“The American economy continues to show its resilience, and as we’re poised on the beginning of what should be a phenomenal period of growth, we celebrate the remarkable achievements of a wide range of organizations and people over the past 18 months,” said Stevie Awards president Maggie Gallagher. “This year’s Stevie-winning nominations in The American Business Awards are testament to the ingenuity, the commitment, the passion, the adaptability, and the creativity of the American people.” 

Details about The American Business Awards and the list of 2021 Stevie winners are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.    

 About Sharpen Technologies

Sharpen Technologies is the world’s first, truly agent-focused contact center platform built in the cloud for the cloud. The omnichannel platform lets users work from anywhere, seamlessly moving between calls, texts, webchats, emails, social media etc., all in real-time and in a single interaction. Sharpen was recognized by Frost & Sullivan’s Contact Center Buyers Guide, North America for its “dramatic ROI,” “out-of-the-box integrations,” “powerful reporting and analytics tools,” and “demonstrable value.” In 2020, it made the Inc. 5000, the magazine’s annual list of America’s fastest-growing private companies. And, it is a “Best Places to Work” by both Inc. (2019) and the Indiana Chamber of Commerce (2017, 2018, 2021). Visit Sharpen on LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and the Sharpen blog.

About the Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards®, The International Business Awards®, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. The Stevies also produce the annual Women|Future Conference.  Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.