To Bob DuPont, vice president of reservations for Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, speech integration sounds like success. That’s because the car rental company is using the technology to both improve customer service and trim costs.

Speech integration technology is nothing new, as any telephone caller who has ever barked back responses to a seemingly endless series of voice prompts can testify. But an improved generation of speech integration software, based on more powerful processors and emerging Internet-focused standards, promises to make the technology more useful and cost-effective.

Until recently, organizations tended to shy away from speech integration because of the technology’s complexity and cost. "I had one client who had 60 people on its [speech integration] project," says Elizabeth Ussher, Meta Group’s vice president of global networking strategies who covers speech technologies.

Today, preconfigured speech templates, drop-in objects and other packaged tools make speech integration development less burdensome. Hardware improvements, particularly speedier processors, also help make speech integration a more practical technology. "Speech recognition is now very widely deployable," says Ussher. "I’m seeing clients with a return on their investment within three to six months."

Yet another reason for increased interest in enterprise speech integration can be found in the almost exponential proliferation of mobile phones, PDAs and other portable wireless devices. Speech input/output is an attractive alternative to cramped keyboards and miniscule displays. "If I’m on my mobile phone while driving my car, I’m not going to push buttons for my account number," says Ussher. "I’m going to wait for an agent?living or virtual."

Calling for Cars

Dollar Thrifty is using speech integration to handle some of the more than 1 million calls it receives each year from "rate shoppers"?bargain hunters who phone several different car rental companies in search of the best deal. "Many of the folks who call are just interested in checking rates," says DuPont. "They aren’t interested in making a reservation; they just want to get information for comparison purposes."

To free its call center staff from the burden of handling routine data lookups, Dollar Thrifty installed SpeechWorks International’s software at its Thrifty division. The system lets callers check rental rates and availability at airport locations by talking with a virtual call center agent. "It’s a very natural, realistic interchange," says DuPont. The software also automatically adapts to unique requirements, such as providing personalized rates for members of Thrifty’s loyalty program.

After checking rates and availability, callers who decide to make a reservation are seamlessly transferred to a live agent. A screen "pop" automatically appears on the agent’s display, presenting all the information the caller provided during the speech interface dialogue. DuPont estimates that 35 percent of calls to the company’s toll-free number go through the speech integration system.