We recently received the following question through our "Ask The Experts" form:

We acquired a company a few months back and plan to continue a very strong acquisition path over the next year.  The challenge we have is that now we have a mix of customer account numbers with numeric and alphanumeric characters of varying length and configurations. Our IVR was originally built on a proprietary touchtone platform that only accommodates numeric account numbers. Our newly acquired customer base cannot perform self-service transactions and as a result, our customer service reps have become overwhelmed by routine calls.  It's become a tremendous strain on the rep and is causing a negative ripple effect and killing our performance numbers. What should we do?  One colleague suggested that we issue new account numbers for these customers, but I feel that such an approach would cause too much confusion for our users. Does this approach make sense to you?

Since you indicated that your company is going to continue with its aggressive acquisition strategy, I would strongly urge you to consider other options. 

It sounds to me like your IVR is going to continue to present you with a series of challenges as you move forward.  While older proprietary platforms were effective when first built, they won't be able to handle the complexities associated with today's contact center demands.  I would recommend that you consider upgrading your IVR to an open standards speech solution that supports VoiceXML.

By doing so, you'll be able to offer your callers a self-service solution that can handle a much broader range of transactions types, as well as a mix of alphanumeric and numeric account numbers.  A new platform will also enable you to implement sophisticated technologies to enhance your reps' ability to serve your customers.  And, obviously, your customers will appreciate the ability to have greater control over their self-service experience.