Comcast uses cutting-edge IT for companywide makeover
Top technology exec addresses ABQs ExperienceIT conference
Cutting-edge information technology has paved the way for a virtual revolution in how Comcast Corp. runs its business, according to the company’s top technology guru.
Scott Alcott, Comcast’s chief technology officer and head of systems engineering nationwide, told a crowd of Duke City technology entrepreneurs and innovators that smart deployment of modern IT systems has helped transform the company’s “core architecture,” improving customer experience.
“Information technology is no longer just a back-office function,” said Alcott in a keynote address Friday at the New Mexico Technology Council’s ExperienceIT conference in Downtown Albuquerque. “It’s the basis for how we manage the entire customer life cycle.”
Today, everything Comcast does is managed online in real time, from signing new customers to troubleshooting technical difficulties, Alcott said. And that, in turn, is helping the company improve its image as a customer-friendly and responsive business, something Comcast has struggled with in recent years.
“We make things simple for our customers through digital, personal and pro-active interaction,” Alcott said. “It’s changing everything we do … Resiliency, reliability and performance are all showing improvement.”
Alcott — the highest Comcast executive to officially visit Albuquerque — was a major draw for technology professionals and entrepreneurs participating in this week’s ExperienceIT celebrations, which included three days of technology-related events, social gatherings and workshops organized by the Technology Council.
Comcast provided key support for ExperienceIT, helping to sponsor, organize and advertise the week’s events, culminating in the technology conference on Friday. The conference included a trade show and nearly two dozen workshops and presentations.
Comcast also sponsored a vipIT reception Thursday night for technology entrepreneurs and professionals.
It’s part of the company’s efforts to better connect with local communities, Alcott said.
“My coming to New Mexico helps make Comcast more accessible and human,” Alcott told the Journal. “We’re trying to make a big company feel smaller for our end users and customers.”
Alcott joined Comcast four years ago, and has since helped the company address its customer-oriented goals with modern technology.
Today, customers can fully manage their own accounts from smartphones or laptops, such as ordering new services or requesting technical assistance, Alcott said. And the company has rolled out new high-tech products and capabilities, such as voice-managed remote controls and streaming cable programs on mobile devices.
But to make all that happen, Comcast overhauled its IT systems and organization, with huge data bases
providing real-time management of every customer transaction nationwide. That allows instantaneous response to customer demands. And the system continuously monitors user devices to check their status and fix problems.
“Every six seconds, the system “pings” all set-top boxes to make sure they’re running in good condition,” Alcott said. “Meta data search engines look at everything simultaneously.”
Comcast’s technology hubs are in other states, such as Pennsylvania and California. But New Mexico has benefited from significant investment in recent years, including a new bilingual call center that opened in Albuquerque last December. The center nearly doubled Comcast’s local workforce, from about 400 people last year to 750 today, said Chris Dunkeson, Comcast area vice president.
All told, the company has invested nearly $600 million in New Mexico since 1996.
“We’ve built out our fiber network to better serve residential and business customers,” Dunkeson said. “We’ve been proactive in augmenting and upgrading our fiber network to enable customer access to all our cool new products.”