Stories by Kym Gilhooly

Business on the map

Mind-mapping tools make inroads into corporate IT as they streamline problem solving and help sturcutre tasks.

Full service

Priceline.com, the online travel service, has bet its business model on the fact that Web-savvy customers like to help themselves -- in this case, to deals on airfare, hotels, car rentals and the like. The US-based company has extended that model to its customer service operations, adopting an e-service strategy to complement its telephone-based call center. If customers run into trouble during a travel search, they're encouraged to try self-service or e-mail options -- more cost-effective ways to handle services issues -- before resorting to a phone call.