As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 2, 2002
                                                           Registration No. 333-
================================================================================

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                    FORM S-8
                             REGISTRATION STATEMENT
                                      Under
                           The Securities Act of 1933


                             INTER-TEL, INCORPORATED
             (Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)


                                                                                   
           Arizona                                1615 South 52nd Street                       86-0220994
(State or other jurisdiction of                      Tempe, AZ 85281                        (I.R.S. Employer
 incorporation or organization)         (Address of principal executive offices)         Identification Number)


            INTER-TEL, INCORPORATED 1997 EMPLOYEE STOCK PURCHASE PLAN
                            (Full title of the plan)


                                Steven G. Mihaylo
         Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer
                             INTER-TEL INCORPORATED
                             1615 South 52nd Street
                                 Tempe, AZ 85281
                     (Name and address of agent for service)


                                 (480) 449-8900
          (Telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

                                   Copies to:

                               Robert G. Day, Esq.
                               Caine T. Moss, Esq.
                        Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
                            Professional Corporation
                               650 Page Mill Road
                               Palo Alto, CA 94304
                                 (650) 493-9300

                         CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE


                                                                                                 
=============================================================================================================================
                                                                  PROPOSED MAXIMUM      PROPOSED MAXIMUM
                                               AMOUNT TO         OFFERING PRICE PER    AGGREGATE OFFERING        AMOUNT OF
TITLE OF SECURITIES TO BE REGISTERED        BE REGISTERED (1)         SHARE (2)              PRICE           REGISTRATION FEE
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value, to be
   issued under the Inter-Tel,
   Incorporated 1997 Employee Stock
   Purchase Plan......................          500,000                 $19.22             $9,610,000            $884.12

TOTAL.................................          500,000                 $19.22             $9,610,000            $884.12
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


(1)  Pursuant  to Rule 416  promulgated  under the  Securities  Act of 1933,  as
     amended (the  "Securities  Act") this  registration  statement is deemed to
     include additional shares of the Registrant's common stock to be offered or
     issued pursuant to the anti-dilution provisions of the plan listed above.
(2)  Estimated in accordance  with Rule 457(h) under the  Securities  Act solely
     for the purpose of calculating the  registration  fee based on the price of
     $19.22 per share, which was the average of the high and low price per share
     of the Common Stock as reported on the Nasdaq  National Market on April 26,
     2002 (the "Market Price").

================================================================================

                             INTER-TEL, INCORPORATED

                       REGISTRATION STATEMENT ON FORM S-8

STATEMENT UNDER GENERAL INSTRUCTION E - REGISTRATION OF ADDITIONAL SECURITIES

     Inter-Tel,  Incorporated (the "Registrant") previously filed a Registration
Statement on Form S-8 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on
or about November 26, 1997 (SEC File No.  333-41197)  (the "Previous Form S-8").
The  Previous  Form S-8 was  filed in  connection  with  the  Registrant's  1997
Employee  Stock  Purchase Plan (the "1997 ESPP").  This  Registration  Statement
registers  additional  shares  of the  Registrant's  Common  Stock to be  issued
pursuant to the 1997 ESPP.  The  contents of the  Previous  Form S-8,  including
periodic  reports  that the  Company  filed,  or reports to be filed,  after the
Previous  Form S-8, to  maintain  current  information  about the  Company,  are
incorporated by reference into this Registration  Statement  pursuant to General
Instruction E of Form S-8.

                                     PART II

               INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 8. EXHIBITS.

        Exhibit
        Number
        ------
          5.1       Opinion of John L. Gardner, General Counsel
         23.1       Consent of Independent Auditors
         23.2       Consent of Counsel (contained in Exhibit 5.1)
         25.1       Power of Attorney (See page 2)

                                   SIGNATURES

     Pursuant  to  the  requirements  of  the  Securities  Act,  the  Registrant
certifies  that it has  reasonable  grounds to believe  that it meets all of the
requirements  for  filing  on Form S-8 and has  duly  caused  this  Registration
Statement  to be  signed  on its  behalf  by  the  undersigned,  thereunto  duly
authorized,  in the City of Tempe, State of Arizona,  on this 23rd day of April,
2002.


                                        INTER-TEL, INCORPORATED


                                        By: /s/ Kurt R. Kneip
                                            ------------------------------------
                                            Kurt R. Kneip

                                POWER OF ATTORNEY

     KNOW ALL  PERSONS  BY THESE  PRESENTS,  that each  person  whose  signature
appears below hereby constitutes and appoints Kurt R. Kneip and John L. Gardner,
and each of them acting individually, as his or her attorney-in-fact,  each with
full power of  substitution,  for him or her in any and all capacities,  to sign
any and all amendments to this  Registration  Statement on Form S-8, and to file
the same,  with exhibits  thereto and other  documents in connection  therewith,
with  the  SEC,   hereby   ratifying  and  confirming  all  that  each  of  said
attorneys-in-fact,  or any  substitute,  may do or  cause  to be done by  virtue
hereof.

     Pursuant to the  requirements  of the  Securities  Act,  this  Registration
Statement has been signed by the following  persons in the capacities and on the
dates indicated:

           SIGNATURE                        TITLE                      DATE
           ---------                        -----                      ----

     /s/ Steven G. Mihaylo          Chairman of the Board,        April 23, 2002
---------------------------------   President and Chief
       Steven G. Mihaylo            Executive Officer


      /s/ Norman Stout              Executive Vice President      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------   and Chief Administrative
         Norman Stout               Officer


     /s/ Craig W. Rauchle           Executive Vice President      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------   and Chief Operating Officer
       Craig W. Rauchle


      /s/ Kurt R. Kneip             Chief Financial Officer       April 23, 2002
---------------------------------
        Kurt R. Kneip


    /s/ J. Robert Anderson          Director                      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------
      J. Robert Anderson


     /s/ Jerry W. Chapman           Director                      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------
       Jerry W. Chapman


        /s/ Gary Edens              Director                      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------
          Gary Edens


     /s/ C. Roland Haden            Director                      April 23, 2002
---------------------------------
       C. Roland Haden

     Pursuant to the  requirements of the Securities Act, the trustees (or other
persons  who  administer  the  employee  benefit  plan)  have duly  caused  this
registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned,  thereunto
duly authorized, in the City of Tempe, State of Arizona, on May 1, 2002.

Inter-Tel, Incorporated 1997 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

By: /s/ Kurt R. Kneip
    -----------------------------------
    Kurt R. Kneip
    Plan administrator
    May 1, 2002

                                INDEX TO EXHIBITS

        EXHIBIT
        NUMBER      DESCRIPTION
        ------      -----------
          5.1       Opinion of John L. Gardner, General Counsel
         23.1       Consent of Independent Auditors
         23.2       Consent of Counsel (contained in Exhibit 5.1)
         25.1       Power of Attorney (See page 2)