| Research |
24.02.2009
Organisations reported not to have mechanisms to improve back office efficiency
New research from the Professional Planning Forum shows that, despite the current financial climate, most organisations still do not have the mechanisms in place to improve the efficiency of their back office operations
February 2009
As more organisations capture data to plan and performance manage their back office operations more effectively, year on year survey data by the Professional Planning Forum demonstrates an increasing realisation that its accuracy is creating its own challenges.
While less than 5% of organisations believed that their data was totally accurate in both 2007 and 2008, the survey shows a revealing change of heart about the actual quality of data. Whereas in 2007, 43% of those surveyed felt that the data was within 10% accuracy, just over a year later this figure had reduced to only 35%.
The challenge to managers is that accurate data is increasingly taken for granted in front office environments. In these environments, a 5% swing can typically be planned for, when setting budgets, plans and managing performance. However, capturing accurate data in back office environments with current systems is still a big challenge, requiring a far greater margin of error when planning.
The Professional Planning Forum believe that accuracy of between 70 – 89% provides a practical and ‘good guide’ for driving efficiencies and providing a reasonable basis for performance management in the back office. However, the new research suggests that only 55% of organisations have the mechanisms in place to produce this.
If data capture is so key to driving improvements, what can the survey show us about whether this is improving?
Firstly, the research shows a shift in the methods people are currently using to capture data in this environment. The trend is away from manual inputting methods such as 5 bar gates, tick sheets and time and motion studies towards Microsoft excel and access, with over 27% of organisations now using this approach, an increase from only 11% in the last survey.
However while MS access allows SQL or ODBC links directly into mainframes systems, enabling rigorous data collection and analysis, MS excel does not offer much more than an electronic ‘tick sheet’. MS excel is after all an analysis tool not a data capture tool. The suggestion is that although organisations recognise the need to improve the automation and resultant rigour of data capture, managers tend to use tools that they feel comfortable with.
Interestingly, these limitations inherent in organisations that already plan for Back Office, are not reflected in the strategy of organisations that are about to drive planning disciplines into their back office operations. 58% of these latter organisations intend to purchase specific software for this purpose.
Perhaps more importantly, expectations are becoming more realistic about reasonable accuracy targets, with 62% of these organisations targeting data accuracy at between 70 – 89%, a much more realistic position than the 47% in 2007 who thought they could obtain data 90% accurate or greater from day 1.
Contact Centres supported by the Professional Planning Forum’s research and best practice events over the past 18 months are now able to plan and performance manage using a reasonable set of data with clear expectations about its accuracy. This is particularly important in the current financial climate, when operational efficiency and customer satisfaction are key to success.
Moving into the future, as organisations use more sophisticated tools for capturing performance data in the Back Office environment, accuracy rates will probably improve. But for now the research shows encouraging signs that organisations are being realistic about what is currently achievable.
Eleven back office measures were used in the survey including transaction volume, average duration of task, quality, end-to-end transaction time, reason for contact, bottlenecks and service levels.
Take the measurement of volume for example; a key measure needed to plan back office operations effectively. The pie chart below shows that only 25% have completely automated this measurement, removing the possibility of human error. Other measures are better captured however, with 36% of organisations automating the process to capture the reason for contact.
The range is extreme, with bottlenecks only 10%, task duration 14% through to 46% of organisations automating the recording of ‘longest items outstanding’.
However, even with this latter measure, while 82% of organisations can identify how long a task has been outstanding, only 38% can identify how long that piece of work should take to action. This highlights the fundamental issue facing managers wishing to run efficient and successful back office operations. Although they are collating a good measure of customer dissatisfaction, for the most part, they do not yet have the mechanisms in place to plan effectively to improve the customer experience.
The full research will be presented by the Professional Planning Forum at Contact Centre Planning to be held in London on 27 and 28 April, as part of the Back Office conference stream.
In the meantime, join the new survey launched this week examining how forecasting, scheduling and real time disciplines are currently being used in Back Office environments, and receive a full report free of charge to benchmark your back office operations against. http://is-nri.com/take?i=145711&h=ZIT92iBHEnsOY9_f5Gdllg
For further details contact:
Katherine Potter, katherine.potter@planningforum.co.uk
Or Steve Woosey, steve.woosey@planningforum.co.uk
Tel: 0333 123 59 60
The Professional Planning Forum (www.planningforum.co.uk) is the independent industry body for effective resourcing and planning in the contact centre industry, working across all industry sectors to provide specialist support for contact centre professionals. Championing the importance of these critical skills, the Planning Forum is widely recognized for its best practice research and case studies, as well as the results-focused nature of its professional development training and in-company workshops. The Planning Forum runs the Contact Centre Innovation Awards and Contact Centre Planning conference, to be held in London on 27-28 April 2009.
For further details contact:
Katherine Potter, katherine.potter@planningforum.co.uk
Or Steve Woosey, steve.woosey@planningforum.co.uk
Tel: 0333 123 59 60
The Professional Planning Forum (www.planningforum.co.uk) is the independent industry body for effective resourcing and planning in the contact centre industry, working across all industry sectors to provide specialist support for contact centre professionals. Championing the importance of these critical skills, the Planning Forum is widely recognized for its best practice research and case studies, as well as the results-focused nature of its professional development training and in-company workshops.
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06.02.2009
InVision Software Introduces Staff Retention Proposition at Call Centre Summit
InVision Software Introduces its Staff Retention Proposition at Call Centre & Customer Services Summit at the Radisson SAS Hotel, Stansted
Birmingham, February 3rd, 2009 – InVision Software, a leading international provider of contact centre workforce management (WFM) solutions, today announced its 2009 contact centre staff retention proposition, to be promoted at the Call Centre & Customer Services Summit in London Stansted, 16th – 17th March, 2009. InVision Enterprise WFM enables contact centres to reduce labour hours and payroll expenses without the need for excessive layoffs. As a result, InVision customers are able to lower operating costs for the short- and mid-term, while leaving themselves prepared for an eventual return to economic prosperity.
InVision’s proposition comprises two components: A unique workforce management (WFM) solution implemented by InVision’s team of experienced contact centre professionals, and a pricing option that relieves pressure on cash flow in these troubled financial times. A key benefit is the ability to maintain the higher quality of service that is provided by a permanent staff, helping to minimise customer churn – a common effect of poor service that leads to declining revenues.
“Corporations across the globe are desperate to cut costs to weather the economic storm,” said Peter Bollenbeck, CEO of InVision Software. “They need to be careful that this desperation does not lead them to decisions that are going to stifle their recovery efforts. We are offering a solution that will help companies reduce costs through optimised scheduling, and our short-term renewable licensing provides the cost advantage of software as a service (SaaS) with the full functionality of a system installed on customer premises.”
InVision’s schedule optimisation technology can reduce the working hours scheduled per employee and minimise overtime, cutting labour and payroll expenses. Savings are substantial, greatly offsetting the cost of the technology and proving an immediate reduction in operating costs. InVision’s optimisation engine leads the market in its ability to optimise schedules with respect to service levels and other key performance indicators (KPIs), as well as agent work availability and preferences. InVision is led by a team of contact centre industry veterans, and its professional services team adds value by empowering customers to take full advantage of the technology.
“Companies benefit from staff retention; many hourly employees would gladly sacrifice a few hours a week in order to save their jobs. We are all hoping for swift economic recovery, and when it arrives, demand for products and services will increase - demand that cannot be met with a reduced workforce,” Bollenbeck added. “Even though revenue may increase, companies that have reduced staff will not be able to meet the new demand without spending on recruiting, hiring and training a new workforce, delaying the return to ideal operating margins. InVision’s customers will be ahead of the game, and will simply need to increase scheduled hours.”
Visit InVision Software at the 9th Call Centre & Customer Services Summit: Radisson SAS Hotel, London Stansted Airport
To register for the event please contact:
Forum Events Ltd.
Forum House, 71 Mead Lane, Hertford, Herts, SG13 7AX
phone: +44 (0)1992 374100, fax: +44 (0)1992 504963
e-mail: f.lee@forumevents.co.uk
Further information: www.forumevents.co.uk
About InVision Software
InVision Software is a world-leading supplier of enterprise-wide workforce management solutions which enable companies to optimize their staff planning and scheduling processes. InVision empowers customers to reduce personnel costs, increase productivity, improve employee satisfaction and to boost revenue by leveraging better customer service. Founded in 1995 and based in Ratingen (Germany), InVision currently employs more than 230 WFM specialists and has offices across Europe, North America, and South Africa. InVision Software AG (IVX) is listed in the Prime Standard Segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Among InVision's clients are numerous international blue chip companies, such as ABN AMRO, Allianz, BMW, Computershare, Deutsche Telekom, IKEA, RAC, RBS, Sky and Vodafone.
Further information: www.invisionwfm.com
Press contact:
Jutta Handlanger
InVision Software AG
Head of Corporate Communications
Halskestrasse 38
D-40880 Ratingen (Germany)
phone: +49 (0)2102 728-252
fax: +49 (0)2102 728-111
e-mail: pr@invision.de
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04.02.2009
KCG Call Centers Selects Contact Center Technology from Noble Systems
KCG Call Centers Selects Contact Center Technology from Noble Systems for Telemarketing and Customer Service Programs
Virginia Service Bureau chooses blended platform from the award-winning technology vendor
Atlanta, GA – February 2, 2009: Kavanaugh CallCenter Group (KCG Call Centers LLC) has selected the Noble® Solution from Noble Systems Corporation to manage blended customer contact programs for its outsourcing center. Noble Systems is a global leader in contact center technology solutions. KCG is an independently owned and operated service bureau that has been offering quality, client satisfaction, and customer service excellence since 2005.
KCG selected the Noble® Solution to integrate its telemarketing and customer service activities with blended outbound and inbound contacts. Based in Pennington Gap, Virginia, KCG has implemented a customized 120-seat Noble Enterprise platform that integrates outbound dialing, inbound skills-based call routing, digital recording and screen capture, IVR and Virtual Messaging, and a complete suite of quality monitoring, management, and reporting tools. The unified Noble Composer agent desktop will allow KCG to easily create customized agent workflows and scripts to meet the customer contact program needs of each individual client and will streamline agent processes for improved productivity. The flexible Noble platform will allow KCG to provide direct program monitoring and program-specific reports so that its clients have a full view of their campaign activities and performance.
“KCG is pleased to be implementing a Noble Systems solution at our center in Pennington Gap, Virginia," says Kathy Kavanaugh, Site Owner and Director. "As a newly independent call center, it was important to us to have a complete call center package, an all in one solution. Noble brings that to the table for us. They provide inbound, outbound, IVR, reporting, quality assurance, and many other necessary features and capabilities. The Noble system turned out to be a completely comprehensive solution - and within our budget framework. The Noble Systems team is easy to work with and willing to take the time to explain things. We are quite happy we chose Noble technology for our call center.”
James K. Noble, Jr., President and CEO of Noble Systems, says, “KCG Call Centers delivers quality contact center programs for clients in a wide-range of industries. The Noble Solution will give KCG the flexibility to meet the needs of each individual client, from custom agent desktops and campaign setups to complete performance and results reporting. Noble Systems is proud to be the contact center technology provider for KCG, and we look forward to supporting their growth.”
About Kavanaugh CallCenter Group
Kavanaugh CallCenter Group (a.k.a. KCG Call Centers LLC), based in Pennington Gap, Virginia, provides customer care and sales support for its large scale clients, including lead generation, new sales/enrollments, customer service, customer retention, technical support, and other forms of customer engagement such as initiating service actions or program benefits. Founded in 2005 by Kathy Kavanaugh, Site Owner and Director, Kathy brings 30+ years of large scale call center experience in serving financial services, hospitality, retail and other service businesses. The call center is a self-contained fully functioning operation with the newest in technology, world class processes, and a strong team of up to 744 people serving customers throughout the USA seven days per week. For more information, contact Kathy Kavanaugh by phone at 276-546-2890, by email at kathy@kcgcallcenters.com, or visit www.kcgcallcenters.com.
About Noble Systems
Noble Systems Corporation (NSC) is a global leader in contact center technology solutions, providing innovative products since 1989. Every day, millions of customer contacts are made by agents at 2,000+ client installations worldwide using the award-winning Noble platform for inbound/outbound/blended communications. The scalable Noble® Solution includes advanced ACD and predictive dialing; unified contact processing; and integrated IVR, recording, messaging, quality/monitoring systems, scripting, workforce management, and real-time reporting and management tools. Based in Atlanta, GA, Noble Systems was the first vendor to offer an open, scalable, fully-distributed platform. For more information on this item or the company, contact Lee Allum at 1.888.866.2538 x538 (lallum@noblesys.com), or visit www.noblesys.com.
Noble, Noble Suite, Noble Systems, and the N-logo are trademarks of Noble Systems Corporation.
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02.02.2009
Contact Centre Planning 2009 held in London on 27 – 28 April
Rich mix of topics and exceptional line up of speakers announced this week for Contact Centre Planning 2009 held in London on 27 – 28 April.
With keynote speakers including Phil Dourado, the leadership guru, and Mike Finnegan, the sports psychologist behind ashes-winning England Cricketers and fast-rising premier league football teams, the agenda for Contact Centre Planning gets off to a great start.
The conference, entitled ‘Delivering the Customer Journey’ includes the choice of over 25 diverse workshop, discussion and case study sessions , including the chance to hear from all the finalists in the 2009 Innovation awards and attend the awards gala dinner.
Additional keynote speakers include Nick Lane, of Orange speaking on how the Power of Planning can make a difference, and Simon Roncoroni, of SRC, speaking about prospering during the new economic realities.
The rich mix of topics combined with the excellent networking opportunities arising from over 400 delegates expected to attend the event, means that delegates can focus specifically on their needs and that of the colleagues and partners with whom you need to work to deliver change in your contact centre.
To facilitate this, the conference agenda is organised to allow delegates to choose streams of specific interest. For instance the Outbound Forum runs throughout the second day with highlights including a rare opportunity to hear from Frank Phillips of OFCOM, who will give recommendations on compliance and the likely direction that regulation will take in the future and a presentation on the Telephone Preference Scheme by the Mike Lordan of the Direct Marketing Association.
Other streams with their own agendas include Back Office, Management Information, Lifestyle Planning and Customer Planning. Workshops include workforce optimisation, reducing employee attrition, homeworking and first time fix versus contact avoidance and there is an opportunity to hear case study presentations from all 15 award winners. There is also an excellent vendor exhibition area to allow delegates to check out what’s new.
An annually-attended event for contact centre directors and managers, MI analysts, resource planners and others, this year's conference is being held in the West London Novotel. The conference theme - Delivering the Customer Journey - gives a focus for seeing how effective planning can help organisations remove the silos that get in the way of a great customer experience.
From analysing the root cause of customer contact, through management information and targets that drive the right behaviour, to an integrated resourcing strategy that supports life-style planning and home-working - this year's conference provides ideas and opportunities for centres of all sizes and in all sectors - whether handling inbound, outbound or multi-media contacts.
Look online at www.planningforum.co.uk/conference for the full details or contact them on info@planningforum.co.uk to reserve your place.
For further details contact:
Katherine Potter, katherine.potter@planningforum.co.uk
Or Steve Woosey, steve.woosey@planningforum.co.uk
Tel: 0333 123 59 60
The Professional Planning Forum (www.planningforum.co.uk) is the independent industry body for effective resourcing and planning in the contact centre industry, working across all industry sectors to provide specialist support for contact centre professionals. Championing the importance of these critical skills, the Planning Forum is widely recognized for its best practice research and case studies, as well as the results-focused nature of its professional development training and in-company workshops.
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