The Contact Center Blog

Learning to Speak Contact Center-ese

While getting familiar with the contact center industry, one of the most challenging things is familiarizing yourself with all the terminology and acronyms. In hunting around I found a call center “dictionary” of sorts which you can find here. I thought it might also be useful to briefly summarize some of the key terms which you might encounter and explain how they could impact you if you were selecting an outsourcer.

Talk Time – This includes the total time spent on a call when an agent is talking to a contact. It’s the time from when the phone is answered and the agent says “hello” right to when the caller hangs up.

Wrap Time – This is the time at the conclusion of the call when the agent is still working on something to assist the contact, however the actual call itself is over. This might include data entry, etc.

HT – This is an acronym for “Handle Time”. Basically this includes the entire length of time required for dealing with one customer contact. The HT includes the talk time of the call plus the wrap time.

AHT - You might also hear AHT which stands for “Average Handle Time”. You can get this by taking the total of all the HT’s for a particular group of calls divided by the number of calls in that group to get the average.

When shopping for an outsource contact center AHT can have a strong influence on the price. Most outsourcers charge a price per agent minute or per agent hour. While a potential service provider that offers a cheaper rate per minute might seem like the obvious choice, shaving a few seconds off the AHT – for example a shorter wrap time – can result in significant savings when multiplied times your total number of calls.

When you’re shopping around, ask what techniques each center has for reducing the AHT.  If they don’t know what an AHT is, refer them to this blog (and choose a different provider).

February Call Center Absorption

Site Selection Group, LLC just released their February numbers for call center openings and closings for the month. The company researches the absorption of the call center and back office jobs across the world and releases the numbers on a monthly basis.

For February 2008, they report "Our research identified the creation of 12,285 call center jobs at 27 facilities and the displacement of 2,675 call center jobs at 14 facilities." The following table identifies the employers creating jobs during February of 2008:

2015: The Demise of the Indian Call Center?

One of the great debates in the call center industry is ‘nearshore’ vs. ‘offshore’ outsourcing. There are numerous benefits to both sides, but one clear advantage overseas centers have is access to a cheaper labor pool.

The biggest offshore outsourcing country is India, and according to a new article at financial website Forbes.com, salaries in the country ‘rose 15.1% in 2007, up from 14.4% the previous year. The 2008 forecast: 15.2%.’ Amazingly enough this will be the fifth straight year that salaries have increased by an average of at least 10%.

If this trend continues, it is argued that the cost advantage of outsourcing to India will disappear completely by 2015! Being someone who works for a North American center, this gives me great confidence in the long term feasibility of the nearshore business model.

Contact Center Outsourcing Myths #2 and #3

Hi all, its been a while since my last post, I am going to try and make a regular post going forward at least once per week.

This week I was interviewed for Internet Retailer magazine regarding what goes into a successful relationship between a outsourced contact center and their clients.  I found myself explaining that one of the key factors to success is not being tempted by one of several "myths" many clients believe when outsourcing.

Two common myths I have come across are:

If I outsource, I wont need to spend any time managing the contact center.”

The truth of the matter is that without at least some client involvement, many contact center outsourcing arrangements can be doomed from the beginning.  It amazes me how the majority of clients we onboard are surprised when we request they attend a weekly operations meeting as well as QA calibration sessions (weekly or monthly depending on the complexity of the account).  We also ask that the client visit us as much as possible, at least once per quarter, to view the operation and give feedback.  Even with some of our smaller clients, who dont have the weekly meetings etc, they are speaking with our client services team as often as once per week and need to have a firm grasp on the contact center needs for their organization.  The bottom line is that even when outsourcing, it is imperative that you have resources available to work with the outsourcer in making your campaign a success.  Clearly, you will need to invest less time than if you were to manage the contact center in house, but it would be a mistake to think you are going to hand over the keys to an outsourcer and never have a worry again.

Contact Center Outsourcers that have experience in my industry will be better prepared to handle my account.”

I couldnt begin to tell you how many prospects that ask us for references in their industry.  In reality, having industry experience can mean very little to the success of the outsourcer.  I would suggest the most important experience comes in the function the contact center will be playing.  For example, if a retail/apparel company was looking to outsource customer care including refunds and exchanges, I would suggest the contact center outsourcer with experince in refunds and exchanges will have a leg up on the contact center outsourcer who has experience with the retail/apparel industry performing other functions.  Also, experience with client requirements, such as enhanced reporting or workforce management, can be far more crucial than any industry related experience. 

Cheers,

GF

Offshore Call Center Agent Stress Rising

With every job comes a little bit of stress. The call center environment is so dynamic and fast paced, stress levels can be on the high side. Agents especially are the front line staff that must deal on daily basis with irate customers who just usually pick up the phone to vent to someone who has to listen.

A recent article published by Multichannel Merchant, examines the higher stress levels in an offshore center. India in particular is experiencing a rise in health related issues for people employed in call centers. The article states, "The 1.6 million people who work in India's thriving call-center industry, mostly in their 20s, have reported health woes such as heart attacks, ulcers, and insomnia, according to research. These afflictions stem from the stress of dealing with irate customers."

Every North American consumer knows when they are reaching an offshore agent, despite efforts to accent neutralize and adopt cultural assimilation techniques. They are already upset about something before they call, then feel even worse when they know they are talking to someone thousands of miles away. It's no wonder these agents face the brunt of many angry calls. Yet, India is recognizing this and is acting. The article states that "the situation is serious enough that India’s Health Minister plans to introduce a policy specifically for the call center industry."

Any comments on what your call center is doing to reduce stress levels of your agents?

- MK

Call Center Outsourcing Myth #1 – “Just Butts in Seats”

When it comes to outsourcing, there are many myths that surround our industry and it still surprises me that many of our potential clients still believe in them. One of the most prevalent misconceptions is that many decision makers will just focus on the human resource cost to outsourcing, and not the infrastructure and processes that are required to run an efficient center. They will equate the cost of the solution only with the salary cost of an agent

We’ve had a client say to us, “Why are your solutions priced this way? Isn’t it just butts in seats?” This was surprising to us, not only because our rates are at market or usually lower, but the client did not understand all that elements that went into running a call center.

Here are some factors to consider:

1. Human Resources – Yes, there is the obvious cost of the people taking the call, chats, or emails; but what about the cost of recruiting, selecting, training and retaining a hire? Outsourcing will eliminate the costs associated with hiring and maintaining a viable workforce. An experience call center will manage their hires to minimize attrition and not just hire just anyone to fill their seats.

2. Support staff – Along with the agents, there is a full team of support staff that is needed to keep call running efficiently. In our facilities we have a full team of supervisors (day and night), team managers, QA assessors, workforce management team, IT technicians, and an a full account management team to support our clients. These added costs must be considered as we need to increase the number of people in these roles with every new group of agents we add to the floor.

3. Infrastructure – What about the building? How about common areas and training facilities? Many people forget to include rent and utility costs associated with maintaining a center. By outsourcing, you are sharing these costs with other accounts so it is rolled into one price.

4. Technology & Telephony – The technology in a call center is critical to running efficient and successful operations. Your outsourced partner must make huge investments in the latest call center technology and ensure it is maintained and kept up to date. There are many costs to consider - hardware, software, integration fees, customizations, reporting and analytics, licenses, upgrades, T1 lines, telecom and telephony cost etc. By outsourcing, clients don’t have to worry about the hassle of maintaining the technology required to run at required service levels.

So as we can see, it not just getting “butts in seats”. There is more to it than that. Any other outsourcing myths to share?

- MK

Considering the Rising Canadian Dollar

Traditionally, the Canadian/US exchange rate has favored the American client. Recently this has changed due to the rising value of the Canadian dollar. Many people have asked me why U.S. clients are continuing to choose Canadian and other near-shore options for outsourcing? The answer is that Canada can still offer a few key advantages:

• Lower turnover. Comparing records on Statistics Canada and the U.S. Department of Labor sites, we can see that in spite of the healthy Canadian economy the U.S. still maintain an average lower unemployment rate then Canada, which leads to lower turnover of employees. This creates more stability of staff translating to better consistency in service quality.
• Better Education. When choosing an outsourcer, you are choosing their agents to speak with your contacts and represent your organizations. Canada statistically has a more highly educated workforce. According to a study done a few year ago by The Urban Institute, about 8% more of the Canadian workforce have obtained at least a high-school diploma.
• Pricing. Yes, that’s right, we’re still generally less expensive up here. How? According to jobfutures.ca it’s a generally higher standard of living at a lower wage. In the U.S. the national mean hourly wage for contact centers is $11.63, where as the average in Canada is only $10.60.

Outsourcing to near-shore centers has always worked well due to geographical proximities and cultural similarities. Canada has been the near-shore leader for over a decade now and there's more than one reason for that. If you’re considering outsourcing, I recommend calling on a few Canadian companies and let them give you their best shot.

I think you’ll be impressed.

-Jeff Fettes

Benefits of Call Center Outsourcing

I came across this blog entry, "Aside from Cost Savings" and it discuss the other benefits to outsourcing, outside cost. As the article mentions, the top reason to make the decision to move to a 3rd party usually starts with cost savings, but there are many other benefits to be aware of. I'd like to explore the additional benefits specifically in the call center space.

Flexibility - by outsourcing you can have the flexibility to scale your campaigns up without having to manage the additional resources required to meet service levels. Vise versa, you can scale down your campaigns and not have to deal with reducing resources and firing staff. This also allows you to efficiently and cost effectively deal with the seasonality of your business.

Focus on core competency - This is one of  most touted advantages to outsourcing. But In the call center industry specifically, this is even more important. Being in the call center business is tough. The business is very dynamic and needs a true focus to be operating productively. By outsourcing the customer service and sales side of your business, you can focus growth and development. With a direct focus on both sides of your business, you have all areas covered to meet revenue targets.

Quick ramp up, low risk - If you are starting a project from the ground up, you can reduce set up time and quickly ramp up by using a 3rd party. They will already have the facilities, human resources, technology, and processes in place to get you started faster than you can on your own. This is also a benefit if you are not sure of volumes and marketing success rates in which case you can use an outsourcer to test the waters and prove the concept before moving forward.

There are many more benefits I can add in...I'll write a part 2 soon. Anyone else have any specific to the call center industry to add?

- MK

Actions Speak Louder Than Messages

If you’re going to outsource…OUTSOURCE! Hiring a full-service professional call center to just take messages is sometimes a good temporary solution if you need a rapid set-up to cover a large number of calls and really don’t have a long term need to invest the money into getting your outsourcer trained on how to service your customers. However, if you plan to outsource calls long term, you have to be prepared to put in some effort.

Remember that even though you want to create the illusion of seamlessness to your contacts, there is a separation there. Outsourced agents will never be quite as familiar with your organization as your actual employees are. To create that illusion, information will have to be more carefully scripted and presented so that it’s easy for the agents to read and present to your contacts. To do this effectively, you may want to develop specific custom web-based tools to help the call center access information in a way that’s familiar to them.

Might this be expensive? Difficult to do? Yes, but it’s worth it. The old expression, “you get out what you put in” comes to mind. If you truly want your outsourcer to be a seamless extension of your organization, you have to empower them to be able to actually help your contacts. “First call resolution” is an expression in the contact center industry you may have heard. It means that when the caller phones in, their concerns are addressed and dealt with on that first single call, without further follow-up being necessary. According to a study done by the CFI Group, this is the most important issue in contact satisfaction. The major benefits to first call resolution include:

• Your callers will leave the call more satisfied if the reason for their call has been resolved (i.e. order placed, payment made, etc.)
• Your overall cost is diminished as you are paying for the time your outsourcer spends on the phone. 1 call is cheaper than 2 is cheaper than 3.
• Seamlessness between you and your provider. Nothing screams “outsourcer” like a call center agent who asks to take a message for what should be a very simple task (checking their account balance, placing an order, etc.)

All that being said, you have to be realistic at the same time. If you’re a small company and your main reason for outsourcing is that you don’t receive many calls but you still want the phones covered when customers call, then outsourcers may not be able to achieve a first call resolution for you on that scale. The important thing is to understand the importance of a first call resolution and to keep an eye on your process as you progress, looking for new ways to empower your call center to work better for you and your contacts.

-Jeff Fettes

On-Demand Pricing Vs. Traditional Hourly Pricing

I’ve been reading a lot lately about “on-demand pricing” in the outsourcing world and people keep asking me what it is. On-demand pricing basically means that you pay for what you use, usually at a bit of a premium with some kind of minimum. The concept is by paying a little more per transaction, you will ultimately save money by not having to constantly over-estimate your needs and pay for the wastage. Does that make sense? No? Let’s try an example:

My friend Mike throws business lunches at a trendy restaurant every Wednesday as a tool for attracting potential clients. He invites 40 people to the lunch every week, but really has no idea how many will show up. Sometimes as few as 15 come, but sometimes all 40 show up and a few times the 40 brought friends. The restaurant’s pricing options are:

1. The restaurant would cater a party of 40 for $35 per person with one weeks notice.
2. Guests can order off the menu which works out to an average of about $42 per person but Mike has to guarantee a minimum bill of $450.

Mike found that option 2, paying $7 more per person, was actually cheaper than constantly catering for 40 and throwing out the excess food. Even better, if 43 showed up, he didn’t have to worry about being short on chicken.

In the contact center outsourcing business we call this on-demand pricing. In a traditional contact center pricing model, you pay by agent per hour. This works out well if you get a large volume of contacts (phone calls, chats, e-mails) in a very predictable time frame. With on-demand pricing your usage can fluctuate up and down a little more comfortably. The outsourcer will charge you incrementally (for example 24-7INtouch has packages with per minute pricing) and you will end up paying a little more total for each call, but will save money overall if you need a bit more flexibility. So how do you know if on-demand or traditional hourly pricing is the way to go for your project? Here are a couple of small tips:

Traditional Hourly Pricing	On-Demand Pricing
Contacts come in during regular business hours	24 hour service is required
Contacts are steady and very predictable	Contacts can come in large spikes
Very large volume of contacts (more than 10,000 per month)	A smaller or unknown volume of contacts (small-medium sized businesses)
Volume of contacts is established and fairly stable	Volume of contacts may require some quick unanticipated scalability up or down

The best way to know which model will suit your project is to talk to a professional at an outsource contact center who can help you look at your campaign from both angles to make the best decision.

-Jeff Fettes

Contact Center Best Practices Report

I received an email communication from the CCEOC promoting their best practices report. I thought it might be of interest to call center professionals out there.

This report brings up the discussion - what makes YOUR contact center a GREAT place to work? With high attrition rates in our industry and once great call center communities saturating, it is becoming increasingly important to create a culture that fits with your company brand and helps retain good employees.

Based on 24-7 INtouch's strategy, we keep our environment small and intimate enough to create a positive culture and supportive atmosphere for all employees, especially frontline staff. If Sally knows that she will let her team down by "calling in sick", she might think twice before doing so. We'd also want her to want to come into work because she enjoys who she works with, albeit the actual role is very challenging. Other things in my opinion that make a great call center environment are the little things like being heard and having support - again which can usually only take place within a smaller work community. Of course leadership must also foster this and encourage communication between all levels of the company.

I would like to open the discussion up to see what readers think makes a contact center a great place to work - comments anyone?

MK

"Contact Center" versus "Call Center"

In my experience when talking to prospective clients and industry professionals, many use the word “call center” and “contact center” interchangeably. Despite semantics, these two are very different and can mean different things for a client.

So, what’s the big difference?

A call center is solely voice focused. Call center agents will answer phone calls from customers, partners, internal employees, or anyone else trying to reach the company. A contact center, on the other hand, answers voice calls but also has multi-channel capabilities. Agents have the training and technology support to answer phones, chats, web-based calls (VoIP) and emails. Contact centers are also referred to as “web-enabled call center” or a “customer interaction center”. In everyday conversation, call and contact are used synonymously. However, essentially, a call center is part of a contact center.

With today’s technologies, it is essential that call center become web enabled and evolve into contact center. We are in an industry that is so attached to the word “call center” even though clients may require more than just voice support.

Five years ago, 24-7 INtouch evolved into a contact center to meet the demands of our online focused clientele. Although voice still represents a large part of our business, there is much growth in answering chat and emails for our clients and will continue to grow as Internet adoption rates increase for these web based tools.

Even though many clients call still call us a call center, we are multi-channel and can do much more than just answer phone calls. Think of joining a fitness center and only using the weight machines “(i.e. the call center portion), but you have access to the swimming pool and squash court too!

MK

Welcome to the Contact Center Blog!

Well folks, here it is, finally, at long last, the contact center blog has arrived.  What is the contact center blog you ask?  The general idea was to create a blog where people who are stakeholders in contact center outsourcing companies, whether it be clients, suppliers, partners, or even outsourcers themselves can have open discussions on all things contact center.   Whether it be topics like operations, new technology, driving volumes, workforce, human resources or whatever, we want to encourage open and honest communication in our industry.

I'm sure your next question is "who the heck is this guy?"  Well, my name is Greg Fettes, and I am the President and CEO of 24-7 INtouch, a contact center outsourcer based in Canada.  You can check out my LinkedIN profile or visit the about us area on the 24-7 INtouch website.  At the risk of sounding too "salesy" (a big no-no on this blog from here on!), we have been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in Canada two years in a row and pride ourselves in being a true leader in innovation for technology, process, and management in contact centers.  In fact, that is the underlying reason this blog got started.  It was a way to create a community that will push the industry in a new direction.  In the coming months you will see guest authors from inside and outside the contact center world make posts on different issues concerning contact centers.  But here's the trick; we are depending on you, the readers, to make comments and push discussions forward.  Maybe you agree, maybe you disagree, or maybe you have experiences that you can share that will bring the conversation in a new direction.  We will not be censoring posts or comments for any reason (except vulgarity of course!) so you will be free to absolutely speak your mind.   Anyways, enough background already, lets get on to the blog!

My plan for posting comments on the contact center blog will be to follow a somewhat similar format each week.  I am hoping to post regularly once per week on Mondays and have a few random posts throughout the week.  Please feel free to give feedback on the blog in general as my goal is to make it as useful and informative as possible.

Thanks and happy blogging!

GF