Call centers are an important component of an organization as it continues to grow. While it is not absolutely necessary for small companies, they are essential in order to give the consumer a platform in which they can address any issues they have about the products and services purchased from the organization. Even though there is a unanimous consensus regarding the benefits of having superior customer service, companies are reluctant to fund call center operations. It is therefore very important to eliminate or measurably lower wasteful practices to ensure the center is operating as efficiently as possible.
An article written by Ashley Smith on blog.kunnect.com looks at three ways in which call centers are wasting money, and what they can do to avoid this pitfall without having to compromise the customer service they are providing.
As Smith points out, call centers have to start assessing the impact of every decision that is going to be made or has already been implemented to the bottom line. While many of the solutions that are available in the market place can deliver a wide range of tools to improve call center operations, it doesn’t necessarily mean it is saving the organization any money.
In the past, one of the most cost-effective ways for organizations to deliver call center services to their customers was going offshore, but increasingly the long-term viability of using this option is coming into question. Performance related issues and other barriers have resulted in more companies moving their operations back to the United States. Since the purpose of contact centers is to increase customer satisfaction, implementing a solution that regularly receives complaints because of language or cultural barriers will only be responsible for higher customer attrition rates. Depending on the type services an organization is delivering to its customers, off shoring contact center services could end up being the most expensive and wasteful decision a company makes
Another source of waste in contact centers is when organizations insist on using outdated technology. Even though legacy platforms have served their purpose, the availability of cloud-based contact center solutions makes the argument for having the infrastructure on-premises very hard to accept. Organizations that are still holding on might not be aware of many of the benefits cloud contact services delivers with much lower CAPEX and OPEX.
Once the right platform has been implemented, organizations must implement solutions that are readily available in order to ensure the contact center is performing at optimal capacity. This includes a highly trained workforce, adhering to schedules, optimizing downtimes and deploying a monitoring and reporting function that gives administrators a clear picture of the current health of the contact center.
Whether it is contact centers or any other business, recognizing waste is an ongoing process that takes a concerted effort from everyone in the organization. Making the necessary changes can be the difference between staying in business or closing the doors permanently.