19/09/14 How to set up a call centre f rom scratch the checklist

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Filed under Technology , process, recruitment
How to set up a call centre from scratch the
checklist
Looking to set up a contact centre from scratch?
Here is a quick checklist of things to consider.
People
Agents: the most important element of a contact centre!
Agents health and safety is paramount. Ensure they have an ergonomic
workstation to minimise work-related muscle strain and health issues: a height
adjustable desk and chair, ergonomic keyboard and mouse and a headset for
hands-free productivity all aid in this area. Ensure this area regularly receives a
health and safety assessment to ensure it adheres to specifications.
Looking after agents is key to a happy, productive workforce where results are
high and attrition is low.
Recruitment
Consider whether you are easily able to recruit in the area you plan to locate
your contact centre. Who are your competitors in terms of recruiting agents and
what financial benefits are they offering, and does this fit with your business
model requirements? Remember to consider not just agents, but the specific
skillset for the roles you need and what transport links are available.
Process
9 Jaime Jaime
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Business processes
Review the business processes for your contact centre. Are they already
documented and the processes mapped or are these being written from
scratch? If they are yet to be defined, then now is the time to get them right. The
accuracy and effectiveness of these will critically impact all further decisions that
need to be made around staffing and software/infrastructure requirements.
Getting this right is difficult but worth every minute spent on it. Whatever your
processes, use a good, flexible call scripting/CRM tool to map them, integrate
all back-office and legacy systems into a coherent flow and then deliver them to
agents from day one. It will save you a fortune in training and will also remove a
lot of uncertainty and teething problems when you go live.
Integrate with your website
Crucially, ensure that your call centre is fully integrated with your website, or any
website that may be important to your activity (such as price comparison sites,
Google services, your clients websites, etc.). For instance, it is crucial that the
systems you put in place have the ability to expose and consume web services
with little or no need for bespoke software development.
Social business
Be open for social business from day one. The way in which customers choose
to communicate is changing, which means that contact centres must be flexible
in how they interact with customers. Multichannel functionality allows agents to
respond to voice, email, social media, Chat, SMS and web call me requests,
all within the same application.
Technology
Think cloud
A cloud-based contact centre infrastructure which fits your business model
combines the benefits of a traditional on-premise solution with the flexibility, cost
efficiency and multichannel capability provided by the scalability of a hosted
solution.
Software
You need to consider what applications are required to support your business
processes. Think about whether hosted in a cloud or desktop based is the right
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decision for your contact centre. Also, for systems that contain customer data
(and perhaps card-holder data), you need to ensure that the required level of
compliance can be achieved around Data Protection and PCI.
Speed of change
If speed of change is important to your contact centre, how much control do you
need to maintain? If you are relying on external suppliers to deliver elements of
change, ensure that they have the resources and skills to meet your needs in a
timely fashion.
Headsets
Headsets are essential for all agents, so, where possible, purchase noise-
cancelling headsets as they block out background noise. Wireless headsets
facilitate freedom of movement, and as the DECT density can be set on each
headset for your specific environment, larger contact centres can still use this
type of device. Duo headsets are also a useful option to block out noise and
allow agents to focus on their calls.
A supervisor cable is a useful and cost-effective device that allows managers to
listen in on calls for training purposes. Noise at work protection is another
necessary precaution that should be taken when setting up a contact centre, so
look for EU Control of Noise at Work compliant audio devices.
Collaboration
Remember collaboration is coming. The ability to automate business processes
and integrate with collaboration tools such as Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft
Lync and IBM Sametime are critical in todays world of collaboration.
Location
Location independent
Try to separate the technology from the location(s) of your operation. Setting up
telephony and systems in a private cloud with non-geographical numbers and
centralised delivery of systems such as ACD, dialler, scripting, CRM, etc. are
good decisions to make. The future is an uncertain place and the ability to be
agile, add new locations, outsource when appropriate and allow for growth are
the things which a separation of call centre and technology will give you.
Cloud-based contact centres are location independent, which means that
19/09/14 How to set up a call centre f rom scratch the checklist
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agents and administrators have the freedom to log in from any location. All that
is required is a phone line (PSTN, SIP or mobile) and an internet connection.
Environment
Pay attention to the office layout to create a healthy working environment
Using the full space to disperse agents so they are not all sitting together
creating a hub of noise will help to support a more positive sound environment.
Pay attention to placement of equipment such as printers and photocopiers, as
the noise they generate can increase general office noise levels.
Add sound barriers between agents to soften the ambient office noise.
Other cost-effective steps that can be utilised to support this include using soft
furnishings where possible, such as blinds, carpets, cushions and padded
chairs. Plants also help to absorb sound within office environments.
Where possible, provide break out areas for calls that require privacy or extra
concentration. These can also be used for team meetings or one-to-one
sessions.
Get your phone connections in early
Try to choose and order your ISDN and broadband connections as early as
possible. Whatever supplier you end up going with, the lead times are going to
be long. This is because behind the scenes, BT, Virgin, C&W and a handful of
other large and slow telecom suppliers are still the only providers of lines and
they take months to deliver. Dont leave it to the last minute as this may delay
your launch by weeks, if not months.
Plan for the future
Build for now but plan for the future. Every modern contact centre needs to scale
and seamlessly grow to cost effectively react to market changes. The ability to
add agents across centralised or distributed locations can make the difference
between success and failure when responding to customer demand.
Management information
Make sure you have lots of management information, live monitoring and
performance reports from day one. It is important that your information is current,
accurate and easy to understand. Telephony stats are not enough. You will need
to be able to link telephony data to the content of calls. This is another good
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Comments on: How to set up a call centre from
scratch the checklist
Headsets are essential for all internet user
Posted by Maidulpci 19 Sep @ 10:39 am
Hi, Im inspired by how you have made it seem possible to pursue this venture.
Your steps or check list is just what I needed because I have all the necessity to
reason to use scripted processes as these will add meaning to your statistics
and allow you to fine-tune your operation.
Contributors
Sian Ciabattoni, Andrew Doyle, Danny Singer and Klaas van der Leest.
Special thanks to Sian Ciabattoni, Marketing Director Noble Systems EMEA;
Andrew Doyle, Managing Director Jabra Business Solutions, UK & Ireland;
Danny Singer Founder & CEO of Noetica; Klaas van der Leest, UK Managing
Director Intelecom.
24 Jul 2013 - Filed under Technology , process, recruitment
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start but just didnt know where to start. I have all the expertise to run a call centre
and at this point in time I need all the help I can get.
This has made my day and I have an idea where to begin now.
Many thanks
T. Madlala
Posted by Thokozani Madlala 16 Feb @ 5:38 pm
Thank you very much for the information, it really helped a great deal. Is it better
or advisable to use routers to set up?
Posted by yvunne 3 Jul @ 5:49 am
i need information on how to get a process to start a call centre
?
Posted by Amol 8 Sep @ 11:10 am
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