Easy Access to Info Reduces Phone Time for Call Centres

Call centres function according to a simple principle: the amount of time an operator spends on one call affects the amount of calls an operator can take in a day. The amount of calls taken by a single operator has a direct effect on the operator’s productivity and the call centre’s profit.

Call centres should ensure that operators are equipped with the right information so that they can help customers as swiftly as possible. This solution sounds simple enough, but is difficult to implement when information is stored on more than one database.

The information that operators require to answer customer queries often come from third party systems. This is especially true for outsourced call centres that deal with multiple customers on behalf of multiple clients.

Data relevant to the customer is not always available as queries can’t always be predicted accurately. This is especially relevant to complex service offerings like software support or insurance products. To be effective, the operator needs access to both the customer’s information and the data required to complete the query.

Business Intelligence (BI) tools have long promised to be the solution to this problem, but they have some shortcomings. Running reports can be time-consuming and require IT department resources. Relevant reports are not always up to date, nor are they accessible to everyone that needs them.

New generation BI tools overcome these problems by extracting data in a different way. One such tool is Progress Software’s EasyAsk. It runs an intelligent search of the whole system and puts keywords into context. All this tool requires is a dictionary that contextualises phrases instead of the traditional On Line Analytical Process (OLAP) tables.

This system overcomes traditional BI limitations by almost instantly producing up-to-the-minute reports, based on questions asked in natural English. The call centre operator therefore has access to data without any additional IT training. The benefit to the call centre is that queries can be answered while the operator is online, eliminating the need to refer unusual queries that may require a call back.
Gustav Piater, Marketing and Sales Director for QBCon, a business solution provider that implements EasyAsk in South Africa, says: “We have installed EasyAsk in two very large call centres in South Africa with great success. The simplicity of the system makes it possible for operators at both companies to access information that would previously not have been available. It has given both centres’ customers a competitive advantage that I believe will soon become a prerequisite for call centre profitability.”