Fewer call centre workers prediction
CALL centres will be manned by fewer, but highly trained operatives, who are able to meet the increasingly sophisticated demands of customers accessing information via a myriad of information channels - not just telephones.
That was one Teesside call centre boss’s prediction following a survey that claimed customer service levels in the UK industry had fallen.
Chey Garland, head of Tees-based Garlands call centres, said industry was already moving towards low-staff services, “but it will be a long journey”. More than 47,000 people are estimated to be employed in call centres in the North-east, representing 5% of the workforce.
According to automated voice software provider Dimension Data, which polled 300 call centres, including 59 in the UK, average answering times had fallen from 23 to 38 seconds. Customers had become more impatient, abandoning their call quicker than a decade ago if it remained unanswered or was parked in a queue. Researchers claimed call centres were not matching customer demand with investment.
But Ms Garland, who employs more than 3,000, said she was not alone in investing heavily in the knowledge base. She said the industry standard was to answer 80% of calls in 20 seconds. “Those kind of service levels are a given,” she said. “But it’s not just speed to answer, it’s about opening up more channels for customers to contact us and pointing more customers to self serve.”
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