CALL CENTER SERVICE: Before the Negotiations…

Domestic call center services, as opposed to international centers, fall in

two categories. There are captive centers like those of banks and financial

institutions which prefer not to outsource and do it in-house, not to save cost,

but to ensure the security of sensitive nature of their business. Other than

that, there are outsourced centers which offer services to telecom service

providers and across verticals.

Service Options



Still undecided whether you want to go for a captive call center or to

outsource to an outside agency? Ask yourself some questions and do some serious

homework accompanied with some research. Before deciding upon what is good for

you, list out all relevant expense heads for the project, and compare the cost

of handling them in-house vis-à-vis those of outsourcing. List the projected

costs of everything–hardware, software, personnel, consulting, etc. Weigh the

cost incurred against the end-benefits, risks involved and the flexibility it

gives to your overall operation.

Consider the following options:

n Captive Call

Center: Go for it if: 



The function is a core competency itself and you can manage it with your

existing staff and equipment, and when time is not a factor It necessitates a

high degree of integration with the company’s in-house product It involves

customer-sensitive information that you won’t like to share with anybody and

outsourcing might put that at a risk and benefit your competitors Budget is a

constraint and the overall impact on the business will be negligible.

n Third-Party

Call Center: Outsourcing your call center activities to a third party should

be considered if:



The function is not your core competency


It is not a differentiator between you and your competitor


Yours is a small, start-up company and you want to save money


You lack the resources and the necessary expertise to handle a project


Time is a crucial factor and hiring staff and setting up an operation will take
time



The project is short-term


You are not able to keep pace with your competitors in terms of with changes in
technology

n Inbound Vs

Outbound: Inbound is aimed at taking care of enquiries from customers,

usually high volume calls. It also takes care of customers’ various needs–learning

more about a product or solving a problem pertaining to products they have

bought. Technical product support and partial troubleshooting also come under

inbound.

Outbound is aimed at those companies that sell high-value products or

services for high-end customers. It is used to collect feedback, to send welcome

calls when a new product or service has been launched, sales and market research

targeted at existing or potential customers, telemarketing, campaigns, and

promotions.

Buying Tips

Following are some of the features to look for in the call center service

provider before outsourcing the task:

n Extent of

Coverage: If your business requires customer interaction across a number of

cities, it is imperative to look for a call center that has presence in multiple

locations. Alternatively, it should be ensured that it has the facility of a

single number, in case it operates from a centralized location.

n Quality of

Infrastructure: The infrastructure of the call center should be in keeping

with the latest technology that is available in the market. The quality of

telecom equipment, specially that of switches, is of particular importance in

this regard. If calls need to be routed, then the type of router being used

should be checked. Also important is to find out how calls are being routed,

whether it is on a LAN, database server or LAN server. Are the calls being

blended or the facility of intelligently routing is there? Please find out. The

equipment that the call center is using should be from reliable and well-known

companies.

n Security of

Data: The safety of customer data is very critical in today’s highly

competitive business scenario. Chances of data being pilfered or hacked by

competitors are quite high. It is in the best interest of the outsourcing

company to ensure that customer data is not misused. The credibility of the call

center has to be properly ascertained before outsourcing the functionality to

it.

n CRM

Capability: This is fast emerging as an important part of a call center

operation. It should be kept in mind that the call center service provider is

using a software that is capable of routing incoming calls and contacts based on

the value of each customer. Moreover, it should be able to generate reports on

the basis of interaction with the customer that draw certain value-added

conclusions. The call center should also have the facility to identify and

separate high-value customers, who should receive personalized prompts when they

send an e-mail or visit the website for customer service.

n Cost: Needless

to say, one should go for a call center that provides value for money. This

doesn’t necessarily mean going for a cheaper alternative. But at the same

time, paying a higher cost does not guarantee a good quality of service either.

The cost of services in a call center generally depends on the volume of calls,

the profile of agents, and factors like peak call volume. One has to carefully

evaluate the call center service provider on these aspects and then enter a

negotiation process. Paging companies, which have transformed their businesses

into full-fledged call centers, may offer a better deal here than the pure-play

call centers.

n Expertise: The

service provider should have sufficient expertise in serving a wide variety of

markets. It should have the capability to handle calls of all nature, ranging

from simple questions to technical queries. Those having a combination of both

will be in a better position to offer complete services. This can save you the

task of going to multiple service providers for different services. Ideally,

look for a service provider who has the capability to provide a contact center

where the customer interacts.

n Quality of

Agents: Notwithstanding the above factors, the quality of agents will make

the real difference. One has to take stock of the quality of training that is

being provided to agents who are going to handle calls, e-mails, etc. It should

be found out if the call center has a pool of talented and experienced agents to

handle calls, specially the technical inquiries

Buying Tips

Following are some of the features to look for in the call center service

provider before outsourcing the task:

n Extent of

Coverage: If your business requires customer interaction across a number of

cities, it is imperative to look for a call center that has presence in multiple

locations. Alternatively, it should be ensured that it has the facility of a

single number, in case it operates from a centralized location.

n Quality of

Infrastructure: The infrastructure of the call center should be in keeping

with the latest technology that is available in the market. The quality of

telecom equipment, specially that of switches, is of particular importance in

this regard. If calls need to be routed, then the type of router being used

should be checked. Also important is to find out how calls are being routed,

whether it is on a LAN, database server or LAN server. Are the calls being

blended or the facility of intelligently routing is there? Please find out. The

equipment that the call center is using should be from reliable and well-known

companies.

n Security of

Data: The safety of customer data is very critical in today’s highly

competitive business scenario. Chances of data being pilfered or hacked by

competitors are quite high. It is in the best interest of the outsourcing

company to ensure that customer data is not misused. The credibility of the call

center has to be properly ascertained before outsourcing the functionality to

it.

n CRM

Capability: This is fast emerging as an important part of a call center

operation. It should be kept in mind that the call center service provider is

using a software that is capable of routing incoming calls and contacts based on

the value of each customer. Moreover, it should be able to generate reports on

the basis of interaction with the customer that draw certain value-added

conclusions. The call center should also have the facility to identify and

separate high-value customers, who should receive personalized prompts when they

send an e-mail or visit the website for customer service.

n Cost: Needless

to say, one should go for a call center that provides value for money. This

doesn’t necessarily mean going for a cheaper alternative. But at the same

time, paying a higher cost does not guarantee a good quality of service either.

The cost of services in a call center generally depends on the volume of calls,

the profile of agents, and factors like peak call volume. One has to carefully

evaluate the call center service provider on these aspects and then enter a

negotiation process. Paging companies, which have transformed their businesses

into full-fledged call centers, may offer a better deal here than the pure-play

call centers.

n Expertise: The

service provider should have sufficient expertise in serving a wide variety of

markets. It should have the capability to handle calls of all nature, ranging

from simple questions to technical queries. Those having a combination of both

will be in a better position to offer complete services. This can save you the

task of going to multiple service providers for different services. Ideally,

look for a service provider who has the capability to provide a contact center

where the customer interacts.

n Quality of

Agents: Notwithstanding the above factors, the quality of agents will make

the real difference. One has to take stock of the quality of training that is

being provided to agents who are going to handle calls, e-mails, etc. It should

be found out if the call center has a pool of talented and experienced agents to

handle calls, specially the technical inquiries

Market Information

The domestic contact center services industry is slowly beginning to gain

ground and level of awareness and perceived benefit among the Indian enterprises

and MNCs besides telecom service providers about outsourcing is increasing. But

the domestic call center market is far from reaching a level attained by some of

the players servicing international users. More and more companies are realizing

this and are outsourcing the job of handling customers to outside centers.

Companies like Microsoft, HP, Bose, Satyam Infoway, Living Media, AirTel, among

others, have gone for outsourcing their customer care and tech-support services.

Similarly, Indian and foreign banks and financial institutions have set up their

own customer care interaction centers. Indian private banks like ICICI have gone

for the captive ones, on the lines of multinational banks like Citibank, HSBC

etc. Sensitivity of data is a great inhibitor that is stopping companies from

outsourcing their customer-care activities. Mostly telemarketing jobs are

outsourced, as the database is not so crucial and no value-added services are

provided

The ongoing rate for call center services varies from the type of services

that are being offered. Rate is based on the nature of contract. Generally

speaking, an eight-hour shift costs about 18,000 per agent per month. On the

basis of calls, it range between Rs 3 to 4 per call. For campaign-related

services, companies usually charge a bulk rate.

The billing per seat in domestic contact centers, as compared to their

international counterparts, is not so attractive. But still, the margins are

good enough to sustain on the basis of generating volume and by offering a range

of value-added services.

Investment per seat costs about Rs 50,000 initially, with just a PC and a

phone to answer simple queries. This can be upgraded to IVR and other services,

and the cost increases, depending on the requirement of the client. Billing, on

an average is 10,000 per agent per shift for a month, for basic services. It can

go up to 30,000 to 35,000 per seat in a center that provides technical and

value-added services. Needless to say, it will be the volume which will drive

the business.

Paging companies have taken the lead in utilizing their paging infrastructure

and human resources for answering queries for other companies. With the number

of paging subscribers decreasing everyday, this has become a new opportunity for

these operators. DSS eContact, a Dalmia company which offers services under the

name Caretel is a leading player in the domestic segment with operations in 11

cities employing about 1500 people. Telecom, IT, Consumer Durables, Consumer

goods and Automobiles are some of the verticals being serviced by the company.

Some of its prominent clients include Samsung, Nokia, Dominos, Stanchart, HP,

Videocon and Zee TV. Sometime back, the company expanded its operation in to

North East of the country. Microwave Communications of the HFCL group, another

paging company is also a leading player which has diversified into the call

center services business to supplement its paging business. Then there are

another set of companies who are pure 3rd party players catering to customer

care needs of corporates. There are several players in this segment which

include players like Solutions, Orion Dialog, and Magus.

To have an idea of the size, let us take an example of telecom service

providers. Inquiry services have been a part of the incumbent operators long

before the concept of contact center became popular. BSNL and MTNL are beginning

to realize the importance of setting up such centers but are preferring to set

up their own captive centers rather than outsourcing their needs. This is mainly

because these companies have sufficient surplus staff, which can be utilized to

man the centers. However, given the fact that the number of subscribers in basic

and cellular has risen to about 50 million, opportunities are likely to arise

for domestic contact center operators.

Setting Up Inhouse Call Center

n Step 1:

Technology Choices: Two kinds of technologies are available for call centers–traditional

EPABX-based and next generation server-based.

Traditional EPABX-based call center: Historically, call centers evolved from

being a place with just telephone lines landing on agents’ desks. Then a PBX

was added to distribute calls coming on common lines. Over time, predictive

dialers, IVR systems and CTI were added to create a full-fledged call center.

Server-based call center: A server-based call center integrates all the

components of a call center into one server as software components. Server-based

call centers offer three main advantages:

Dramatically lower cost: A server-based call center now costs far less, the

total cost of ownership being up to one fourth of the traditional architecture.

This is because standard hardware and software components rather than

proprietary systems are used. Call center components are software modules on a

common platform, which does away with expensive and difficult integration needs.

Superior functionality and smooth scalability: Server-based call centers

provide far superior features. The most important aspect of server-based call

centers is the flexibility they provide in increasing the scale of operations.

Web integration, multimedia contact: Most of the information delivery is

moving towards the Web and hence Web integration becomes very important for

providing good access to customers. The multimedia handling capability of

server-based systems will become crucial in the coming years as communication

will be through rich ‘hypermedia’, which will seamlessly integrate video,

voice and data.

n Step 2:

Equipment Sizing: Both telecommunication and computer equipment must be

sized appropriately to handle call loads projected for a call center. A certain

number of incoming PSTN trunks will be required to handle a specific load. PBX/ACD

and IVR units must have an appropriate number of ports to receive incoming

trunks and additional ports to handle internal agent lines. Computer networks

must handle an appropriate number of network connections. Appropriate sizing of

each of these components is essential for efficient call center implementation

and operation.

Server-based call center architectures are generally non-blocking, hence the

complexity is reduced to estimating the call load, which is used to derive the

number of PSTN ports required. A general rule of thumb is that the ratio of PSTN

ports to number of agents for effective agent utilization should be between 1.5

and 2.

Telecommunications equipment are generally sized based on peak loads and

desired performance levels. Various formulas and queuing algorithms are used to

determine line and port configurations for incoming call center operations.

These models are based on performance parameters including:

Blocking levels–the number of callers who get a busy signal in a specified

period of time



Queue times–the duration of time for which a caller is held in queue prior to
connecting to an agent



IVR time–the time required to complete an IVR portion of a script


Agent time–the time required to complete an agent portion of a script


Re-dial rates–the percentage of blocked callers who re-dial within a peak hour


Average number of calls per month


Number of calls during a peak hour

Peak call volumes are traditionally used for equipment sizing. A number of

peak load situations may actually occur in an operation, all of which must be

considered when developing loading models.

n Step 3:

Telecommunication Issues: Following are some telecommunications issues to be

considered when deciding upon a call center location:

PSTN service provider support and availability of current technologies: Does

the local exchange provide digital links or just analog ones? This may be an

important issue when scaling up the operation?

Possible use of existing equipment: In case there is a sizeable investment in

PBX and telephone lines then can they be effectively used in the call center

environment?

Potential for redundancy in the network: Can the PSTN service provider give

routing from two different exchanges to increase reliability? This is critical

in the Indian environment where exchange failures happen, and the snapping of

links is a daily phenomenon.

Agent infrastructure: Two important issues, which are often not given due

importance in equipment selection, are agent computer monitors and agent

headsets.

n Step 4:

Operational Issues: The operational issues in a call center include facility

design, staffing and workforce management, employee motivation and training,

performance management and utilization for cross selling.

Facility design: Call center development will, in many cases, require the

design of new facilities or redesign of the existing facilities. In either case,

it is important to create a well thought out facility plan, with process work

flows and employee satisfaction being two important criteria in the design.

Staffing and workforce management: Periods for peak claim loads may generally

be identified through call volume statistics.

However, the exact volume of calls that might arrive at any point in time is

unknown. Optimizing the number of staff available to deal with these unknown

volumes, is critical.

Tracking call center performance: Important criteria are abandonment rates,

numbers of calls handled by each agent, average speed of answer and/or wait

times, average time of each call (by agent) and percentage of blocked calls

(busy). However, quality customer service is much more important than achieving

these goals.

Cross selling services: Call centers that consistently cross-sell at every

opportunity can quickly become a profit center as opposed to a cost-center.