Contact Center Virtualization
How To Reap the Rewards From Virtualizing Distributed Contact Centers
Many companies operate multiple contact centers as a result of business expansion or acquisition. Usually, each contact center site was built to meet a specific requirement, where their business processes are based on a smaller part of the overall contact center business. Also, usually their technologies are of a mixed economy. From an enterprise perspective, it would be better to turn these geographically dispersed and discrete contact centers into a single virtual contact center operation that is more efficient, easier to manage and has improved customer service.
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This approach enables existing agents to work as a single unit, and allows the organization to take calls or contacts (e-mails, Web chats, etc.) based on agent availability and appropriate skills, not geographic location. The virtual approach also enables companies to more evenly distribute contact volume and to deliver more consistent customer service. Significant savings and consistency of service can be achieved with the implementation of a virtual contact center (VCC) and a standard operating model (SOM).
Although creating a centralized physical contact center requires construction funding, the relocation or laying off of agents, and the hiring and training of new staff, a virtual contact center provides a wide range of investment and operational cost savings. A growing number of companies simply cannot afford the people and technology needed to improve the efficiency and performance of their contact center infrastructure.
In this Contact Center Virtualization white paper, Shaun Vaughan, Bill Miller and Clare Wilson examine the five key elements to consider when transitioning from discrete contact centers to a virtual environment:
- Process transformation
- People alignment
- Technology convergence
- Management information
- Business continuity
The authors also make recommendations for implementing and managing a successful virtual operation to achieve efficiency, cost savings and superior customer service.