Virtual Contact Center

Advancements in technology and voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) finally reaching maturity, have changed the face of the contact center. What was once a brick and mortar building full of desks, phones, computers and people can now morph into a completely different infrastructure.

Such an infrastructure is that of the virtual contact center. While there are many benefits that an organization can achieve by implementing a virtual contact center, the real question is whether or not the company is ready to handle such an endeavor.

While it is assumed that the organization has access to the necessary technology to make a virtual contact center possible that is really only the first step towards making the virtual contact center a reality. What seems like it should be an easy step can actually create a disaster for the company is it is not done correctly.

Consider the fundamentals of the virtual contact center: agents are located either together in an office or individually within their homes; agents are managed remotely; calls are monitored and measured remotely; training and coaching is also most often done remotely. While agents can love working on their own, they tend to lose out on being part of a team and learning the internal culture of the company.

In order to determine whether or not your company is ready to go the route of a virtual contact center, there are a few things that must be examined. First, what is the encouraged management style within the organization? Are your call center managers comfortable managing subordinates who work on their own?

Second, what is your current technology infrastructure? Can your contact center support a virtual private network to allow your agents’ access to the network and all necessary applications and files in order to properly serve the customer? In addition, does your PBX support a call routing system that can direct calls anywhere?

Third, are your hiring practices so fine-tuned that you can easily identify and recruit competent individuals who are self-motivated, self-starters who can not only get the job done, but will provide the best representation possible for your company?

As in creating any contact center environment, the virtual contact center must be able to fully support the mission of the organization by providing a unified front and quality customer service at all times. If the organization cannot properly achieve these goals with a brick and mortar contact center, they are not yet ready to embark on a virtual contact center.

 

Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.