Sending calls to agents working from home was a new concept 14 years ago. Today, over 80 percent of Fortune 500 companies are using or planning to use home-based agents. Conversations about the at-home or virtual contact center model have shifted from “why” it is more advantageous than brick-and-mortar (B&M) centers, to “when” and “how” it can be implemented as either an in-house or outsourced solution. Looking at the dynamics currently at play within the contact center industry, leading outsourced at-home companies are growing in excess of 25 percent annually. Taking these statistics to the logical conclusion, there will likely be no need for brick and mortar contact centers in the future.

Of course, this comes from the at-home side of the contact center world; executives at existing brick-and-mortar facilities likely will argue a different outcome. Yet, there are benefits unique to the virtual model, which support the growing use of at-home contact centers over physical call centers. 

Six Reasons At-Home is Gaining in Usage and Acceptance

Virtual contact centers combine highly skilled representatives with service flexibility, cost savings, business continuity and reduced environmental impact. The overall value they provide is a welcome alternative for large companies bringing customer service back on-shore due to customer frustration with foreign agents. These companies are reluctant to return to the expensive and less flexible B&M model, whose high fixed costs are what caused them to move offshore in the first place.

A Growing Virtual Workforce

“Today's workforce has changed tremendously. It's younger, more specialized, looking for better work...and it's virtual.” Josh Bersin, CEO of Bersin & Associates, Leading Expert in Talent Management

Forrester Research estimates that 63 million Americans will work from home by 2016. With no geographical limitations to hiring, virtual contact centers are able to take full advantage of this large and growing talent pool of workers. Using a process described as the “science of selection,” virtual contact centers hire and match employees to client programs based on brand affinity, specialized skills, cultural match and client requirements. The result is a workforce of home-based agents with demographics that provide distinct service and security advantages over B&M centers:

Lower Operating Expenses

Virtual call centers have the obvious advantage of lower operating costs than B&M facilities based on the simple fact that large physical centers are not necessary for service delivery. The high costs associated with infrastructure and facility maintenance, which are eliminated by the virtual model, include items such as:

Another factor contributing to lower expenses for virtual centers is the use of automation and technology. When employees are distributed across the nation, powerful automated systems help control the work that people are doing. Many times, what is automated in the virtual environment is still being performed manually by middle management in B&M centers. For example, a well-designed at-home agent program uses business systems to track the status and activities of all agents. Rather than monitor employees with an army of supervisors “walking about,” these processes and systems enable management by exception.

Ability to Generate Higher Revenue

Another reason more companies are choosing to outsource to virtual contact centers is the fact that at-home agents tend to generate more income per call than either in-house staff or B&M centers through increased sales conversions, greater average order sizes and higher customer satisfaction rates. This fact is especially important to companies who have found that only reducing costs may not be enough to operate in the black.

Improved Staffing Efficiency

Using a blended workforce of part-time and full-time professionals, schedules in a virtual environment can be set in 15 minute increments to closely match forecasted demand. Should the actual call volume differ from the forecast at any time, virtual call centers can increase or decrease the number of agents on the phones in real-time. In some instances, virtual at-home agents may be willing to work multiple, split shifts in a day. In contrast, B&M centers are forced to overstaff facilities to ensure adequate levels of staffing are available when call volumes are higher than anticipated. If volumes are lower than expected, these B&M centers have the added expenses of paying for on-site, under-utilized agents.

Reliable Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery

The ability to provide seamless customer interaction regardless of circumstance is one of the biggest drivers in home-agent growth. The effects of a disruption due to storms or other regional issues are drastically minimized when using a geographically dispersed group of agents.

Sustainable Environmental Savings

More and more companies are placing a high priority on the lower environmental impact achieved by using work-from-home employees as opposed to commuting to a B&M call center. The table to the right includes the annual environmental savings associated with 50 million individuals telecommuting 2+ days a week.

Initially, virtual contact centers were viewed as a nice solution for highly seasonal industries. Yet, their ability to recruit and hire employees according to a client’s requirements has produced a level of service quality so high it is unattainable by many other types of centers. This quality service delivery, combined with significant cost savings, has propelled virtual contact centers into the mainstream and fueled explosive growth. In the words of Alpine Access founder, Jim Ball, “I call this phase of evolution, Contact Center 2.0. By bringing the work to the people, rather than the people to the work, virtual contact centers are literally turning the industry on its head.”

Rob Duncan is the Chief Operating Officer for Alpine Access, Inc., the leading provider of employee-based virtual contact center solutions and services. Recently included in Gartner’s (News - Alert) list of Cool Vendors as an example of innovation in the business process services market , Alpine Access’ clients include ten of the Fortune 100 companies in the financial services, communications, technology, healthcare, retail, travel and hospitality sectors. www.alpineaccess.com. 

Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2012, taking place Oct. 2-5, in Austin, TX. ITEXPO (News - Alert) offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It's also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. For more information on registering for ITEXPO click here.

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