Time to care for the call-handlers

Over the past year, call centres have had their fair share of bad publicity. I’m sorry to say that in my book it is well-deserved.

Your cover story on the outsourcing of call centre operations overseas (MW December 11, 2003) raised the point that staff are the key to success for service brands. The call centre staff represent the brand and, while organisations may spend millions of pounds promoting their brands, the call centre staff supporting those brands often appear to be trained and managed by David Brent!

When I called a directory enquiry service recently, looking for the number of a fitness club, I certainly did not want to be directed to the local community club! Worse, I doubt the student on the other end of the phone actually gave a damn that he’d given me the wrong number! The result is a rapid reversal of my embryonic goodwill to the brand, caused by dreadful execution at the point of delivery.

UK call centre operators need to develop an integrated approach to staff communications, training and incentives. In other words, they need to make a concerted and sustained investment in providing staff with the knowledge, skills and motivation to perform well. Treating staff like professionals and human beings rather than machines might seem obvious, but the continued ubiquity of the quarterly newsletter and the occasional &£50 voucher suggests otherwise.

So is it any wonder that call centres are moving to India? If we are to avoid more companies such as Norwich Union taking their call centres overseas, it is clear that the UK industry must raise its game. In the long run, customer service levels (rather than operational efficiency) will determine the success of UK contact centres. That success will depend largely on whether contact centre staff are sufficiently knowledgeable, skilled and motivated to deliver excellent customer service and to project the values of the brands they represent.

Jon Derry

Director

KLM

Birmingham