The Outsourcing Roadmap
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This week's Hot Topic
checklist is based on facts and
guidelines found in Centerserve's Outsourcing
eToolkit and Improving Call Center Business
Processes. The easy-to-use and practical chart
to the left, depicts Centerserve's Outsourcing
Roadmap is found in the eToolkit and considered the eToolkit's backbone.
For more on both the Outsourcing eToolkit and
the Improving Call Center Business Processes
report, see the "Don't Reinvent the Wheel"
section below. |
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Future Hot Topic
Checklists : |
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Call Center Outsourcing
Hot Topic Checklist |
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The outsourcing trend - it's growing in popularity!
According to Centerserve's report 'Improving Call
Center Business Processes', 21% of
participants reported outsourcing at least some call
handling to a service bureau. This is
a significant increase
from the 2004 report where only 10% of participants said
they outsource.
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Reasons for outsourcing
For those call centers that do outsource, business
reasons included: |
- Cost
reduction
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In-house call volume reduction
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After-hours support
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Flexible staffing plans such as peak-time staffing
(seasonal, product launch-speed to market)
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Expertise/knowledge or technical support
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Limited capacity (space and seats)
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Lessons learned from experiences.
Centerserve's report 'Improving Call Center Business
Processes', offers 4 major 'lessons learned' including:
clear communication starting in the SLA development
stage. |
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Make outsourcing decision
The decision to outsource will be based on the
evaluation of the call center's importance in the
business model and the results of other key decision
drivers relating to the operation preferences and
economic conditions of the organization.
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Determine strategic alignment
The best outsourcing partner will be able to meet your
call center needs AND work in alignment with your
business strategy. The best way to proceed in
the selection process is to understand your business
strategy. Don't make the mistake of skipping to a
needs assessment. We suggest assessing your strategic
alignment with outsourcing partners.
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Conduct needs assessment
There are 7 components Centerserve recommends to
assess (see diagram above). Let's start
with Call Characteristics. For more on all
aspects of the decision making process, see the
Outsourcing etoolkit.
Components of Call Characteristics you must consider
when deciding to outsource: |
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Contact types
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Contact descriptions and general characteristics by
type
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Customer characteristics
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General customer characteristics by contact type
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Customer expectations by contact type
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The Selection Process:
One element of selecting a vendor will be
culture and compatibility. One of many
questions suggested by Centerserve to ask when selecting
a vendor is "are the supplier's actions and behaviors
backed by a similar marketplace reputation?"
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Service Level Agreement:
Though not a contract, the service level agreement will
assist you and your vendor in establishing operating
parameters and defining standards. The document
should address: performance,
management and relationship expectations, and problem
resolution. See Centerserve's Outsourcing
eToolkit for worksheets and templates including a
Request for Proposal.
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