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A new tutorial from Prosci's taken from Prosci's new
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A foundation for controlling call center costs
Module 1 of a 5 part series on cost control
Background
This tutorial series is comprised of excerpts from the new toolkit, Controlling the Cost of Call Center Operations. Call 970-203-9332 for more information on this toolkit and related support products.
The goal of this tutorial series is to provide a comprehensive framework for reducing the cost of your call center operation over time. The outcome of your cost reduction planning will be a set of identified and prioritized cost saving initiatives that are most suited for your situation. Your cost reduction initiatives can be placed in three categories: short-term (less than 3 months), mid-term (3-6 months), and long-term (greater than 6 months).
This series includes 5 tutorials and concludes with guidelines for creating a cost reduction roadmap for your call center. The purpose of this first tutorial is to set the groundwork and foundation for the overall series.
Controlling costs
Controlling or reducing the cost of call center operations requires addressing three cost components of handling contacts:
- handle time (e.g., talk time plus after call work time for a phone call)
- resource costs for handling contacts (fully loaded cost per unit time – e.g. cost per minute)
- total volume of contacts (volume of contacts for all media)
Reducing any one of these three variables will reduce the cost of operating a contact center. This framework is critical to a systematic analysis of your contact center costs. In the following summary, we will build on this framework to begin the process of analyzing the potential areas for cost reduction.
Reducing the handle time
Reducing the contact handle time can be accomplished by improving one of the following three areas:
- Improve agent capability
- Improve systems support
- Improve or redesign contact processes
Reducing the cost of resources
Reducing the cost of resources (including the cost of people, equipment or facilities necessary to handle customer contacts) can be achieved by one of the following methods:
- Drive volume to lower cost channels
- Reduce agent payroll costs
- Reduce overhead costs
Reducing the volume of contacts
Reducing the volume of contacts can be achieved by one of the following methods.
- Eliminate reason to contact
- Minimize misdirected calls
- Reduce repeat calls
Note that redistributing volume to alternate media (i.e., moving phone calls to IVR or web self-service) does not appear on this diagram. That type of cost reduction initiative is addressed in the category of “Reducing the Cost of Resources” under the area "Drive volume to lower cost channel."
Putting the framework together
By taking each component and putting them together, you can create a master framework for identifying cost reduction initiatives for your call center as shown in the cost reduction diagram below.
Cost reduction diagram
This tutorial series will take each component of this cost reduction diagram and analyze the potential opportunities that may apply to your call center operation. The series will include:
Module 2 - Handle time
Module 3 - Cost of resources
Module 4 - Contact volume
Module 5 - Selecting and prioritizing initiatives for your call center
About the new toolkit: Controlling the Cost of Call Center Operations provides a systematic approach to reducing your call center costs. With this toolkit, you will critically examine multiple channels for reducing expense. The outcome is a set of identified and prioritized cost saving initiatives that are most suited for your contact center.
"A truly comprehensive guide for reducing call center costs.
A resource with this perspective is long overdue."Gerald Tschikof, Founder of Center Partners
Visit the Controlling the Cost of Call Center Operations site
Other resources:
Call center bookstore and reference library
Send questions to callcenters@prosci.com
About Prosci. Prosci is a registered trademark.
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(970) 203-9332 or 800-700-2831 in the US
