Creating a virtual contact center is not as simple as sending the agents home to work. It is a significant paradigm shift and requires a lot of thought and planning. There are technology, people, and process questions that need to be answered before anyone is allowed to work from home. This series of articles presents a process contact centers can use to create a virtual contact center.
First step in designing and creating a virtual contact center is to define what virtual means to you, your contact center, and your company. First question you need answered in this process is “why you are creating a virtual contact center.” Is it to reduce costs, provide agents with a work/life balance, or is it for business continuity purposes? This basic question set the direction for the entire project. If you cannot find a viable and reasonable reason to create a virtual contact center you can stop at this point.
Once you have a reason you need to decide what virtual contact center configuration would fit best for your center and business (for examples of some virtual contact centers refer to my article "Managing in a virtual contact center: Part 2, try before you buy"). A Virtual contact center as a concept is a continuum from having some agents working at home part time to all agents and management working remotely. Will your contact center be 100% virtual or will it consist of agent working from home Contrary to the prevailing media and many vendors, a 100% virtual contact center may not work for your center. As you complete this “Best Fit” analysis, you need to take into consideration any work rules, regulatory, and compliance issues as well as network and data security, company vision and policies. As with any project you need to consider the costs of implementation and operations, when designing the center.
As the old saying goes, “Two heads are better than one”. To create a more complete vision, I suggest that you establish a design team consisting of two to three managers, senior agents, and close business partners. Each member has a role to play and have a particular point of view. Each member also will bring a certain perspective which can be valuable as you create and formulate you vision. Duplicating will also better ensure that at least one segment is represented in the meetings.
I have listed a short list of questions that should be answered in your vision. This is by no means a complete list and as you and your team brainstorms and develops a picture of what your virtual contact center will look like there are bound to be more questions will need answered.
- How will a virtual contact center benefit the company?
- If you employ contractors, will they be allowed to be remote?
- Will managers and supervisor also be allowed to work remotely?
- How will you create and maintain teamwork between agents?
- Is working remote a right or a privilege?
- How many agents will be allowed to work remote and how will you determine who works remote?
The vision you develop will be used as a guide throughout the entire process and is probably the most difficult portion of the process. As any project manager or Eagle Scout and they will confirm that the planning is the longest and most tedious portion of any process. However, the more detailed your vision contains the easier the rest of the process will be.
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