Most contact center agent desktops are a messy, complicated, confusing morass. Agent heroics may lull management into a false sense that the desktop is manageable. IT won’t come to the rescue given the myriad of other projects on their “to do” list. And, of course, project funding is exceptionally tight. Yet the fact remains: transforming a complex, cumbersome, multi-application agent desktop can drive contact handling efficiency and optimize service.
The big “bang for your buck” will be labor savings, which you can measure across three categories:
- Reduced handle time. An optimized desktop provides ready access to customer data without the need to jump back and forth between systems or cut-and-paste information across applications. It also enables the contact processes to flow more naturally.
- Call avoidance through enhanced FCR. An optimized desktop reduces re-work and errors, provides more efficient access to information and equips agents to expand the scope of their interactions with customers, resulting in improved first contact resolution.
- More rapid agent proficiency. An optimized desktop shortens initial training time and time to full proficiency on the front lines.
Most centers have lived with a sub-optimal agent desktop – and watched it get worse – for years. Beyond the technical challenges, desktop consolidation gets complicated due to the host of players who need to get involved. The way to proceed is to break the project into discrete steps.
- Determine the foundation of your solution – homegrown, customer relationship management (CRM) system or consolidated desktop application (CDA).
- Frame the scope. Set priorities around capabilities that deliver the highest and/or fastest payback.
- Account for your constraints – resources, time, money – and define phases.
- Solidify your solution approach and complete your plans.
- Refine your project ROI and plan.
- Gain approval. If you sense resistance, consider options such as a small pilot with an interested vendor to prove the value.
- Implement. Be sure to include usability testing with a representative sampling of agents.
- Be prepared for a post-implementation assessment to justify the project expense.
Few projects in the contact center have the potential to make a substantial positive impact on agent efficiency and improve service. Desktop optimization can. As the convoluted maze that agents suffer every day gives way to the well-ordered desktop of the future, agents will handle calls in less time, with higher first call resolution, fewer errors, superior service, and greater job satisfaction.
Check out the full article – It’s Time to Put the Spotlight on Desktop Optimization – for additional details.