First things first: Get your infrastructure right
It should come as no surprise that we highly recommend operating from a cloud-based contact centre solution. Only a well-structured cloud environment will give you the flexibility to quickly adapt to the volume changes we experience in the normal course of business; it proves its worth in these times where the ebbs and flows can be tsunami-size at times.
Depending on where you’re based, and how badly affected your business is, your team may be 100% back in the office, 100% still working from home, or any combination in between. The current climate has everyone on a higher stress point than normal – whether they’re showing signs or not – so it’s vital you do what you can to minimise any further impacts on your team, and on your customers.
A cloud-based solution like Premier Contact Point allows your agents to log in and get to work with minimal disruption, whether they’re at home, or in the office.
With the right tools, apps, and integrations, you can build a highly effective workplace without having to lock into a single location, and without having to sacrifice productivity and customer experience.
Adapting for remote work
Here are a few things to consider when you’re preparing your team to work remotely or from home.
- Make sure your staff have the equipment they need to operate from any environment – this might include having fully configured laptops available to agents, that are ready to plug-and-play with the appropriate software, security, and network access.
- Provide adequate training so your agents know how to operate the systems effectively, and where to source help when they need it.
- Remember not everyone is suited to a remote working environment. Make sure those who do work from home are provided with the right security tools and up to date training in protecting customer and business confidentiality.
- Similarly, not everyone’s home space is suited to remote working. Designate a staff member to survey remote work locations, or create a checklist your agents can use to help them set themselves up with an at home work space.
- Introduce flexibility to work schedules. Give your agents the tools they need to identify their preferred shift times, and swap shifts with their colleagues. You may even want to consider offering shorter shift lengths. Our Workforce Optimisation solution is ideal for managing schedules.
Connection is everything
As well as keeping your systems and work processes consistent across work locations, keep your engagement up as well.
- Hold regular team check-ins to discuss wins, challenges, and share ideas for how you can work better together, even when you’re apart.
- Check in with your team members individually as well, to discuss any performance challenges, and additional support they may need.
- Make access to subject matter experts easy for agents, just as it would be in the office. Premier Contact Point now integrates with Microsoft Teams, making it super easy to check Presence of team members, and to collaborate instantly.
- Check in regularly with your customers during and after your transition to your new workplace arrangements, to see how the changes are affecting them. Survey results might feed into a CX barometer you can then use to identify and refine processes and aspects of your new working arrangements.
Transitioning your business through the digital shift
While the pandemic has forced many businesses to rethink their operating models at speed, one thing we can be grateful for is that we have the technology available right now to help us pivot and carry on.
And now, as we look down the barrel of a longer (and perhaps permanent*) stint of remote work, it’s time to look closely at how resilient and sustainable our initial solutions will be over time.
- How do we continue to keep our customers happy?
- How do we keep our teams inspired?
- How do we protect our networks and our data?
The right technology is crucial
Premier Contact Point can help you navigate the business and technological solutions to these questions, and create a working environment that will survive and thrive in the midst of rapid change.*globalworkplaceanalytics.com’s recent survey of the global workforce showed 76% of people surveyed would prefer working from home once the pandemic was over.
