Workforce Management Featured Article
Survey Results Indicate Need for Workforce Management Tools
CFI Group, a firm that specializes in delivering customer experience measurement and business insights, has released the results of the 2017 Contact Center Satisfaction Index report. The study surveyed a panel of 1,528 respondents who had contacted customer service in the prior 30 days. The Contact Center Satisfaction Index (CCSI) is currently at 68, as measured on a 0-100 scale. While this may sound like a good thing, the score actually hasn’t changed since 2016.
That’s both a good and a bad thing. On the one hand, customer experiences haven’t gotten any worse. However, they haven’t gotten better either. According to the report, the key driver of satisfaction with the contact center experience is the interaction with a live representative. Eighty percent of respondents agreed that, by the time customers look to the contact center for help, they want to speak to a real person. Sixty-three percent of respondents stated that callers have most likely already gone through all the other online options and were unable to find an answer to resolve the issue. So, if they get to the point of actually calling an agent, they want a live representative and they want first call resolution.
In order to give customers that first call resolution, agents need to be equipped with the best workforce management tools available. "Companies should focus operational efforts on giving frontline representatives the tools, the training, and the authority to solve customer problems," said Sheri Petras, CEO of CFI Group. "Contact center executives must resist the urge to think of the contact center as a self-service channel, and embrace the role of the contact center as an opportunity for customer assistance. Making it easier for customers to reach a human who can solve their problem is paramount to satisfaction."
Edited by Maurice Nagle
