white paper Technology Internet Protocol Lays a Path to Flexibility and Cost Reduction

Transcription

1 white paper Technology Internet Protocol Lays a Path to Flexibility and Cost Reduction

2 Executive summary Contact centres historically conservative in their technology approach are being forced to make increasingly radical technology decisions just to maintain parity. And they have to do this while keeping within their budgets and ensuring that they fully realise the benefits new technologies have to offer, as management scrutiny of investments becomes more intense than ever. The topic of cloud computing is core to many of these discussions, with its acknowledged benefits proving to be difficult to ignore. Cloud solutions are delivering a level of convenience and flexibility that presents contact centre technology owners with new options that they previously wouldn t even have considered. An increased number of cloud-based contact centres are now able to offer unprecedented levels of functionality at a significantly reduced cost, and more centres are adopting cloud offerings in discrete areas of their operations. Furthermore, as call routing and distribution become more commoditised and affordable, organisations are shifting their focus to enhanced value applications like self-service, multiple media routing and integration. The introduction of internet protocol (IP) is pivotal to enabling cloud-based contact centre technology, and gives cloud providers the ability to provision contact centre infrastructures that are reliable, flexible and cost-effective. Business and interaction processes will be challenged by new functionality provided by such next-generation technologies, and it s critical that businesses understand the broader benefits that emerging technologies can unlock, without compromising current systems, processes and bespoke departmental requirements. Findings from Dimension Data s 2011 Global Contact Centre Benchmarking Report confirm that cloud-based services have emerged as the fastest-growing contact centre technology trend, already ranked as the sixth most important overall. IP is pivotal to this and is already deployed in 54.7% of contact centres. Research from the Report indicates this will rise to over 70% within the next two years it s clearly becoming the default choice. IP is key to ensuring that technology becomes cloud-based and gives cloud providers the ability to provision contact centre infrastructures that are reliable, flexible and cost effective. IP will ensure better and simpler architectures, easier integration and far better flexibility within the centre s operational environment. It ensures contact centres become geographically neutral, and therefore allows businesses to be far more adaptable in making provision for contact centres and responding to exceptions and variations. Many contact centres already recognise the opportunities IP provides in terms of better flexibility and more cost-effective technologies. Both factors are being recognised as underlying drivers towards implementing a solution that will demonstrate a defined return on investment. Almost three quarters of organisations cite this return on investment as necessary to progress any business case for new upgrades or technologies. In fact, so clear are the advantages provided by the enhanced flexibility and cost savings, that they re undoubtedly contributing towards the unusually large increase in technology upgrade activity reported by many of the 546 contact centres from 66 countries that participated in the research. The use of dialler technology based on IP has risen by over half to 29.1% from the previous survey, reinforcing the fact that IP is now firmly entrenched and spans all infrastructure technologies within the contact centre. Introduction of IP into infrastructures Source: Dimension Data s 2011 Global Contact Centre Benchmarking Report

3 Cloud-based contact centre services Cloud computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g. networks, servers, storage, applications and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction. In essence, the on-demand nature of a cloud service means users don t own the technology they merely subscribe to it for a period and pay for what they use. The attractive functionality and price of cloud services is highly appealing, even though customisation can be limited and the technology may not always deliver to some bespoke requirements. Even though it may be a benefit for some, cloud-based users may also have to forfeit the ability Reasons for introduction of IP to directly manage and control many aspects of the centre environment (specifically the ability to manage call charges and management reports). That said, most will agree that the benefits outweigh the limitations and there s an ever-increasing trend in cloud-based contact centre deployments. Cloud offerings support organisations by providing technology services at a much-reduced cost, while delivering a level of flexibility to adjust services to meet load requirements. This flexibility enables contact centres to switch service providers fairly easily, should they need different functionality or discover the service is not what they expected. By giving organisations the opportunity to easily add new services or expand existing capabilities, contact centres are being introduced to a whole new level of freedom. They can avoid having to commit capital expenditure upfront or be tied to a single vendor technology. Cloud-based service adoption looks set to grow further across contact centres functions over the next few years. At the same time, expect to see organisations hold on to core technologies to differentiate their services and better manage operating costs, choosing cloud services only where it makes sense to do so. The new hybrid cloud model offers the best of both worlds functionality and reduced cost, without the limitations. Cloud providers are looking to address these requirements by offering relevant services on a pay-for-what-you-need basis via an a la carte menu. Providers are differentiating their services by their understanding of the integration requirements with existing contact centre and business systems. Those providers choosing to provide all-encompassing Source: Dimension Data s 2011 Global Contact Centre Benchmarking Report

4 solutions, relevant in fewer environments, will surely find themselves playing in a small niche market and will instead have to differentiate their service, based on customer service and price, to stay ahead of the competition. Contact centres seeking to explore new technologies and functionality can start by formulating a well-designed architecture strategy that leverages the benefits of technology ownership versus technology service offerings. Both have advantages and disadvantages. Cloud computing and contact centre cloud services can provide a host of quick win opportunities through advanced services, but should always be considered in light of the broader contact centre strategy. While Cost Savings and Flexible Architecture remain the top two reasons for adopting IP in the contact centre, expect to see more emphasis placed on the importance of Driven by a Specific Business / Functional Requirement, which is showing an increase of 26% this year over the 2009 Report. This is a clear indication that contact centres are starting to identify the business and functional benefits that IP introduces into the contact centre. The contact centre routing infrastructure is reaching a stage of commoditisation in which cost and flexibility will remain important factors to consider. Going forward, expect to see this trend continue, as contact centres differentiate themselves by using business intelligence to affect the outcome of calls. Businesses are now able to create value without being limited by technology, and IP provides organisations with access to contact centre functionality in a far more flexible way. Businesses can add agents from any location by enabling them to log into the centre environment from across the network, and are no longer restricted by traditional environments to integrate and innovate. While the appeal of IP in a contact centre still relates to cost savings and the flexible nature of the architecture, we expect to see a continued shift in focus towards business and functional benefits particularly where innovation can be delivered through IP. As this happens, we should see more advanced contact centres adopt these business and functional requirements as the basis for their IP expansion. Contact centre technology framework Having highlighted the need for balance and careful consideration regarding how emerging technologies can be effectively absorbed into the existing technology architecture, there s a need to examine the fundamentals involved in a contact centre more specifically, the customer interactions it deals with to properly understand what path to take. It s evident that the very nature of customer requirements is evolving and, along with it, contact centres are progressing towards multi-channel customer management centres. The scope of their responsibility and interaction with the enterprise has never been greater they have no choice but to respond, but how? A solid starting point is to consider technology requirements across the three distinct components of the Contact Centre Technology Framework. Consolidation refers to the building or creation of a technology platform that performs and delivers against the enterprise-wide customer interaction requirement. This foundation is pivotal to the overall enablement and subsequent performance of the contact centre. The contact centre s ability to deliver and report on core customer interaction functions will ultimately determine how effective the centre is and how it will perform at the integration and innovation level. Instead, we see many contact centres overlooking the importance of the basics. This includes how to handle multiple calls, route them consistently according to flexible business rules, and how to resolve them in line with ideal business objectives and outcomes. While it seems logical in reality, most technology owners find themselves swamped with trying to keep up with ever-changing market trends. Customer interaction technology has to be seen as a basic core requirement for success. And it means you have to be able to handle a call efficiently, distribute it effectively, deliver, resolve and implement what you ve learned then repeat the process, while reacting to changes in real time. Once you have achieved this, you re ready to move on to the next level and unlock the opportunities that integration has to offer. Contact Centre Technology Framework

5 Integration of the contact centre should enable performance improvements, rather than being seen as the foundation of contact centre functionality. Rather than trying to fix poor performance with integration, centres should focus on enhancing performance. However, the result is a vicious cycle contact centre architectures become more complex as centres try to meet new functionality requirements, which then inevitably impacts on overall performance and reporting. The result is a disordered and inflexible environment that wasn t built on a solid foundation in the first place. A call centre s core technology has to be designed and built to match basic functionality requirements. Ignoring this may give centres what they want initially, but soon such integration efforts begin to impose limitations on centre flexibility, as well as on functions such as reporting and routing of calls. Progressing to the next level means taking care of the basics and integrating to enhance performance. Innovation is about placing the customer centre stage. Recognising that performance is directly related to satisfied customers and staff, organisations are able to see contact centre budgets as an investment, rather than a sunk cost. The ability to innovate depends on the consolidation and integration of existing technologies. Innovation is about identifying the opportunities for creativity, without impacting on the normal operation of the centre. While that may seem simple in theory, these add-ons complicate the overall technology architecture and platform and in many cases have an impact on the base functionality of handling, managing, routing, distributing and resolving calls. It s also why so many contact centres never seem to emerge from complex technologies of the past. Dealing with issues of legacy technologies is widely accepted which is why centres need to take a structured ground-up approach to facilitate evolution and improvement over time. Instead, we see contact centres declining and replacing their technologies to recover for a short while, before slipping behind again. Contact centre technology needs a customer-centric focus. Thinking like a customer means asking how one would like one s own call to be answered, responded to and dealt with, before adopting a solution to suit the business needs over the long term. Top technology trends in contact centres (global) Technology trend Voice, data and video conferencing Service availability and business continuity planning Consolidation of technologies in the contact centre 6 3 Consolidation of application vendors Secure customer and organisation data Adoption of IP standards Migration towards Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) Introduction of Web 2.0 channels 8 Cloud-based infrastructure 9 Contact centre technology needs a customer-centric focus. Thinking like a customer means asking how one would like one s own call to be answered, responded to and dealt with, before adopting a solution to suit the business needs over the long term.

6 Top technology trends in contact centres Although a move to IP appears to be prolific, it seems that it s not for the sake of IP. It s more for the sake of consolidation and simplification of technologies and vendors a critical area for contact centres and, in terms of overall mentions, the highest technology trend currently being reported. This stimulus to driving simpler contact centre environments should help reduce the number of vendors and presents a whole host of advantages that can contribute to better integration of the contact centre within the business. Reducing the number of vendors with complete offerings may be the driving force behind the growth in upgrades that are emerging in this year s Report. The Convergence of Voice, Data and Video moves three places to become the top ranking technology trend faced by most contact centres in terms of the total number of first-priority mentions. While this is a reflection of a general attempt by contact centres to simplify their IT environment and reduce operational costs, it importantly marks a move towards providing a more consistent customer experience across available contact channels. Conclusion Enhanced interaction management focus, enabled by emerging technology capability, undoubtedly provides an opening for process design improvements that will differentiate businesses; reduce costs and deliver an enhanced user engagement experience for all parties. Contact centres have awoken to the need to quickly develop their technological solution sets to meet fast evolving customer demands. The Internet is already the most used customer contact channel and is being cited as a great success in managing customer contact requirements. Yet, contact volumes are still 50% short of forecasts, meaning there s still much work to be done. Consequentially, often neglected but more traditional customer management means are providing an obvious and sometimes quick win area to reduce costs within the hard-driven economic climate around the globe. Indeed, there s been a tendency to lose focus on basic technology competencies, as dynamic new solutions avert management attention elsewhere. While the human interface is increasingly being used as a secondary contact path for more complex and escalated consumer enquiries, its rising cost reinforces the need to drive appropriate low-cost customer value driven contacts through well-designed automated process that also prevents duplication, should human intervention be sought. Enhanced interaction management focus, enabled by emerging technology capability, undoubtedly provides an opening for process design improvements that will differentiate businesses; reduce costs and deliver an enhanced user engagement experience for all parties. The flexibility of the technology infrastructure is key to enabling cost reduction opportunities and integrated processes that are joined up across channels. IP is pivotal to releasing significant potential advancements that were previously unavailable to many contact centre operations. Currently deployed in more than half of contact centres, but growing, IP has become a default option that cannot be ignored. As a result, IP-enabled upgrades of contact centre technology have increased significantly and show that technology advances have matured to a level where many organisations have identified enterprise-wide business benefits of such upgrades. Contact centres are assuming a more prominent role in customer interaction management. Whether it s through increased deliverables on multi-channel solution sets, or by assuming greater responsibility in shaping overarching business strategies, contact centres have never been more important to the success of the organisation. However, a word or warning: as contact centre infrastructures become more integrated across the enterprise, it s important to note that contact centres need a very specific focus and strategy when it comes to their applications. Business owners who assume overall responsibility for the enterprise-wide infrastructure strategy need to be well versed in how such broad solutions can affect contact centre-specific strategies. CS / DDMS-0866 / 11/11 Copyright Dimension Data 2011 For further information

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