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Archive for the ‘ICMI Consulting’ Category

Just Answer the Phone Quicker!

Posted by Ted Hopton on January 16, 2008

I’ve started hearing more people talking about automated callback technology in glowing terms. That’s when an announcement plays while you are waiting for your call to be answered, offering to have the call center call you back instead of making you wait in the queue. Even my mother likes it (she always tells me what she likes and doesn’t like about call centers she has called, every time we get together). But I admit I have never been that fond of the practice of postponing calls to be handled later, and I further confess that my bias was heavily influenced by a discussion years ago with Jay Minnucci, ICMI’s Vice President of Consulting Services.

So I emailed Jay recently to see if he’s been won over to the automated callback approach. In a word, “no,” but his response is more fun to read than that: Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, Customer Sat, Customer Service, ICMI, ICMI Consulting, Technology | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

The Key to Innovation Is Maintaining Your Strengths

Posted by Ted Hopton on January 14, 2008

CMIJay Minnucci, ICMI’s Vice President of Consulting Services, is one of the foremost experts on call centers anywhere, so I always make sure to read any articles he’s written. This one, The Key to Innovation Is Maintaining Your Strengths, in ICMI’s Customer Management Insight (CMI), offers up a new concept to add to your business continuity planning (I know that sounds boring, but read on!): “strength maintenance.”

All forms of contingency planning for quick-strike events are critical to business success. It’s not easy, and truth be told, many managers either don’t have the necessary plans in place or readily admit that they are not as robust as they should be. But at least there is an awareness of the risk. Erosion is much more mysterious and less often discussed, but it’s every bit as dangerous as a service disruption from a disaster. A strength maintenance program helps to highlight your success and ensure that it remains a strength in the future. Without having to worry about taking “two steps back,” any positive change from innovation will then truly leave you one step ahead.

Posted in Call Center Management, Call Centers, ICMI, ICMI Consulting, ICMI's CMI, Management, Strategy | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

 
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