Considering Outsourcing? Review your Call Center Performance.

After much thought, you’ve realized your in-house call center operations may not make the most business sense. You believe there are efficiencies and savings to be gained—whether you’re a big, mid-sized or franchised business.

Probably. But what efficiencies do you expect? How much savings? And where and when can you achieve them?

Before asking service providers to scope the work and submit bids, do your own baseline review of current operations. Know the key performance indicators (KPIs), good and bad, of how things are running in-house.

Because it’s unwise to entrust operations to an outsourcer without first having your own metrics well in hand.

KPIs provides insight when evaluating outsourcers. With it, you can discern achievable objectives from bogus projections. A baseline sniffs out any BS in assessing proposed, bottom-line benefits for your business.

For this blog, we’ll focus on a few broad metrics in determining a baseline. A starting point. But it doesn’t stop there. The processes behind the numbers are equally important when figuring return on investment.

1. Real-time analytics: Do you have ready access to actionable data? The answer impacts all metrics. For instance, how long does it take to get call logs? Minutes, hours, days? Delayed responses leave you wanting—and the business and customers waiting. Real-time analytics enable responsive operations. Upfront, know if your in-house analytics are as fast and accurate as any provider’s.
2. Agent attrition: Turnover is the bane of the call center industry. Especially now, with low unemployment and a mobile worker mindset. No sooner is an agent up to speed than she’s out the door. What’s your average agent tenure? Total turnover costs? Calculate the price of the entire process—from recruiting to onboarding to operations. Then, you can compare before you commit to outsource.
3. Responsive service: For this metric, look at average hold times—and if too long, resulting dropped calls. Long waits can be attributed to low-tech systems as much as inadequate staffing. Know the reasons why behind the numbers. That way, you can have an educated conversation with an outsourcer. Armed with internal statistics, ask the service provider to break down its offerings. Line by line. Every step of the way.

Again, knowing your in-house metrics cold puts you in control. With them, you can properly assess an outsourcer’s potential value to your call center operations—in terms of dollars and good business sense.