Real-Time Monitoring

[Improvize]

Hi,

I am from an Australian government department and am interested in information about Real-Time Monitoring in Call Centres of both incoming calls (workload) and staff (workforce), the pros and cons (positives and negatives) of Real-Time Monitoring and ideas on how best to implement and maintain a Real-Time Monitoring system.

I am new to this site but it looks like there are many people here with information.

Thanks

[rjpasto]

Real time monitoring is probably the single most effective means of gaining actionable, timely rep performance information along with customer reactions to business rules, processes, offerings, etc. - the best way to truly measure the effectiveness and efficiency, needs and business impact of call center operations.


Real time monitoring helps assess:
1. information, assistance, transaction capabilities
2. business processes, practices effectiveness
2. interpersonal and call management effectiveness/skills
3. telephony and technology capabilities/implications.
4. customer satisfaction outcomes/drivers
5. revenue and expense implications

Real time monitoring can also help capture emerging marketplace and competitor intelligence.

Elements critical to ensuring call monitoring effectiveness and reliability include:
1. Objectivity - independence and skills of the listener
2. Sufficiency i- adequate number/sample size of calls monitored
3. Mix - appropriate mix of call types, caller types, reps, etc.
4. Schedule - span appropriate days, events, points in time
5. Calibration of measures to ensure reliability
6. Analysis - ability to convert data to actionable information

You can call me at 1-800-321-4356 x2503 to discuss this further.
Bob Pastorini - rjpasto@aol.com

[Karsten Fuhrmann]

Hi,

we found out that Real-Time Management is the key to success. You can create good forecasts and schedule your staff efficiently, but if you don't see how good they follow their plans, you'll never find out what dropped your Service-Level.

What you need is a good combination of Workforce Management and Real-Time Management software - ideally from the same vendor. We have a system which constantly compares the status the agent is scheduled for with the "reality" from the ACD. If both don't match, the system will generate an alarm - indicating i.e. unexpected logout, working-on-breaks etc.

That's the way to increase transparency, because it forces us to ask why and collect information. And there's a very positive side-effect: we measure schedule adherence per agent - and this figure is one of the few targets, the agent has an impact on.

If you need more information, please don't hesitate to contact me:
karsten_fuhrmann@hotmail.com

[rjpasto]

Agree, forecasting, scheduling, workforce mgt are important to efficiently managing most any business/call center. However, it is the monitoring/evaluating of calls that gets to the "so what" of the call, ie, the appropriateness, effectiveness and the revenue/expense implications of the call/contact.

Having the right number of people scheduled, ensursing proper adherence, etc is a good start, but only by effectively and sufficiently monitoring calls can you learn how needs and expectations are being met, how revenue and expenses are being impacted by reps skills, techniques, by business rules, practices, technologies, etc.

[fareed]

Hey , This is khan and am working for an international call center.
Well with regards to your query, I would recommend The ACD software from lucent technologies and its call the avaya cenerview supervisor.
This would help u monitor the in/out bound calls and also helps generate a variety of useful reports.
Makes room for both onlice and historic reports.
Ther are not much disadvantages in that though, but u need a fast netwrok ,,, however I would call myself lille less technically competant to give u the hardware requirements.
Shall give u more details on this , but for now I am really running out of time.
See y aagain.
Regards Khan.
You can mail me at fareedsadian@rediffmail.com or kkkhannn@yahoo.com

[miramadar]

I work for a call center in the USA and I've can also attest to the Lucent CentreVu Supervisor system. It will allow you to not only monitor agent and queue statuses in real time, but will also give you the power to pull many different statistical reports. There are many "canned" reports, but it also has the capacity to create custom reports.

[shayre]

Yes Iontas allows you to pull all information related toagents/desktop/ software key storke and allows you to log activity outlining what you are doing. Not only that but you can also check to see what website have been visted for how long it's all displayed via a browser and you can run reports on this data pre-defined or reports that you can configure - all this is combined with a very easy to use front end even non-computer user can use it.

Steve

[Improvize]

Thank you to rjpasto & Karsten. I have used some of your information.

However, I am not after what products do a good job. I'm not after a sales pitch. I'm after recommendations and/or information on the principles of Real Time Monitoring (particularly agent monitoring) and the strategies needed to implement such Real Time Monitoring. The systems that do it are of no interest to me.

Thanks.

[mdbabb]

Implementation of real-time monitoring will vary depending on the size of your center and the software you will use.

Some questions to think about:

1) Who will monitor the center? In some small centers, this may be supervisors individually monitoring their own agents. In other centers, this may be a designed control desk where supervisors switch out and one supervisor monitors both ACD and adherance to schedules. Other centers use control desks for monitoring ACD only and work-force teams (schedulers) are responsible for monitoring (and enforcing) adherance.

2) What will you do with the information? Will you ask agents to come to the phones earlier when call volumes spike and service levels drop? Will you have supervisors take calls (or yourself) during extremely low service spikes? Will you have contigency plans for reserve agent activition? Will you enforce schedule adherance with written warnings, up to termination?

3) Do you have a well thought-out plan? Agents who are used to working in an non-real time monitored environment often have a hard time transitioning to a real-time environment. This is particularly true with real-time work force (adherance) monitoring. If you have agents who are used to taking their breaks and lunches when the call volume allows or when they need to, take a several prong step in transititioning to real-time adherance.

A suggested plan:

1) First, discuss how real-time monitoring of agents will help to make sure that all agents are treated fairly and consistently in their breaks, lunches, and tardiness.
2) Generate schedules with work force management system for several weeks without real-time adherance so that the agents can become used to changing schedules and you can work out the bugs of schedule preferences or union rules.
3) Communicate to agents (and unions) when you will start monitoring real time, and what the rules will be for enforcement of infractions. Again, communicate that this is for their benefit, as well as for the organization.
3) Begin monitoring real-time, and provide feedback to agents on an informal verbal basis.
4) Begin written enforcements of adherance, up to termination.

If I can be of additional help, please email me directly at michelle.d.babb@kp.org.