Remote Agents

[Piper]

I run a contact center in the resort industry. Due to the location of the resort, labor pools are small and real estate prices are high. For this reason we are considering moving to remote agents. We have a telephony system to route the calls but what I need to know is; do most businesses pick up the cost of the high speed internet access and computer equipment or is this typically required of the employee? How does workmans comp come into play? Any advise would be great and anyone with insight into California labor laws with remote agents would be wonderful.

[richb2]

Piper, we have a system that is made to work with remote agents (or local agents, or both). For each agent, you can set the pay, which is traditionally cents per talk minute. I have seen it in the .15-.25 range. Our system generates statements for you for each agent including days and times worked, number of minutes speaking, calls taken, amount of money owed etc, making it easy for you to administer the payroll. As you probably know, there are some pretty great agents out there who are interested in working a few hours/day from their homes. And with this system the management of payroll is automated.

[mdbabb]

We are currently deploying a remote agent set-up in order to assist with retention and recruiting. We are a union shop in a health care environment.

Our biggest challenge in developing a remote agent program was resolving internal IT issues in order to have successful CTI. After multiple testing scenarios, we determined a Citrix solution was the best for handling data.

We are doing our initial roll-out using Definity Extenders on our Avaya Definity G3R but will begin testing using IP Agent later in 2003. Access to the home for data and voice using the Extender is via a ISDN line.

We are paying for the ISDN monthly service and all equipment, but require that the remote agent provide a second phone line (either cellular or a residential line) to use in the event of emergencies. Also, all remote agents will be required to sign a Work at Home agreement that commits them to one year as a remote agent. In the event they leave the position prior to one year, they will be required to pay for the cost of installation of non-reusable items (e.g, ISDN installation and jack wiring, if required). Also, they are held liable for all equipment in their possession.

I would be pleased to discuss this with you further. You can contact me via email at michelle.d.babb@kp.org.