Spring has sprung here in Annapolis, MD. The little peepers are singing at the top of their lungs in the evening letting us all know that spring is finally here. Their singing tells us it’s time for new growth and renewal. In our professional lives, it means time for spring cleaning. Sure, that means physically cleaning our offices of clutter, but also reviewing our processes and procedures. Read Susan’s article this month about disaster planning and ensure your plans are dusted off and ready for the summer weather.
Here is what you’ll find in the rest of our April issue:
FEATURES
Disaster Planning: The Human Factor
By Susan Hash
Support your contact center’s most important asset before, during and after a disaster.
Differentiator Series, Part 3: Optimizing the Exceptions
By Jay Minnucci
In the drive to maximize efficiency, don’t neglect the needs of your “non-standard” callers.
Simplifying Remote Access
By Brian Hinton & Matt Morey
The need for remote access to core contact center infrastructure continues to grow. Technology options today enable great flexibility for leaders and agents alike.
DEPARTMENTS
IDIOM INSIGHTS
Talk Is Cheap… Or Is It?
By Kathleen M. Peterson
“Talk” is not simply the cost of human resources; it is an investment that yields a high-performance operation.
INSIDE VIEW
Matt Medina, Dun & Bradstreet Emerging Businesses
By Susan Hash
Building a service center with a focus on the human element.
LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
5 Best Practices for Designing a Successful Training Program
By Benjamin Gertz
Techniques to develop your agents’ skills with minimum cost and maximum effectiveness.
PERFORMANCE MATTERS
Developing Long-Term Employees
By Brian Burke
How to engage, retain and grow your contact center’s greatest assets.
SUPERIOR SERVICE
How Would Customers Rate Your Company’s Customer Service?
By Dana Brownlee
Recent poll results reveal top customer service frustrations.
THE VIEW FROM THE SADDLE
Cool Hand Stew
By Paul Stockford
A Q&A with Stewart Bloom, the cool-headed leader at Aspect’s helm.
ASSOCIATION SPOTLIGHT
The Largest Call Center Association in the NorthEast!
By NECCF
The NorthEast Contact Center Forum (NECCF) has grown tremendously in the past 16 years. Get to know this incredible regional organization!
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
Are You Listening? Yes I am. Great, Now Act on What You Heard from Me!
By Roger Lee
Questions to discuss with your leadership team to get a pulse on where your company is on the customer experience continuum and what you need to do to move forward.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT
Chatbots—The Next Step in the Evolution of the Contact Center
By Magnus Geverts
A combination of chatbots and well-scheduled human agents with the right skills could be today’s silver bullet solution for effective customer service.
Thank you to our April sponsors: Calabrio, Contact Center Nation, Customer Contact Strategies, Genesys, Human Numbers, InGenius, NECCF, OpenText, PACE Association, PowerHouse Consulting, Sennheiser, Service Agility, Strategic Contact, Teleopti, USAN and Verint.
They help make Contact Center Pipeline possible!! Please visit all our sponsors in our Pipeline Directory.
