Yuppers - time for the big guns...

So - here's a letter that I'm thinking of plopping on the owner of my company's desk... Let me know what you think. I'm honestly interested, even if you don't agree that it's a good idea...


I know this is highly irregular, and I normally would not bring this up to anyone without first following the proper chain of command. However, I have realized that my concerns are not being taken seriously by my superiors, and I feel that I have no recourse but to go to you, as you are the head of B*******.

After being in call center environments for eight years and creating call center policy and procedure manuals, I can honestly say that I know whereof I speak when I state that this call center is not being run as efficiently or effectively as it could be. There are ways to deal with these issues, but it would require a re-vamping of the call center and its current operating procedures.

Major issues within the call center currently include:

 no training manual
 no follow-up training when changes occur
 no policy/procedural handbook
 no software training on P***W****
 no agreement between supervisors as to what are correct policy/procedures
 no interest by supervisors in changing any of these situations

While I can appreciate that each call can, in theory, be a different situation, the majority fall into separate categories which can be efficiently resolved by utilizing proper policy/procedural practices. There are three main types of calls which come through the queue each day. They are:

- Hospital Calls

- Client Calls

- Collections Calls

Within these three types there exist sub-catagories which need to be dealt with properly based upon what is needed for the specific calls. These sub-catagories include:

- Hospital Calls
- Transfers
- Adjustments
- Collections questions
- Technical support

- Client Calls
- Payment information updates
- Collection questions / disputes
- Lost and found pet issues

Collections Calls
- PetCredit calls
- Collections payments
- Collections disputes

The first issue that must be addressed is two-fold: There must be an agreement between ALL supervisors across the board that they will adhere to the written policy / procedures and make exceptions to those policies and procedures when necessary, based upon pre-approved extenuating circumstances that are understood and accepted by all supervisors.

In addition, there must be a training manual with these policies and procedures clearly spelled out and provided to each call center member and each hospital staff person, with an online version accessable to each person within, or in addition to, S****H****.

The first question, I'm sure, is why we would need such a thing. The answer is simple:

Miscommunication and misunderstanding

Miscommunication and misunderstanding are the biggest reasons for revenue loss, client and employee turn-over, customer dissatisfaction, and job stress.

I have suggested a number of times to my leads and supervisors that we need a policy and procedures handbook so the call center is easily able to provide quick, correct responses to hospital calls, and refer to appropriate guidelines to resolve client calls.

Each time, I have been told that no one in the call center is interested in such a handbook, and that everything works fine with emails.

This is interesting to me because when I speak with fellow co-workers regarding having a policy and procedures handbook, they are very much for the idea, and would like to see it come to fruition - but know that it would not because supervisors have been so openly opposed to such a thing.

Further issues had been seen as well. Supervisors had been refusing to take calls from clients who specifically request to speak with supervisors here. Their reasoning was that the client most likely will need to speak with the hospital anyway, so there's nothing they were going to get from the supervisor - and therefore, we shouldn't waste the client's time. This is something which has our clients (not to mention our hospitals and the call center) very upset. Regardless of whether the supervisor can make an exception or whether the client must go back to speak with the hospital, the client deserves to have their request fulfilled to the best of our ability. If the client requests to speak with a supervisor, then they should be able to speak with one.

Recently, a line dedicated to questions and taking supervisor calls was opened, known as the Resource Desk. This could be an excellent tool if used in conjunction with a policy and procedures manual - however, it is currently being used as a simple Q & A line for reps unsure of how to handle standard procedures. Further - there are times when either no one is scheduled to man the line (after 6pm), or when those who are scheduled to man the line simply refuse to log in and take calls, leaving those needing the line without assistance.

These issues, singly, would not be worrisome. However – when they all stack up together, they create a weight of stress and dissatisfaction throughout the call center which in turn weighs heavily upon the hospitals and our clients.

Successful companies are built on solid building bricks, a major portion of which includes happy employees who are satisfied with both their jobs and their training. Changes can be easily implemented which will create both a positive work environment, and a positive customer experience with both clients and hospitals.

The question then is how to fix the issue. This can be done in a series of steps, starting with having the call center supervisors sitting down with a QA representative, D*******, the VP of O*********, and the VP of M**********, and ALL agreeing upon specific policies and procedures that should be provided within a training manual.

This policy and procedures handbook should then be created in an easy-to-read, simple search format on an intranet page linked through S****H**** (for ease of updating in times of change). Each person within the call center and at each hospital should receive this information, so that everyone can be informed as to what the call center is capable of doing, whom to call when the need arises, step-by-step procedures of what to do, and how to deal with specific scenarios regarding accounts.

The training manual should then be created around this set of policies and procedures, based upon what is necessary to learn within the call center specifically. It should be created in an easy-to-read, simple format which would walk new hires through working within software that is utilized both within the call center and at the hospital level. Testing would then be created based upon the manual to evaluate the levels of learning that has been achieved, and give a base idea when the new hire would be ready for the next step.

The manual should have three portions to it – specifically set out to work with hospital calls, client calls and collection calls. These three chapters should be broken up into the sub-catagories listed in the first of this letter, and therein given the individual instructions on how to deal with the calls in general. Specifics would be learned through mentoring, at the last stage of training where the new hire would listen in on calls and eventually take them while having their mentor listen in and answer questions.

New hire training itself should consist of several levels – the first week being an introduction of what the call center is about and a look at the different programs used to track data for a client and how they interact. The second week should be a hands-on walk-through of the policies and procedures with testing at the end for each of the policies and procedures. It should also include listening in on pre-recorded calls and, based on the understanding of policies and procedures provide answers and debate about them. The third week should be used to learn the basics of P***W*****. The fourth and final week should be where new hires would listen in at desks of mentors, and by the end of the week, take calls on their own with minimal assistance.

Not only would these changes create a calmer, more relaxed atmosphere in the call center, relieving stress and repeated questions to supervisors and the Resource Desk, it would also provide a more knowledgeable staff, capable of handling situations outside of the ordinary with confidence and ease.

These are the biggest changes that I feel need made right away. The call center is currently failing at meeting monthly, weekly and daily call center statistic goals due to guidelines being misunderstood, clients being misrouted and misinformed, hospitals giving and receiving incorrect information, and representatives being stuck in the middle due to inconsistent and questionable training.

Please be aware that it is not just me who feels this way. I have spoken with other representatives within the call center who feel similarly, and who no longer enjoy working for B******* due to the increased stress caused by this serious lack of structure.

I am hoping that with this letter, something positive can be done for the call center and, in turn, something positive will happen for B******* as well.

Thank you