Contact centers traditionally hold a reputation for being an organization’s “catch all,” receiving customer contacts that range from inquiries to requests to complaints. Contact centers receive not only all types of customer contacts but must also support all departments within an organization, from product, to marketing, to logistics to billing. The wide variety of contacts and the inevitable process changes from internal departments can make it very difficult for agents to effectively manage the contacts.
Many organizations only interact with their customers via the contact center which means contact centers and their Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) become extremely important vehicles for delivering customer satisfaction. The CSRs’ ability to create a positive customer experience depends on how well agents are trained, the quality of resources they have available, and how satisfied they are. My previous blog focused on the importance of agent satisfaction in customer service. In this blog, I will focus on the quality of resources made available to contact center agents to improve customer service.
Knowledge Management is a combination of the right information, in the right place, at the right time. What does this look like for contact centers?
True to the stereotypical consulting answer... “it depends.” The technology and processes around Knowledge Management differ based on a contact center’s needs. Very advanced contact centers with a vast amount of information can implement a Knowledge Management solution that sorts/ filters information and links that information to steps within an agent’s workflow. Many organizations I’ve worked with choose to use a SharePoint site with well-designed folder structures, approval workflows, and metadata associations. Other organizations are still using a more traditional approach with shared content in network folders. Regardless of the specific solution, the right Knowledge Management solution is tailored to your organization’s needs and ultimately seeks to provide your CSRs with greater access to the right information, right when they need it.
Knowledge Management software is important for three key reasons. They:
At past clients, I’ve experienced positive reception to the value and organization that Knowledge Management brings a contact center. CSRs are happy because they can find accurate information they need more quickly, while managers are satisfied because processes and policies are followed. At West Monroe, our Contact Center and Digital teams work to design a Knowledge Management tool and processes tailored to you, implement your solution, and train your organization on how to best utilize and maintain this solution.