CRM - October 2008 - (Page 26)

COVER STORY Google search with the phrase “work at home”yields slightly more than 30 million results, while narrowing it down to “work at home contact center agent” results in 19.2 million hits. “You had to figure out what’s really a true work-at-home position as opposed to some type of sales or something other than what you’re really wanting,” Hamilton recalls of her search.“I had to go through a lot of that.” For those not entirely committed to a particular work-at-home vendor quite yet, there are options besides applying through each company’s Web site. Roy came across two she feels are required reading before applying for any work-athome contact center position: WAHM.com, “The Online Magazine for Work at Home Moms,” and workplacelikehome.com, a Web site with message boards, news posts, and other related information regarding the WAHA space. The home-based model is “great when our clients look at what we’re doing for the environment; how we can do things better… and make a difference.” like their brick-and-mortar counterparts. “There’s really not much to it,” Lenci says. “I close the door to my sewing room— that’s where I set up my workspace—log into the system and wait for a call. It’s really very simple and easy.” Roy gets an early start on her day, normally logging in at 4 a.m. and working until 7 a.m. when her two youngest children wake up. After taking care of their needs, she logs in to her second client at approximately 8 a.m. or 9 a.m., works for a few hours until taking a break. Then she’s back on the clock until 3 p.m. Others, including Hamilton, King, and Meade, work standard hours between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. For Meade, who says her current project has her “taking calls constantly,” she’s thankful for the online support she receives from West at Home in the form of knowledge bases and technical support. For her, the only potential issue is family distraction. “My family is pretty well knowledgeable now to know that when I’m working, I’m working,” she says. “If they need something or there’s some sort of emergency that pops up, they’ll write it on a note and hand it to me. So we have that down to quite an art form.” Hamilton, who acts in a supervisory role for 350 of Working Solutions’ WAHAs, has a slightly different modus operandi when she starts her working day at 8 a.m.—although it does not vary greatly from her brick-and-mortar supervisor counterparts. “The first thing I’m doing is going through emails…and checking voicemails for urgent situations that need to be handled immediately,” she says. “Then, I make sure any reporting that needs to be done is handled.” Once that’s complete, she moves on to less timesensitive issues, all the while making sure she’s connected with her agents in case they need her help in real time. “Because it’s a 24-hour operation…sometimes even when I’m not ‘working’ I’ll still have my [instant messenger] up,” she points out.“I also have messages go to my mobile phone specifically for work.” Throughout the course of the day and myriad calls, one thing many WAHAs notice is the absence of human interaction with fellow agents. “The only thing I really miss is the socialization with coworkers,” West at Home’s Meade admits. Working Solutions’ Lenci agrees, but says there is a “virtual water cooler” among her fellow WAHAs. “I’ve made friends and talk to other agents, just like I would in a building,” she says. “We help [and look after] each other, especially in times of need. It’s like having an extended family that you like.” Houlne says this is vital in the WAHA space. “We really believe this virtual-agent community is about empowerment,” he says. “We need to really create this virtual water cooler so we have a social aspect to our community as well.” HOME-WORKING WAHAs operate using landlines, computers, workforce management solutions, high-speed Internet, and headsets, much You Say Before -hoo!” “Wa AHA to W Companies to contact if you’re interested in shifting to a work-athome-agent (WAHA) model include: • • • • • • • • • • • Alpine Access Arise Convergys ICT Group LiveOps Sitel Teleperformance TeleTech@Home VIP Desk West at Home Working Solutions CONTRACTOR VERSUS EMPLOYEE While the equipment is similar to those utilized by brick-and-mortar agents, the business model can vary greatly. Frost & Sullivan’s DeSalles explains there are two approaches that vendors can offer: a contractor model and an employee model. In the contractor model, WAHAs act as independent contractors who can work for multiple clients, purchase their own equipment, and are responsible for taking care of their own health insurance and other typical benefits commonly offered to full-time employees. Houlne says that this allows his company to rightfully pay workers for performance as opposed to blind seniority. Roy, the WAHA from Maine, says that she has been able to deduct the cost of her equipment from her taxes—something those working in an www.destinationCRM.com 26 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT | OCTOBER 2008 http://www.WAHM.com http://www.workplacelikehome.com http://www.destinationCRM.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CRM - October 2008

CRM - October 2008 Contents Front Office Feedback Reality�Check Customer Centricity The Tipping Point Sprinting Toward Disaster? SAP�Retains Market-Share Lead in�CRM A�Week of Strong Customer�Service CRM�on Twitter Build a Good Event and They Will Come Required Reading There's No Place Like Home The New Breed of CRM�Consultant The Price is Right...You Hope How Much Marketing is Too�Much? The�Sweet Smell of High-Quality�Service The Next Act! For An Acquisition Some Stories Never Get Old CRM�Eases the Pressure For WIKA�Instruments Secret of My Success Re:Tooling Scouting Report Pint of View

CRM - October 2008

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