ProtoCall One identifies Utilities and Public Sector markets most affected by new service regulations

  • Contact centres need to adapt internal processes to comply with upcoming regulatory changes from Ofcom, Ofwat and the Treasury
  • ProtoCall One to host webinar on Silent Calls on 25th April to provide update to Ofcom regulations and their impact on UK businesses - click here to register

London, U.K. - 18 April 2007 - ProtoCall One, the UK's premier systems integration consultancy for the contact centre industry, has identified the Utilities and Public Sector markets as those that will be most affected by changes in regulations over the coming year. Increased regulatory demands from bodies including Ofcom, Ofwat and the Treasury will be a key business challenge for contact centres, as demands for higher service levels increase. Manoo Parmar, ProtoCall One's Sales Director, believes that: "it's not simply a case of purchasing the latest technology - many contact centres are going to have to adapt their internal processes throughout their entire operations in order to comply with the introduction of new, as well as the tightening of existing, regulations."

Following Ofcom's recent pledge to 'improve industry compliance and empower citizens and consumers' in a recent policy framework document, contact centres are going to experience tighter regulations in areas such as information accessibility, mis-selling and - inevitably - silent calls.

"Ofcom's latest policy announcement highlights the fact that heavy regulation in the telecoms sector is something that is not going to disappear in the near future. On top of that, regulatory bodies for individual markets - such as Ofwat in the utilities sector - are always imposing their own rules as well," continued Manoo Parmar. "With customer service a major business driver for many organisations, the key challenge is to ensure service levels remain high whilst simultaneously regulations are complied with. The aim should be to not only increase service standards to the required levels, but also to implement operational changes as part of a long-term business strategy."

ProtoCall One has identified three key areas where new regulations will have a major impact on contact centre operations over the next 12 months:

Utilities - The utilities sector will face increased regulatory demands during the next year. These will relate to how companies' service levels are measured and will require firms to meet increasingly stringent KPI (Key Performance Indicator) requirements. The water industry in particular will come under stricter interpretation of rules from regulatory body Ofwat, and areas facing the clamp-down include call-answering performance in contact centres.

Mike McGowan, Head of Customer Services at Bristol Wessex Billing Services, believes companies in this sector face a major challenge: "many utilities companies already suffer from a negative image on the customer service front, and the tightening of regulations will only make it more challenging for firms to improve this. It will be essential for companies to undertake reviews of their internal processes to ensure they can offer the best possible service within the regulations."

Public Sector - The standard of customer service provided by public sector organisations has always come under severe scrutiny from all angles, and will continue to do so over the next twelve months. The Varney Report, commissioned by Gordon Brown in December 2006, concluded that there is a 'wide variation in the quality of services provided', and has outlined a programme of 'Service Transformation' in all public organisations. Suggested KPI targets include: a 50 per cent reduction in avoidable contacts, all sub-200 seat contact centres to share resources with others, and a transfer to make the Internet the primary point of contact for customers.

Keith Tinson, Public Sector and Utilities Manager at Genesys Telecommunications, comments: "there is certainly continued encouragement from central government to reform customer service in the public sector. Some of the more immediate aims are to reduce call times and eliminate unnecessary calls. The long-term ambition, though, is to consolidate many of the contact centres, take advantage of Shared Services, operate consistently, reduce cost and transfer a large portion of information and services access to the web. Public sector organisations are going to have to take these changes into account and review long-term business plans accordingly."

Silent Calls - Ofcom has once more reiterated its long-standing commitment to eliminating silent calls to consumers, and the entire contact centre industry runs the risk of prosecution if it fails to meet regulations. In February 2007, Ofcom for the first time imposed financial penalties to four companies found guilty of failing to meet the guidelines, and future policies are set to further clamp down on offending companies.

ProtoCall One will be hosting a webinar entitled 'Silent Calls: One Year Later' on Wednesday 25th April. This interactive presentation will offer advice to companies on Ofcom's Silent Calls regulations, along with a customer case study highlighting the development of effective business practices around the laws. More information on Silent Calls, as well as webinar enrolment, is available at www.pc-1.co.uk

About ProtoCall One
ProtoCall One is UK's premier systems integration consultancy for the contact centre industry. It is the leading independent advisor to the country's top telecommunications service providers, helping them develop advanced network-based solutions for large contact centres. It is also widely recognised as the 'Number One' professional services and support organisation for the industry-leading Genesys Call Centre Solutions. ProtoCall One helps organisations to identify and resolve the technical and business issues involved in integrating contact centres into mainstream business processes, with a strong focus on financial services, telecommunications, travel and public sector markets. Additional information is available at www.pc-1.co.uk or for more information please contact:

Cynthia Thompson
Marketing Manager
ProtoCall One
Tel: 0870 204 2613
cthompson@pc-1.co.uk

Manuela Whittaker
IBA, PR for ProtoCall One
Tel: 01780 721433
mwhittaker@iba-europe.com


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