Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution's Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.
In the last few years, Six Sigma has achieved many new milestones, the most recent being its induction in the dynamic and fast-changing world of business process outsourcing. Six Sigma implementations in call centers and contact centers may be a relatively new phenomenon, but due to its unparalleled success, this trend is fast catching on and in the coming years, is expected to outdo conventional domains such as manufacturing.
How Does Six Sigma Help Call Centers?
Call centers, especially third party business enterprises that deal in outsourced services, operate on tight margins, making them perfect targets for Six Sigma implementation projects. Call centers that have implemented 6 Sigma have been able to streamline their operations that mostly consist of managing inbound and outbound calls.
Streamlining call center operations automatically results in better utilization of available resources, reduced operational costs and improved efficiencies, factors that are vital for the long term success of call center companies. It also helps in streamlining the internal operations of call centers, which together make up a significant percentage of the overall operational costs.
By improving internal as well as external operations, 6 Sigma makes way for enhanced customer care services and support, something that goes a long way in improving the call center's brand and corporate image. This in turn, automatically results in better recognition of the call center's outsourcing services, thereby attracting new clients with every passing day.
A call center that achieves such a reputation, then finds it easier to race ahead of its competitors, expand its operations, diversify and maximize profitability.
Other Benefits of Six Sigma
This process also has a positive effect on the morale of call center employees, who mostly operate in highly stressful work environment. Using innovation and time-tested tools and techniques, Six Sigma helps in reducing the overall workload of call center representatives, allowing them to offer improved services to customers. With less work to do, call center employees also find it easier to learn new concepts and techniques related to their profession.
For example, in their spare time, call center representatives can opt for online academic courses to augment their professional careers. They can also take special training sessions conducted by the call center in order to augment their existing professional skills.
The fact that 6 Sigma helps in maximizing call center resource utilization is now common knowledge, something that is prompting more and more call centers to try implementations. Even before Six Sigma entered the domain of business process outsourcing services, the race to reach the top was always present, but with the introduction of 6 Sigma, the so-called race has attained new dimensions and characteristics.
In the future, the only call centers that will emerge as winners will be those that make the best possible use of quality improvement systems and resource multipliers such as Six Sigma.
- Related Videos
- Related Articles
- Ask / Related Q&A
- Six Sigma Makes Its Way to the Contact Center
- Maximizing Call Center Resource Utilization With Six Sigma
- Cutting-Edge Methods Help Target Call Center Waste
- What is Six Sigma?
- Can Six Sigma Help Improve Clinical Results?
- Six Sigma Terminology
- Why Six Sigma Will work in Service Environments
- Is Six Sigma The Ultimate Management Tool?
Build Your Salespeople’s Strengths And Use Them As Launch Pads For Better Sales Success
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009I used to work for a company that tried to change me into someone I just was not. In an interview, the HR manager said, “This company will help you overcome your weaknesses by thrusting you into different kinds of situations. We will help you grow to become a completely different person.” Here is the thing. There’s nothing wrong with “overcoming your weaknesses“. But to turn me into a “completely different person,” that’s something else.
Get Your Sales Reps to Sell Like Corky
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009What is the highest performing stock in terms of total return over the over the course of the past 40 years? It's not Microsoft. No, its not Cisco Systems. It's not GE. It's not even Intel.
How a Top Sales Manager Gets Their Salespeople to Sell More Stuff!
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009When do you do your best work? When you feel bad or when you feel good? The obvious answer is when you feel good. No one feels like doing much of anything when they feel bad. When people don't feel so good, they end up doing very little... not a good situation for you. So it begs the question: does the salesperson brimming with confidence sell more than the salesperson who lacks confidence?
Why a Sales Manager MUST Evoke the Law of Reciprocity
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009For our purposes, the Law of Reciprocity states: If you do something nice for someone, human nature dictates that the recipient will feel compelled to do something nice for you in return. It is in essence: "you reap what you sow".
Why a Top Sales Manager Must Always "Tune Into the Right Frequency"
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009It's definitely cliched, but I think this is one of the most critical elements to successful sales management and that is to make sure you are tuned into the right radio frequency with your salespeople. There's only one radio station that your sales executives like to listen to and that radio station is: WIFM. (You might say WIIFM, but let's not get too technical here...).
Setting the Bar Higher As a Top Sales Manager
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009If you do what "everyone else is doing" then as a manager of a bunch of salespeople, you'll get what precisely what everyone else is getting...namely average, mediocre, conventional sales results. As a sales manager who craves top sales performance, you need to zig when the others are zagging and do things unconventionally, you need to set the bar higher.
Why Sales Managers Need to Make Regular Deposits in the Trust Account
By: Ralph Burns | 22/12/2009In your bank account, you have an ATM card that only you have the PIN number to access the account funds. Every week, you make regular deposits and withdrawals into your account. Base salary deposits go in regularly through automatic deposit, while bonuses and commission checks go in periodically with expense checks and other deposits. You make cash withdrawals, debit card purchases, write checks, and make other payments.
MBA - Is It The Way To Go With Your Career?
By: Minglebox.com | 22/12/2009The decision to study MBA is an important one and everyone considering the same as an option for themselves must be completely sure that it is the path along which they want to progress in their life. This Checklist below can help assess and guide you towards the right career path.
Lean: Six Steps With Review Points
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | ManagementLean Six Sigma is a philosophy that aims at the improvement in value provision to the customer, improvement in process flows and elimination of waste. Lean deals with waste by shortening the time gap between the order and the shipment. The organization is based on six steps for continuous improvement. These steps are value, value stream, flow, pull, perfection and replication.
How to Research Your Career before Deciding on a Suitable One
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | CareersYou may need to conduct some research for selecting a career at different times during your life and for different reasons. It may be required when you need to pursue a career for the first time or when you are considering a career change.
Hoshin Planning: Making the Strategic Plan Work
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | ManagementIn the current business scenario, organizations strive towards exceeding the customer's expectations and achieving a competitive edge over rivals. This comes as an outcome of the long term planning, an achievable vision towards the goal and continuous improvement in the processes.
Career Moves For Older People
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | CareersPeople make career moves for various reasons and under various circumstances in their lives. When older people change their jobs of their own free-will, it is a pleasant experience for them; but when the circumstances of life force them to look for a new job, it may be a very painful experience.
How To Raise The Stakes To Get That Raise
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | CareersMany people don't know how to ask for a raise. The fact that you need more money to support your lifestyle is not reason enough.
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Making a Lateral Career Move
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | CareersConsciously or unconsciously, many of us wonder whether we have already found our dream job or have just settled for something in the absence of anything better. It is pretty much like a teen with the first flash of youthfulness looking for his or her soul mate.
How To Handle The First Month Of Your New Job
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | CareersWhile we all eagerly look forward to a fresh start in a new job, most of us are unwilling to find out how to conduct ourselves appropriately in a new workplace. It is not just about putting on a broad smile all the time or keeping our bosses in a good humor.
Cutting-Edge Methods Help Target Call Center Waste
By: Tony Jacowski | 30/09/2008 | ManagementThere are different activities undertaken in call centers; planning, call routing, after-call operations, research operations on unresolved calls, reporting and staff scheduling. The most important function is the handling of calls, inbound as well as outbound. This function is repeated a number of times throughout the day and needs lots of improvement.