Take five - Chey Garland

From this month on, Call Centre Helper will be talking to a range of individuals from the world’s contact centres to find out how they believe the industry has changed and what advice they have for those entering it for the first time. We kick off with an interview with Chey Garland, chief executive of Garlands Call Centres

1) How have call centres changed since you started working in the industry?

There have been significant and positive changes in the way customer service is measured. People used to regard good customer service as hitting call handling and grade of service targets plus other metrics. Now organisations are just as concerned about delivering good customer experiences and resolving as many queries as possible on first call.

There have also been huge advances in the way organisations go about promoting good practice. It’s no longer just about ‘being pleasant’. It’s about giving accurate answers, educating advisors about the value of processes and encouraging them to speak up when processes aren’t working. It’s also about using technology proactively to support advisors and improve interactions - and about recognising the value in skills training and people development.

It’s not just about listening to what customers say any longer; there’s a growing recognition that it can be just as important to understand what customers are feeling when they’re not talking.

2) What do you think call centres will be like in ten years’ time?

I believe there’ll be more investment in clever software that analyses interactions. For example, [technology] that analyses what people are feeling as well as what they are saying. Video interactions will also play a bigger role.

Customer service will be more distributed, too. More organisations will operate on a virtual basis with their contact centres distributed across multiple sites. There’ll be more use of mobile knowledge workers and more home workers. And I believe that the technology and processes that enable distributed working will be more mature and more accessible to a broader range of organisations.

3) What is the best aspect of your job?

There’s no single thing; every day is different. The most satisfying aspect of my job is seeing things go well. Pleasing clients, pleasing customers, new client wins, seeing a hunch come off, business growth - the whole enchilada.

4) Based on your own experience, what advice would you give to those entering the workplace for the first time?

Decide what you want to be doing in one year and then five years, and work out how you are going to get there. There are lots of people out there with great ideas and the brains and talent to work on those ideas. But for some reason they never act on their dreams. Sometimes you need to take chances, but above all you need to set yourself goals.

5) What book or professional course would you recommend to others?

I can’t say there’s a single book or professional course I’d recommend above any other. Of course, there are many good books and courses around, but I don’t think there’s any substitute for going on skills-based training courses at work and learning on the job from more experienced colleagues and managers around you.

Chey Garland is chief executive of Garlands Call Centres
Tel: +44 1429 422 422
Website: www.cjgarland.co.uk