Are your needs being met?

We live in a needy world – a world that has recently experienced disasters, which have escalated the numbers of people in need.  We do, however, also live in a world that must keep the day-to-day running of businesses and life going. To do this, we rely on family, friends, work colleagues, and technology; the list goes on. As Contact Centre professionals, we are natural networkers.Some 350 New Zealand companies operate a Contact Centre with an estimated 28,300 seats in total (callcentres.net 2010). Thinking about the Contact Centre industry, what is the main component? I hope most of you answered ‘people’. While technology is an important factor, it is the people that ultimately determine the level of success of a Contact Centre. As a Contact Centre Manager, your experience would be that people consume most of your time. That is certainly my day-to-day reality.The Contact Centre industry in New Zealand spends an estimated NZ$2.03 billion per annum in recurring operating costs, including more than $1.36 billion in wages and other Human Resources related expense. With some 66% of operating costs being HR costs, this is clearly a people intensive industry where good people practices are essential. Contact Centres in New Zealand are leading the way with innovative Employee Assistance Programs and employee engagement tools which go beyond the traditional view of the employer’s responsibility for its people.Your Contact Centre Agents need support, and as a Contact Centre Manager, so do you. CCiNZ is here to offer that support. It is coming up to two years since the inception of CCiNZ, which is run by a group of experienced Contact Centre practitioners and a support group of advisors with wide reaching networks in the industry. CCiNZ focuses solely on the needs of Contact Centre. Our organisation offers visits to one of our sites, can answer your questions about metrics and we are always ready for a simple catch up coffee to get you through a stressful patch.If you are not yet a member, consider the value you will get, whether on a personal career level, or an organisational planning level. We have access to people and processes that understand the unique demands of a busy contact centre environment. Perhaps you may already have tasted success and want to share it and be proud of what you have done. CCiNZ would love to add you as a member and be able to share your story of success.Member eventsLast month, in conjunction with Rapid Results, CCiNZ members were invited to attend events talking about Return on Investment. Shifting Contact Centres from cost centres to profit centres has been a real focus since the change in global financial conditions in 2008, and ROI is always a good topic.  The attendees were able to take away a methodology to help them promote the value of their business unit to the wider organisation.CCiNZ initiatives currently under way are the appointment of a Sales and Marketing Executive to manage sponsorship and membership and the launch of a members’ only website resource. Upcoming events are our special-interest mini conferences in May (Business Continuity Planning) and July (Team Leader Summit).As a closing note, it is time to clear your calendar clear for the big one: the annual CCiNZ conference on Friday 2 September 2011. This will be our 3rd annual Conference and it is being held at Sky City Convention Centre in Auckland. The feedback from last year’s conference was excellent and we look forward to building on that to be better than ever. The CRM Customer Service Awards gala night follows our conference - both are events not to be missed. The speakers and the networking at the conference, followed by the excitement of seeing industry colleagues recognised for excellence, has to be the highlight of the year. Diarise both of these events, as you will get so much from them.