Nearly half (44%) of industry professionals say a primary barrier to running an effective contact centre is 'IT issues', according to new research.
Call Centre Helper, the contact centre magazine, in partnership with NewVoiceMedia, surveyed more than 600 members of the contact centre industry.
When asked "What barriers stop you from running your dream contact centre?" respondents named IT issues, along with budget (67%), the need for new technology (40%) and technology not being joined up (35%), as responsible for restricting progress.
When asked what they would change, the majority of respondents commented on the need for basic working computer systems and demanded upgrades to the latest technologies.
One participant commented, "New solutions are required to remove the need for legacy systems, processes and workarounds.
Another remarked, "I'd like us to adopt better technology, so that advisers have one place to go for a complete customer view and can access all required data in one place.
Jonty Pearce, Call Centre Helper editor, says, "Customer service has changed beyond recognition in recent years, putting an increasing amount of pressure on agents to handle more complex queries and master digital channels (such as webchat).
"It is unfair to expect agents to deal with slow computer systems as well. While contact centres are beginning to wake up to the benefits of maintaining good computer systems, there is still some way to go before this becomes industry standard.
Jonathan Gale, NewVoiceMedia CEO, says, "It's surprising that IT issues are a barrier to so many businesses running a great contact centre.
"Cloud technology offers a cost-effective solution to businesses of all sizes, meaning they can make the most of their CRM investment and serve better to accelerate growth and stay ahead of the competition.
