Contact Center Case Study

CONTACT CENTER STORE SUPPORT TEST & IMPLEMENTATION

CHRIS BOLICK

PJM 6210 - COMMUNICATION SKILLS FOR PROJECT MANAGERS | NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY

Contact Center Case Study Version 2019

Contact Center

Store Support Test & Implementation

Version History

Version Date Author Summary of Change(s)

2.0 July Chris Bolick Approved
1.0 October Chris Bolick Initial Draft

Approvers i

Program Role Name, Title Date Signature

Key Sponsor Paulette Larson, VP Contact Center
Sponsor Rickey Spencer, VP Store Operations Support
Sponsor Francis Scott , VP Store Repair Support
Sponsor Max Fox, VP Fleet Support

Reviewers

Program Role Name, Title Date Signature

Co-Project Manager You, Northeastern University Project Manager
Co-Project Manager Bill Caldwell, Facility Operations Process Manager
Business Lead Angela Stevens, Contact Center Director
Business Lead Janice Freeman, Store Repair Director
SME Brian Vargas, Store Repair Team Lead
SME Lowell Guerrero, Contact Center Supervisor
SME Lawrence Collier, Fleet Operations Manager
SME Kenny Medina, Manager of Technical Writing
SME Orlando Patterson, Store Operations Manager

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Contact Center Case Study Version 2019

Table of Contents
Contact Center ...................................................................................................................................................................... 1
1 Overview.............................................................................................................................................................3
2 Project Goals – Measures of Success ....................................................................................................................3
3 Process ...............................................................................................................................................................4
High-level map of current process ........................................................................................................................... 4
Proposed Changes ................................................................................................................................................... 6
4 Scope .................................................................................................................................................................6
Stores ....................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Assets....................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Communication Types ............................................................................................................................................. 7
Days/Hours of Coverage .......................................................................................................................................... 7
Access and Usage of Systems/Resources ................................................................................................................. 7
Out of Scope (Contact Center) ................................................................................................................................. 8
5 Timeline and Key Milestones ...............................................................................................................................8
6 Assumptions .......................................................................................................................................................8
7 Risks ...................................................................................................................................................................8
8 Constraints .........................................................................................................................................................8
Supporting Documents ...........................................................................................................................................9
Organizational Chart (Contact Center) ..................................................................................................................... 9
Organizational Chart (Store Operations Support) .................................................................................................... 9
Organizational Chart (Store Repair Support) ......................................................................................................... 10
Organizational Chart (Fleet Support) ..................................................................................................................... 10
Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Contact Center).............................................................................................. 11
Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Store Repair Support) .................................................................................... 11
Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Store Operations Support) ............................................................................. 12
Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Fleet Operations Support) ............................................................................. 12
External Stakeholder Assumptions ........................................................................................................................ 12

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Contact Center Case Study Version 2019

1 Overview
Background: Store Repair Support, Fleet Support, and Store Operations Support field approximately 186,000
support calls per year from the 2134 store locations via department specific hotlines. The 186,000 support calls
are in addition to the 10,000+ email requests per month that are received via the online Incident Management
System (IMS) and Site Management (SM) systems. Phone support ranges from 1st level general support, 2nd level
technical support, to dispatch of contracted vendors, to misdirected calls.
The Issue: Stores need to focus on serving our customers and time is a valuable asset for store personnel. Our
current asset management and repair processes are not as efficient as they could be (e.g. store personnel have
three individual phone numbers to call for asset service and repairs). The stores are responsible for tracking each
asset group serviced by the different phone numbers. Store Managers have reported many instances of calling
what they thought was the correct group only to find they had called the wrong number. Often, the group
receiving the call will do a cold transfer to the next group and not follow through.
The Goal: The goal of this project is to provide one centralized phone number for the stores to initiate support for
three departments, resolve all 1st level support calls with one contact, and hand-off the remaining calls to the
correct department for 2nd level technical support and work order creation to dispatch contracted vendors.
The Challenge: Translating technical information relating to the store’s assets (buildings, mechanicals, fleet, and
site) and developing 1st level and 2nd level call script information for general Contact Center Agents to use within
the Contact Center.
The Hypothesis: This approach will provide better customer service as well as take some of the call volume off the
Store Repair, Fleet, and Store Operations Support groups. With the reduced call volume, the groups will be better
positioned to perform analytical and technical support for the stores.

2 Project Goals – Measures of Success

Goal
(desired outcome)
Conduct a Phase 1 pilot to
determine the amount of
1st and 2nd level calls.
Implement Phase 2 and
Phase 3
Improve operational
efficiency
Objective Measure(s) of Success
(specific steps) (target metric and timeframe)
• Conduct a pilot in a specific district for 60 days - Capture meaningful data
• Categorize all calls as 1st or 2nd level support - Analyze data to determine
• Analyze call data to determine feasibility of the next steps
entire scope of the project - Complete pilot by March
• Bring on increasing levels of stores without - Have 100% store
overloading the Call Agents participation by August
• Utilize Phase 1 lessons learned
• Streamline call process for the store locations - Implement one contact
• Complete all 1st Level Support calls with one number for the store
contact locations as related to the
• Reduce the overall number of calls to Store three Support Teams
Repair Support, Store Operations Support, and - Develop knowledge articles
Fleet Support (Support Teams) for the Contact Center to
• Improve technical analytics of the Support use for 1st level support
Teams by allowing those groups to concentrate - New phone programming,
on 2nd Level Support store communication, and
technical support provided
for less than $25,000

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3 Process
High-level map of current process

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Contact Center Case Study Version 2019

High-level map of proposed process

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Proposed Changes
• Store support calls will initiate with the Contact Center.
• Contact Center will provide 1st Level Support to the store locations.
o Knowledge sharing via written articles.
o On-the-spot system navigation and education of Incident Management System (IMS), Site Management
(SM), etc.
o Low-level troubleshooting and issue resolution.
• Contact Center will transfer calls requiring 2nd Level Technical Support and/or Vendor Dispatch to the applicable
group (i.e. Store Repair Support, Store Operation Support, and Fleet Support).

4 Scope
Stores
• Phase 1 - A specific group of districts will be selected for the pilot; 10% of store population.
• Phase 2 - A specific group of regions will be selected; 50% of store population.
• Phase 3 - All stores, districts, regions, and divisions in the U.S.A. will be on boarded.

Assets
• All assets managed by Store Repair Support, Store Operations Support, and Fleet Support.
• Examples are, but not limited to:

Store Repair Support assets

• Building / Structural components such floor slab, walls, roof, etc.
• Building / Mechanical components such as HVAC units, fire systems, lighting, etc.
• Parking Lot components of asphalt, concrete, bollards, curbing, etc.
• Site components such as parking lot lighting, fences, gates, etc.
Store Operations Support assets
• Irrigation Systems
• Parking Lot Sweeping
• Snow Removal
• Landscaping (plants, trees, mulch, etc.)
Fleet Support assets
• Store Delivery Vehicles
• Trailers
• Forklifts

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Contact Center Case Study Version 2019

Communication Types
Store to Corporate Office only

Email or In Scope % of Volume

Description of Communication Purpose
Phone? (Y/N) Distribution
Phone Yes Store initiated support calls intended for Store Repair Support 64% (~9920 calls
per month)
Phone Yes Store initiated support calls intended for Store Operations Support 4% (~620 calls
per month)
Phone Yes Store initiated support calls intended for Fleet Support 32% (~4960 calls
per month)
email No Store initiated emails intended for Store Repair Support 58% (~5850 per
month)
email No Store initiated emails intended for Store Operations Support 22% (~2260 per
month)
email No Store initiated emails intended for Fleet Support 20% (~2000 per
month)

Days/Hours of Coverage
• Contact Center = 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year
• Store Repair Support = Monday thru Friday from 8am – 5pm (EST)
• Store Operations Support = Monday thru Friday from 8am – 5pm (EST)
• Fleet Support = Monday thru Friday from 8am – 5pm (EST)
• Emergency After Hours Support = Monday thru Friday from 5pm – 8am (EST); Weekends

Access and Usage of Systems/Resources

Access
System Licenses Qty of
Approval
Resource Description How It Would be Used Required Licenses
Required
Name (Y/N) Available
(Y/N)
CpC Remote PC viewing Allows a corporate user to view the Y Y 1600
Application PC the store associate is using and
provide on-the-spot system
education and training
U NO IT Knowledge Access procedural and informational Y N n/a
InfoCenter Management System articles
Internal Workforce Reference to IMS system and store N N n/a
Collaboration collaboration and asset information and discussions
Center (ICC) communication
platform
Verizon Phone system N N n/a

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Out of Scope (Contact Center)

• Calls requiring the creation of a work order (2nd level support)
• Calls requiring review of technical drawings and/or site plans (2nd level support)
• Calls asking questions on existing work orders (2nd level support)
• Calls requesting revisions to an existing work order (2nd level support)
• Store initiated emails intended for Store Repair Support, Store Operations Support, & Fleet Support

5 Timeline and Key Milestones

Flexibility Level
Description of Milestone Milestone Target
(high, medium, low)
Sponsor approval obtained November High
Region/districts to perform the pilot are identified November Medium
1st level scripts developed December Low
Contact Center training provided (all Agents) January Low
Phase 1 (Pilot test) completed March Low
Call data (1st level vs. 2nd level) analysis conducted March Low
Lessons learned applied April Medium
Contact Center training provided (all Agents) April Low
Phase 2 (50% Stores) completed July High
Call data (1st level vs. 2nd level) analysis conducted July High
Phase 3 (100% of Stores) implemented August High

6 Assumptions
• Proportion of 1st level calls is 60% or greater.
• Proportion of 2nd level calls (requiring work order) is 40% or less.
• Contact Center Agents not involved in Phase 1 or Phase 2 will not need additional training
• The three phone numbers the stores currently have for each of the Support Teams will be able to be routed to
the Contact Center without interference or additional steps from the stores

7 Risks
• Contact Center may need to transfer a high percentage of calls, which would be counter to our goal of
streamlining the process for stores.
• Stores not receiving adequate service if having to be transferred for 2nd level support

8 Constraints
• Phase 1 Pilot will be implemented with only six Contact Center Agents.
• Phase 2 will be implemented with only eighteen Contact Center Agents.
• Additional software licenses will not be available due to funding constraints

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Supporting Documents
Organizational Chart (Contact Center)

Paulette Larson
VP Contact Center

Wayne Sherman Angela Stevens Matthew Huff

Ops Director In-Bound Director Sales Director

Kenny Medina Ben Chapman Lowell Guerrero Harry Casey Chris Warren Roger Dennis
Tech Writing Mgr Staffing Manager Supervisor Supervisor Superviso Supervisor

Organizational Chart (Store Operations Support)

Rickey Spencer
VP Store Operations

Vernon Ortega Lynn Sparks

Operations Director Asset Director

Terrence Rivera Orlando Patterson Richard Lambert Allen Parks

Store Ops Manager Store Ops Manager Landscaping & Parking Lot & Snow
Irrigation Manager Manager

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Organizational Chart (Store Repair Support)

Francis Scott
VP Store Repair Support

Drew Sigmond Janice Freeman

Operations Director Store Repair
Director

Bill Caldwell Danny Hatrick Laurie Morris Bennie Bell

Josh Long
Facilty Ops Process Store Repair Store Repair Store Repair
Analytics Mgr
Manager Manager Manager Manager

Brian Vargas Derek Lewis Jaimee Long

Team Lead Team Lead Team Lead

Organizational Chart (Fleet Support)

Max Fox
VP Fleet Support

Tony Doyle David Davis

Operations Director Fleet Asset Director

Kim Doyle Lawrence Collier Mike Jackson Beth Jones Curtis Johnson
Fleet Ops Manager Fleet Ops Manager Delivery Manager Trailers Mgr Forklift Mgr

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Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Contact Center)

• VP Contact Center (Paulette Larson) – During the initial discussion with Paulette she has acknowledged her
support for the project. She sees this as a great opportunity to serve the corporate customer (Stores) so they
can in turn support their customer on the retail side. Any improvements for the retail customer will increase
sales and as a result increase profitability and bonuses.
• In-Bound Director (Angela Stevens) – Angela has expressed concern on the increased call volume this will bring
to his 48 Call Agents. The Call Agents are currently fielding over 1,100 calls per day. These calls range from
inventory questions, store-staffing questions, to customer complaints. The potential to bring on 500+ additional
calls may pose staffing challenges as well as cut down on the current level of customer service.
• Supervisor (Lowell Guerrero) – Lowell is excited about the additional workload due to recent talks about
creating a new department within the Contact Center. She feels this additional workload will fast track the need
for additional headcount and potentially a promotion for her to a Director position.
• Call Agents – Based on water cooler conversations, the Call Agents have expressed mixed emotions about the
new calls. Since the project has not been approved, the only information provided to the Call Agents has been
rumor or second hand information. Some Agents have heard that the Staffing Coordinator is hiring additional
people from a temporary agency, some have heard that a small group will be selected to focus on the project,
while others have heard that the calls will be queued as any other call. The Call Agents are hourly and they are
always eager to take on additional hours (especially overtime).
• Technical Writing Manager (Kenny Medina) – Kenny has expressed available capacity within his group to take
on the development of the new 1st level call scripts and troubleshooting guidelines. He will be able to dedicate
one entire group within her department and sees this as a great learning opportunity for his team.

Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Store Repair Support)

• VP Store Repair Support (Francis Scott) – Francis has expressed concern over the time his Asset Analysts are
acting like Contact Center Agents. The amount of wrong phone numbers and emails has prevented his group
from performing the analytics that is required to properly maintain and service the assets. He feels that taking
some of the demand off his Agents will allow them to focus on their roles and responsibilities and better serve
the customer and assets.
• Facility Ops Process Manager (Bill Caldwell) – Bill sees a great opportunity in streamlining the three phone
numbers into one and removing some of the call volume from each of the groups. This will be Bill’s first
assignment as a Co Project Manager and he has an energetic willingness to get started and has already come up
with a couple of solutions on how to serve the stores. He does not have any experience in the initiation and
planning processes and is looking to you for help in executing the initial steps. He has already informed the
sponsor that he knows how to get things done and that too much planning will slow down progress.
• Store Repair Manager (Laurie Morris) – Laurie has come to you as a friend saying that she is beyond burnout.
Her job responsibilities are exhausting and she is tired of the mundane calls coming in that have nothing to do
with her department. Her Asset Analysts are refusing to answer some of the calls with the reasoning that it will
probably be a wrong number anyway. Her Analysts have expressed frustration that they are not performing the
responsibilities that they were hired to do. A few have said they were hired on as an Analyst but are treated like
a phone operator. Her group’s engagement scores have plummeted over the past year and she wants to find
another position within the Company.
• Store Repair Managers (Bennie Bell / Danny Hatrick) – Casual conversations with these two managers have
showed an eagerness to better serve the customer. They are excited about the possibility of their teams being
able to perform analytics and see this as an opportunity to execute their roles as designed.

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• Asset Analysts – A few of the Analyst have expressed concern over job security. Their organization recently
went through a restructuring where several team members were let go. They feel that if the call volumes are
reduced the need for the number of Analyst will be further reduced. Some of the other Analyst are excited
about finally being able to do analytics instead of having to answer the phone throughout the day.

Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Store Operations Support)

• Asset Director (Lynn Sparks) – Lynn has expressed her concern over the project. She does not see an impact to
her group. Based on her own data analysis, her group is receiving approximately 95% of the calls intended for
them. However, after asking her a couple of questions regarding the incoming calls, she was not able to
determine if this was a direct call from the stores or if this was a transfer from another group (Store Repair
Support or Fleet Support).
• Parking Lot & Snow Director (Allen Parks) – Allen has questioned how to handle emergencies. He stated that
the majority of his calls are received on weekends or after hours and are from the snowplow contractors. He is
all for the normal business hours support as long as the level of service will not be interrupted. He also
mentioned that he has provided his personal cell phone number to all the snowplow contractors so they can
reach him at any time and this allows him to bypass the Store Operations Support hotline.

Internal Stakeholder Assumptions (Fleet Operations Support)

• VP Fleet Support (Max Fox) – Max is in favor based on initial conversations. He mentioned the morale of his
team is being affected by the type of calls coming in. They have tracked the call types for four months and found
that 45% of the calls are for a different group other that Fleet.
• Fleet Asset Director (David Davis) – David has some concern over the 1st level call support. He does not see any
benefit from answering this type of call. He feels that all calls require the use of technical documents, especially
regarding forklift maintenance and safety. However, he has stated he would support the project 100% as long as
it would benefit the company.

External Stakeholder Assumptions

• After Hours Support – The afterhours support team recently went up for a contract extension. During the
extension discussion, they were informed that the call volume might be reduced due to an upcoming project.
The afterhours support team-expressed concern with their contract since it was based on the amount of calls
received. They have yet to finalize the contract and want to review the overall impact to their service. They have
hinted of providing a lump sum contract for their service instead of a call basis. Speculation among the Store
Repair, Fleet, and Store Operations Support groups is that the cost will be higher as a lump sum.
• Store Managers – You have only been able to talk with a few Store Managers but those that have
communicated have expressed frustration in trying to keep up with all the phone numbers to the Corporate
Office. One Store Manager you visited stated that for every problem he always calls the same phone number. He
then lets the person on the end of the line at corporate figure out who he is supposed to be talking with. He
stated that a majority of his peers are doing the same thing because they do not have the time to look up
numbers and have to focus on the customer and increase sales.
• Delivery Drivers – You were able to attend a Fleet Conference and talked with a few of the delivery drivers. Each
one you spoke with did not see any concern over calling the Fleet phone number. They knew where to find it
within their vehicles and always had great customer service. They did express some concern over having to talk
with a Contact Center Agent that may not be familiar with their trucks. They do not understand the need for
another step in the process.
End of Document -

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i
Names of organizations, groups, departments, individuals, and systems have been changed to protect privacy and confidentiality.

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