customer services and information technology friends not foe alisa mann customer services manager...
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Customer Services and Information Technology
Friends Not Foe
Alisa MannCustomer Services Manager
Las Vegas Valley Water District
Metering America 2005
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Top ten ways to make “IT” work
Based on 4 years of near continuous Information Technology renovations at LVVWD Customer Services
Interactive Voice Response – Avaya ConversantSkills based ACD – Avaya CMSQuality monitoring - NiceWorkforce Management – Blue PumpkinScreen pops – Avaya Interaction CenterMulti-media blending – Avaya IC and RightFaxCIS – PeopleSoft CIS coming 8/05
Focus on CIS – most complex project of all
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#10 – Senior business analysts
Have senior business analysts act as liaisons between your operations and IS, especially for larger projects like CIS where there are major business process re-design opportunities.
BA
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#9 – Use a forklift to upgrade CIS system and business processes
Don’t make the new system look like the old system and disguise this as “customization” to your business
Embrace new technologiesStudy how others use it first before deciding to change or customize it.
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#8 – Recognize that product knowledge = business knowledge
Don’t rely solely on product vendors to be consultants on your business – their business is generally their products.Use trained utility business process specialists (internal or consultants) to help re-engineer your processes to take advantage of the new CIS system.
Out of BoxProduct
Your Business
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#7 – Look at end-to-end processes
Don’t work in silos! Re-design end to end processes across work areas for best return on your investment
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#6 – Set your alarm clock on a typical timeframe and budget
Don’t underestimate $$$$$, resources or schedule – research similar implementations for benchmarks.Focus on priorities
Gaining efficienciesMandatory requirements for go-live
Live in the house before re-modeling it
… otherwise projects can take forever and spiral out of budget control
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#5 – Monitor progress closely & recognize it
Implement strong management controls with simple measurement tactics
Scorecard of Monthly ProgressTrack % Completion On Key ItemsManagement Flash Reports
Recognize milestones – CIS projects are long, so you need to have interim gratification to keep teams motivated
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#4 – Be a bottleneck breaker
…not a Belly-acherSet up escalation paths for decision making, especially across departments
New business rulesBetter processesCustomizationsReporting
As a manager you can become a bottleneck or be a bottleneck breaker
DECISIONS
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#3 Focus, don’t juggle
Don’t take on too many overlapping technology projectsEmployees cannot be constantly in change mode, especially contact centersCIS implementations are enormous – don’t expect to get much else done
VS.
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#2 – Simulate real use during testing
Focus Groups and Usability Testing with Customer Service Associates, Support Staff and CustomersPerformance Testing to make sure there are no surprises in full scale operation Parallel billing tests with old and new systems Independent audit programs to balance converted data and billed dollars
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#1 – MOST IMPORTANTRemember that CIS is not an “IT” project
CIS is a business project.
Dedicate business resources in each functional area and backfill their positions to get the best results
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Questions ?
Thank you for your time!
Alisa MannLas Vegas Valley Water DistrictCustomer Services Manager(702) [email protected]