Knowledge Management: Crucial to Customer Satisfaction

"Why does this gap between information and the knowledge being provided to customers remain?"

The amount of information in the world is growing exponentially and recent advances in communication technology have made it possible for information to be spread around the world in almost real-time. While information is incredibly valuable, without the understanding to turn facts into knowledge we are unable to harness the opportunities it represents.

The contact centre space can be viewed as a microcosm of wider society in respect to information and knowledge.  Knowledge is a crucial commodity for the sector, and is a telling factor in customer satisfaction – and therefore business success.  In fact, 78% of Australian contact centres handle inbound calls exclusively, meaning that the majority of call centre agents must have access to a vast database of knowledge at all times, so as to answer the broad range of questions posed by customers.   

The advent of highly sophisticated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems for contact centres also means that agents are handling increasingly complex queries. Additionally, the success of the industry over the past two decades has seen contact centres take a much more active role in larger organisations, resulting in agents handling queries and requests from across a greater array of business operations.

In the face of these challenges, the contact centre industry has been the proving ground for knowledge management (KM) systems – a technology that has over time become a part of general business practice.  Since its fledgling days, KM systems have become increasingly sophisticated in an effort to gather, sort, and deliver information quickly and easily to agents.  In turn, contact centres have also introduced knowledge management policies in order to enhance the effectiveness of these systems within the unique environment of each call centre operation.

Despite the introduction of knowledge management systems and policies within the contact centre environment, and the fact that customer satisfaction of the industry is remarkably high, there are still concerns amongst customers that agents simply do not have the knowledge available to them (or the knowledge is simply not passed on), in order to provide effective assistance.

So why does this gap between information and the knowledge being provided to customers remain, and what measures can contact centres take to remedy the situation?

For some time, knowledge management has been regarded as primarily a technology-based issue.  While technology is certainly a part of the solution, advanced systems cannot fill knowledge gaps without complimentary training and processes in place, as well as a commitment from all individuals within a contact centre.


TECHNOLOGY

Knowledge management systems have come a long way over the past few years, and the contact centre industry has been at the forefront of these advancements. The recent 2009 Australian Contact Centre Industry Benchmarking Report from callcentres.net revealed that 18% of respondents were intending to implement, replace, or upgrade existing knowledge management systems in the next 12 months. Considering the large plethora of options now available, it is important for contact centres that are looking to change or introduce these systems, to ensure that they implement a technology solution that will assist them in bridging the knowledge gap.

Knowledge management systems need to provide quality information to an agent, and should be able to do so in an efficient and user-friendly manner.  Many knowledge systems can now operate with IVR and computer systems in order to provide the agent with key information about a customer and the purpose of their call – all before the conversation has begun. While this may sound like common sense, having agents that know a customer's name and background information can significantly influence call satisfaction levels.


TRAINING

While knowledge management systems are crucial in delivering customers the information they require, the most common pitfall for contact centres appears to be in training staff on how to use these systems efficiently and in implementing processes to ensure the technology is used properly.

Although there are no precise figures, there is an undeniable correlation between training and job performance.  No task can be done well without the proper training, so it would be unrealistic to expect agents to be able to utilise knowledge management systems effectively without providing them with the time and tools needed to understand the technology.

Many contact centres have demonstrated an ability to provide agents, team leaders, and managers with job-specific training, and this has impacted positively upon a centre's performance.  Just as training initiatives in other areas such as contact centre leadership have been adopted with great success, the industry now needs to focus upon education specific knowledge management systems.

The development of agent training should be the joint responsibility of contact centre HR departments and knowledge management system manufacturers.  Beyond making software intuitive, the makers of KM systems should be ensuring the implementation of high-level training alongside the technology.


PROCESS

Once training initiatives have been put in place, strong knowledge management processes also need to be developed and applied across the contact centre.  This involves careful internal planning, process modelling, and co-ordination between different areas of the organisation to ensure that processes are going to work within the contact centre environment and will be able to be implemented quickly and easily.

In order for knowledge management to succeed, contact centre management must address previous information sharing methods within the organisation, and identify practices that can be integrated into new processes and those that need to be phased out.  For example, some agents will have naturally, and out of necessity, developed a habit of making and keeping notes about key issues – creating islands of knowledge that reside with individuals rather than with the organisation in a centralised location. These practices need to be phased out across an organisation in order for a knowledge management system to function effectively.


PEOPLE

Apart from the successful implementation of technology and process, knowledge management relies heavily upon all staff within the contact centre – from managers to agents – taking the time to understand the new technology and processes, and to show a willingness to adopt and adapt accordingly.  Without full participation throughout a contact centre, the full potential of knowledge management systems will not be recognised and customer satisfaction will indeed be put at risk.


In the 2009 Australian Contact Centre Industry Benchmarking Report from callcentres.net, the average customer satisfaction level for the industry in 2009 was 85%.  The contact centre industry prides itself on quality of service, and this statistic certainly reveals a reward for our efforts.  Despite such promising figures, our industry certainly cannot afford to rest on our laurels, particularly in regards to knowledge management.  We must instead take decisive action to ensure that the knowledge with which a customer is handled is first class and that high service levels continue to be an example for like-minded industries.


About the Author

Michael Meredith is the CEO of the ATA, the premier professional body for the Call and Contact Centre Industry.