Continuing the theme of discussing channels outside of the main stream interactions of voice, email, web chat, SMS and social media I would like to present its use with managing remote service personnel.   Yes there are software solutions that are designed for dispatch, inventory as well as building or facility maintenance available.  My point is not to replace such systems with unified cross channel communications but to enhance their effectiveness by drawing on the strengths develop over years of contact center management experience.  The marching orders for a contact center solution are to:

• deliver interactions from customers to the best available agent;
• to achieve first call resolution;
• providing metrics for managers to ensure that service levels are met without overstaffing the contact center.

I feel that most dispatch or facilities management software solutions could really benefit from 30+ years of interaction delivery experience using skills and ACD algorithms by the contact center solution providers.  Contact center solutions are ultimately highly tuned interaction or transaction delivery systems designed out of the box to deliver a high degree of both real-time and historical quality assurance information.  For the agents using the contact center solutions it is critical for them to have fast access to CRM information to service the customers.  Fast access to CRM information created the integration with business systems and the idea of assigning skills and delivering “Screen Pop” years ago.  Using this same ACD integration with Dispatch, Inventory, Facilities Management software and tablet PCs in the service trunks would deliver proportional impact on service calls as “screen pops” do to “average speed of answer”, “talk time” & “first call resolution” for contact centers.

So how would this work?  Say it is 3:00 PM in the afternoon and there are 3 service calls available to be handled, one is a system down refrigerator, second is a washing machine with a bad display, the third is a microwave making a noise.  There are 2 service technicians available, 1 is a highly skilled refrigerator technician the other has just finished his apprentice work and driving his new fully stocked service truck.  The rookie is 45 minutes from the refrigerator, 10 minutes from the microwave, and 1 hour from the washing machine but it is 5 minutes from where he lives and keeps his service truck.  The veteran is 10 minutes from the refrigerator, 1 hour from the microwave and 20 minutes from the washing machine.

This sounds like a college level mathematical story problem involving vectors and missing information etc. not easy for a dispatch agent to solve quickly knowing that the end of day is quickly approaching.  Using an ACD solution to assign the service calls integrated with the business systems (inventory, dispatch, CRM) it could easily assign the rookie to service the refrigerator then the washing machine sending the veteran to handle the microwave.  Why, the business system classified the microwave service characteristics as a highest priority to be handled only by trained technicians mandated by the manufacture due to possible health effects.  Sending the rookie to the refrigerator because his truck is stocked with the replacement parts and he can be supported by other technicians to complete the ticket.  The washing machine remains in queue for another agent or possibly the rookie who can either finish out the day or begin the next at this call.  Proximity information for all of the technicians is provided by the tablets using GPS.

Improving dispatch and facilities management through cross channel interactions is on channel.