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Rolling Meadows, IL — Multimedia contact center channels and online training tools are just two of the reasons ABS Associates has successfully employed "home agents" for the past six years, according to Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Tom Mitchell. As one of five panelists at the recent discussion "How to Make Home Agents Work," which took place at the International Customer Management Institute (ICMI) Call Center Demo & Conference, Mitchell explained how emerging technologies have enabled at-home arrangements to flourish, as well as how ABS has handled the realities of using agents who work primarily from their homes. "The ABS Mission is simple: to provide innovative and competent on-demand IT expertise 24 x 7 throughout the globe," said Mitchell. "ABS is continuously using technology to adapt to changing business models. "With benefits such as reduced overhead, lower turnover rates, and higher productivity levels, home agents have worked well for ABS and other firms," he said. "But working at home is not for every agent. We have found that monitoring of key performance indicators, as well as quality e-learning tools, are essential for our contact center supervisors to effectively manage remote agents." The other panelists-including Susan Langwell, senior consultant for ICMI; Jerome Payne, director of call center operations for Shop at Home; Connie Adcock, senior vice president of customer service for 1800flowers.com; and Drew Daly, senior director of sales for NLG-echoed Mitchell's observations, describing to the audience why remote agents are a viable option that cannot be overlooked by today's contact center leaders. "How to Make Home Agents Work" was one of more than 30 sessions at the ICMI Call Center Demo & Conference, which took place February 21-23 in Miami and was attended by over 1,200 professionals. ICMI delivers management-level conferences and educational programs designed to help organizations improve operation performance and increase the strategic value of their customer contact services. For more information about ICMI, visit http://www.incoming.com. About ABS Associates ABS Associates, Inc. is a leading provider of outsourced helpdesk, desktop, managed hosting, and network support and services. For more than twenty years, ABS certified support professionals have expertly delivered IT solutions, helping hundreds of companies control capital expenses and support costs, improve company focus, and increase end-user productivity. ABShelp™, the company's web-enabled knowledge center, allows client firms from around the world to optimize information technology as it relates to their unique businesses. For more information, please visit http://www.abs-inc.com. |
