Background
A global insurance company, well known for its customer service, was consolidating its operations into one regional call center. The shift to a centralized model would create important economies of scale; however it was a significant departure from its branch model. The head of the center wanted to ensure there weren’t dips in throughput and quality – and that within a short timeframe it could surpass current levels.
The Vice President in charge of the call center engaged the Sundheim Group to help put structures and processes in place to keep quality and service levels high.
How we supported the client
Created a strategic roadmap – Some of the employees had been at the company for years, but many were new. We used the strategic roadmap exercise to bring the new senior team together, aligning them on the most important priorities for the first year in operation and how they’d have to operate together to be successful.
Planned key initiatives – We helped architect training and development and performance management strategies that would motivate employees to put relationships first, including making these skills a requirement for advancement.
Advised and coached leader – Conducted interviews and an extensive 360 assessment for the center leader in order to provide detailed feedback of where she’d need to develop in order to succeed in her new role. Coached her around growing and developing her team to be able to excel in their new roles in this expanded operation
The engagement spanned six months.
Results
The group of leaders began operating as a high performing team within months. They were setting stretch goals, holding each other accountable, and being open and honest with feedback. Within six months, throughput and quality numbers were back to previous levels. Six months after that they improved another 20%. Subsequent feedback from supported branches indicated equivalent and higher degrees of satisfaction over the previous branch model.