As we approach mid-year of our 25th birthday year, I was reflecting on what was going on in the world 25 years ago. Personally, I was running a telesales team for the AA in Staffordshire – there was no ACD, wallboards or automated call stats, but we had headsets. The team had scripts to follow which everyone hated but were dutifully complied with when the ‘tele-recorder’ machine was plugged in. Just a few months later I moved to my first real Call Centre Manager role at the AA in Cheadle where a new Rockwell ACD had just been installed and we all learned to shout “make yourselves available”!

I did a little Google search and discovered that while the CCMA and the contact centre industry was finding its feet, these are some of the events of 1994:

  • First ever multi-racial elections in South Africa; the ANC win and Nelson Mandela becomes first black president
  • Bill Clinton is the President of the USA
  • Ice skater Nancy Kerrigan is attacked by Tonya Harding’s bodyguard
  • The Duchess of Kent converts to Catholicism, the first member of the Royal Family to do so in more than 300 years
  • Schindler’s List wins at the 51st Golden Globes
  • Ayrton Senna killed during the San Marino Grand Prix
  • Colin Jackson runs world record 60m hurdles indoor (7.30 sec)
  • David Platt appointed captain of England football team
  • Church of England ordains first 33 women priests
  • United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) enters into force after being ratified by the required number of nations
  • Greg Norman wins PGA Players Championship
  • Pulp Fiction premieres at the Cannes Film Festival
  • The Lion King opens in theatres
  • OJ Simpson is chased by the LA cops for 1.5 hours live on TV
  • Conchita Martínez of Spain beat Martina Navratilova to win Wimbledon. While American Pete Sampras successfully defends title against Goran Ivanisevic
  • com founded by Jeff Bezos
  • Brazil beats Italy on penalties in the FIFA World Cup Final
  • Seal’s Kiss from a Rose is released and named Song of the Year
  • Tony Blair becomes leader of the Labour Party, paving the way for him to become Prime Minister in 1997
  • Last British troops leave Hong Kong (been there since 1841)
  • British band Oasis release their debut album Definitely Maybe
  • Pentium computer beats world chess champion Garry Kasparov
  • Friends TV sitcom debuts on NBC
  • Sweden joins the EU, while Norway votes against joining the EU
  • KLM’s last DC-10 aeroplane goes out of service

What were you doing 25 years ago? Were you working in our industry, or maybe you were yet to arrive!

For me, the contact centre is the most valuable function in a business. There are two main reasons why this is the case. The first is that the contact centre, as the hub of all customer interactions, is also at the centre of all the insights a business gathers. The second, more prosaic reason, is that customers still want to forge human connections with the brands they do business with. To make this vision a reality, however, we need to reverse the recent alarming slump in customers’ perception of customer service quality. Let’s take a look at how.

The Contact Centre Renaissance: Why Human Connection Matters More Than Ever

For me, the contact centre is the most valuable function in a business. There are two main reasons why this is the case. The first is that the contact centre, as the hub of all customer interactions, is also at the centre of all the insights a business gathers. The second, more prosaic reason, is that customers still want to forge human connections with the brands they do business with. To make this vision a reality, however, we need to reverse the recent alarming slump in customers’ perception of customer service quality. Let’s take a look at how.

Read more »
The traditional top-down leadership model that has applied in contact centres since forever, is no longer fit for purpose. Because today’s contact centre is driven by the need for an agile, responsive service delivery, the thinking goes that leadership must exist at every level of the organisation – as close as possible to where decisions need to be made.

Empowering Contact Centre Leadership at Every Level

The traditional top-down leadership model that has applied in contact centres since forever, is no longer fit for purpose. Because today’s contact centre is driven by the need for an agile, responsive service delivery, the thinking goes that leadership must exist at every level of the organisation – as close as possible to where decisions need to be made.

Read more »
New OFCOM regulations designed to hamper the ability of overseas spam callers to ‘spoof’ UK phone numbers could also impact legitimate offshore and outsourced contact centres.

Navigating The New OFCOM Rules For UK Businesses Calling From Offshore

New OFCOM regulations designed to hamper the ability of overseas spam callers to ‘spoof’ UK phone numbers could also impact legitimate offshore and outsourced contact centres.

Read more »
Watch the online seminar which continues the conversation into the power of the strategic value of the contact centre.

Watch: Showing the Boardroom the Strategic Value of Your Contact Centre

Watch the online seminar which continues the conversation into the power of the strategic value of the contact centre.

Read more »

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