Enghouse contact centre and Microsoft Skype for Business deployment improves customer service
Rebecca Gibson |
Managed IT services provider GCI has helped Prospect Union to implement a virtual contact centre solution that integrates with Microsoft Skype for Business, so it can provide a personalised service to its UK-based trade union members.
A trade union for professionals, Prospect has 141,000 members, including engineers, scientists, managers and specialists. Its staff help members with various complex enquiries covering all facets of employment, such as contracts, working hours, leave, maternity pay, pensions, performance pay, career development, promotion procedures, privatisation, and company acquisitions.
Building on its nine-year partnership with GCI and a previous Skype for Business deployment, the organisation decided to replace its regional help desk system with a single integrated contact centre. Based on Enghouse Interactive Communications Centre (EICC), the virtual platform enables 25 staff to help members as and when needed via Skype for Business.
“The previous mishmash of phone systems meant that internal communications were challenging and we could not run an integrated contact centre,” said Paul Xuereb, head of information and website systems at Prospect Union. “By deploying Skype for Business, it means that we have just one system that all our staff use. Enghouse Interactive works with Skype for Business and gives us a virtual contact centre ‘out of the box’ with all that you would expect, including call queuing and routing.”
Now, rather than calling their nearest regional centre, union members are routed straight to one of 25 specialists who is best suited for dealing with their specific query. This ensures members get a quicker and more personalised service, while enabling helpdesk staff to work more efficiently.
“We think it will give our help desk staff 20% of their time back and mean they can work on other parts of their job when not on calls,” said Xuereb.
Mike Constantine, CTO at GCI, said that Skype for Business is one of the best solutions for enterprise collaboration. “By adding Enghouse Interactive to this mix it means that organisations get a contact centre instantly with none of the challenges associated with running a traditional set-up. By being a gold partner of both Microsoft and Enghouse Interactive we have the specialist expertise to deliver projects to forward-thinking organisations like Prospect Union.”