BUSINESS BRIEF
REALIZING THE POTENTIAL
OF REMOTE CONTACT
CENTER AGENTS
An examination of the promise and pitfalls
associated with implementing a remote
contact center agent model.
A Jabra report, in conjuction with
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BUSINESS BRIEF
REALIZING THE POTENTIAL OF REMOTE
CONTACT CENTER AGENTS
SUMMARY
Nearly six out of 10 contact center managers see the future
of the contact center industry as one in which agents work
remotely instead of from a centralized location. Managers
of large contact centers, in particular, see this as a critical
emerging trend, with 84% believing that remote agents
are the future of contact centers. Managers of mediumsized and small contact centers lagged their larger counterparts, with 69% of medium-sized and just 46% of small
contact center managers visualizing this trend.
However, contact centers appear to view the tradeoff
between better employees and a lack of communication as
an acceptable one, as reflected by the fact that nearly half
of all contact centers are using at least some remote agents
and another 25% are evaluating the practice.
More than half of contact center managers believe that
headsets that provide noise-cancellation technologies to
eliminate noises in the remote location will be important
to the success of the remote-agent model.
Contact center managers identified the primary benefits of
this remote agent model as the ability to attract betterqualified agents, flexibility and cost savings. Nearly 8 out
of 10 managers saw the ability to draw from a larger,
more-qualified pool of candidates as the biggest benefit of
a remote agent model. Managers believe that by breaking
down geographical boundaries, they can attract better
candidates and, as a result, increase agent retention.
This would allow them to effectively address an industry
trouble spot of agent attrition that can be as high as 50%
annually in some contact center environments.
To take full advantage of the potential remote agents
provide, contact centers will need to overcome several
hurdles inherent in a remote-employee model, the biggest
of which is the lack of face-to-face communication between
manager and agent. In fact, contact center managers
rank the lack of face-to-face communication as the
biggest disadvantage in embracing a remote model, with
9 out of 10 expressing concern about it. Slow Internet
connections also ranked high as a potential disadvantage.
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BACKGROUND
Contact centers, like all organizations worldwide, seek
to run their operations as efficiently and profitably as
possible. An emerging industry trend for achieving
these goals is the practice of employing agents
who work remotely—usually from home—instead of
working from a centralized contact center. This allows
contact centers to reduce overhead costs while
enjoying a more dispersed and larger pool of agent
candidates to draw upon.
In December 2011 Jabra and analysis institute Frost &
Sullivan conducted a survey of 250 contact center
managers in Great Britain, France, the U.S., China and
India to investigate the connection between a good
sound environment, employee satisfaction and
increased productivity.
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KEY FINDINGS
60% of contact center managers interviewed
believe that remote agents represent the future
of contact centers.
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“It is clear from our research that remote contact center
agents represent the future of the industry, and we’re
thrilled that contact center managers are joining us in
seeing this important trend,” says Brendan Read, Industry
Analyst, Frost & Sullivan. “As we look to the future, we
expect this trend to expand rapidly as contact centers
begin to witness the increases in retention, efficiency, and
productivity we expect this model to provide. Having
agents work remotely is also good for the environment
and the economy by reducing commuting whose costs, in
traffic congestion, infrastructure demand, emergency
services, and pollution-caused illnesses empties the public
purse.”
Contact managers in the United States, India and
France were most likely to feel that remote agents
are the future of contact centers.
When asked, “Do you find that the trend of employing
remote employees will be the future of contact centers in
your region?”…
ƒƒ 72% of contact center managers surveyed in the United
States responded affirmatively.
ƒƒ 71% of contact center managers in India responded
affirmatively.
ƒƒ 60% of managers in France responded affirmatively.
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Contact center managers in China were least likely
to view remote agents as the future of contact
centers, with only 38% agreeing with the above statement.
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ƒƒ 28% of contact managers in China cited “cultural reasons”
as to why a remote-agent model would not work in that
region.
Managers of large contact centers are more likely
to view remote agents as the future of contact
centers than managers of small contact centers. This
likely reflects their ongoing quest to increase retention
and reduce costs.
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When asked, “Do you find that the trend of employing
remote employees will be the future of contact centers in
your region?”…
ƒƒ 84% of managers of large contact centers (those with
500 or more seats) responded affirmatively.
ƒƒ 69% of managers of medium-sized contact centers
(those with 100-500 seats) responded affirmatively.
ƒƒ 46% of managers of small contact centers (those with
fewer than 100 seats) responded affirmatively.
Nearly half of all contact centers are currently
using remote agents, and a substantial additional
percentage are looking into the practice.
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ƒƒ 45% of contact center managers say that they currently
employ remote agents.
ƒƒ 25% of managers say they are looking into the
possibility of employing remote agents.
ƒƒ 29% say they have no plans to employ remote agents.
By a wide margin, large contact centers are the
most active in employing remote agents or evaluating the practice.
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ƒƒ 75% of large contact centers either currently employ
remote agents or are evaluating the practice.
ƒƒ 39% of medium-sized contact centers currently employ
remote agents or are evaluating the practice.
ƒƒ 18% small contact centers employ remote agents or are
evaluating the practice.
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Contact center managers cite several advantages
for pursuing a remote agent model. The most
popular include increasing the pool of qualified
candidates and increasing agent retention.
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When asked to list the main advantages of employing
remote agents…
ƒƒ 78% of contact center managers said that the practice
provides a well-qualified pool of candidates.
ƒƒ 76% of managers cited increasing agent retention.
ƒƒ 73% said increased flexibility.
ƒƒ 73% said more cost efficiency.
“The finding that a remote-agent model helps provide a
well-qualified pool of candidates and increases agent
retention confirms the findings we discussed in ‘Improving
Contact Center Employee Satisfaction and Retention,’ that
explore the connection between a good sound environment, employee satisfaction and increased productivity,”
says Holger Reisinger, Jabra Vice President of Marketing,
Products and Alliances. “In that brief, we found that a
positive work environment is among the most critical
factors in retaining contact center agents.”
Large contact centers lead their medium- and
small counterparts in viewing a well-qualified
pool of candidates as the main advantage of employing
remote agents. This likely reflects an emphasis by large
contact centers to reduce costly and inefficient agent
turnover.
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When asked, “What are, in your opinion, the advantages of
a remote-agent model?” …
ƒƒ 87% of large contact centers listed a well-qualified pool
of candidates.
ƒƒ 80% of medium contact centers said a well-qualified
pool of candidates.
ƒƒ 72% of small contact centers cited a well-qualified pool
of candidates.
Contact center managers cite several disadvantages associated with a remote-agent model. The
biggest is a lack of face-to-face communication between
manager and agent.
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When asked to list the main disadvantages of employing
remote agents…
ƒƒ 90% of contact center managers cited the lack of
face-to-face communication.
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ƒƒ 77% said slow Internet connections that made remote
access difficult.
ƒƒ 67% said that equipment replacement tends to be
too slow.
ƒƒ 66% cited difficulties ensuring proper training.
According to contact center managers, the most
important attributes of training are keeping
downtime to a minimum and easily understood instructions.
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When asked, “What are the most important elements in
training on- or off-site agents?” …
ƒƒ 85% of contact center managers said keeping downtime
to a minimum.
ƒƒ 82% of managers said easily understood instructions.
ƒƒ 74% said motivated and experienced employees.
ƒƒ 59% said intuitive, easy-to-use products that reduce
training time.
“At Jabra, we are gratified to see that more than half of all
contact center managers realize that headsets with noisecancellation technologies can be critical to the success of
their remote contact center agents,” says Holger Reisinger,
Jabra Vice President of Marketing, Products and Alliances.
“Designed to help remote agents concentrate fully on the
task at hand Jabra headsets features proven technologies
to reduce background noises.”
Contact managers in the United States and India
were most likely to see a need for headsets with
noise-cancellation technologies.
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When asked, “Does your company see a need for special
noise-cancellation features for headsets for home
agents?”...
ƒƒ 79% of contact center managers in the United States
said yes.
ƒƒ 67% of contact center managers in India said yes.
More than half of contact centers see a need
for headsets that feature noise-cancellation
technologies to eliminate noises present in the remote
location.
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ƒƒ 56% of contact managers surveyed see a need for
headsets that feature noise-cancellation technologies.
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FIND OUT MORE
Different working environments demand different headset
solutions. The Jabra range of headsets for Contact Centers
and offices offers a wide choice of hands-free communication technology covering virtually any requirement.
WP_CC_STUDY_BUSINESS_BRIEF_50029_V01_1205
To find out more about which Jabra headset solutions are
relevant for specific working environments, please contact
Jabra at www.Jabra.com/contact-center.
ABOUT JABRA
Jabra is the brand of GN Netcom, a subsidiary of GN Store Nord A/S (GN) - listed on NASDAQ OMX. Jabra employs approximately 850 people worldwide and in 2011 produced an annual revenue which amounted to DKK 2,106 million. Jabra is a world
leader in the development, manufacturing, and marketing of a broad range of handsfree communications solutions. With a
reputation for innovation, reliability, and ease of use that goes back more than two decades, Jabra’s consumer and business
divisions produce corded and wireless headsets, plus mobile and in-office speakerphones that empower individuals and
businesses through increased freedom of movement, comfort, and functionality.
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