CallTalk Thursday, July 19th, Rethinking Agent Satisfaction...Listen in!

The Meaning of Life . . . in the Call Center: Rethinking Agent Satisfaction  Join host Bruce Belfiore and Dr. Teresa Amabile, Harvard Business School Professor, as they discuss agent satisfaction. Is employee engagement as strong as it could be in your organization? Is everyone highly motivated to do a great job every day? In this episode of CallTalk, Professor Amabile describes a decade of research into the hearts and minds of people at work. Her results, and their implications for what managers and supervisors do every day, may surprise you. About CallTalk  Broadcast monthly, directly over the Internet to your desktop, CallTalk covers informative and educational topics that impact today's call center. This show is hosted by Bruce Belfiore, CEO of BenchmarkPortal. It is aired without the participation of vendors so that topics will be free from their influence and guided by the needs of its listeners.   Guest Host: Dr. Teresa Amabile, Harvard Business School Professor  Teresa Amabile is the Edsel Bryant Ford Professor of Business Administration and a Director of Research at Harvard Business School. Her research investigates how life inside organizations can influence people and their performance. She is the coauthor of The Progress Principle, Creativity in Context, andGrowing Up Creative, as well as over 150 scholarly papers, chapters, case studies, and presentations. She has presented her theories, research results, and practical implications to various groups in business, government, and education, including Google, Pixar, Intel, TEDx Atlanta, Procter & Gamble, Novartis International AG, and Motorola. Listen on July 19th! Date: Thur., July 19th, 2012 Add To Your Outlook or iCal Calendar Time:10am PT / 1pm ET Duration:30-45 Minutes Topic:The Meaning of Life . . . in the Call Center: Rethinking Agent Satisfaction Special Offer:The first person to ask a live question will receive a complimentary $1500 Benchmarking Survey. Please call (347) 857-3117. Archived Shows:If you missed this show or would like to view our archived shows, please follow this link. http://www.icontact-archive.com/XY2wLKXhL4PGHI40xdzKLiya6hypj5k7?w=4#linkedinshare

BenchmarkPortal Announces Call Center Campus Week Nov. 5-9, 2012, in Las Vegas | BenchmarkPortal, LLC

BenchmarkPortal Announces Call Center Campus Week Nov. 5-9, 2012, in Las Vegas | BenchmarkPortal, LLC

Call Center Campus Week Includes Call Center Training, Certification Workshops and Symposium. “Improving Customer Service & Loyalty” is the theme for this year’s Call Center Campus Week.

BenchmarkPortal’s College of Call Center Excellence will conduct its Call Center Campus Week this Nov. in Las Vegas. At this annual, unique call center industry event, call center managers and decision-makers can attend certification workshops, sessions and discussions throughout the week. Industry experts, along with BenchmarkPortal’s premier team of instructors, will lead and guide classes and group discussions that explore the latest developments in the call center industry and engage participants of the best practices required to operate a profitable and reputable call center.

BenchmarkPortal intends that attendees gain new and practical insights, as well as strategies that contribute to their organizations’ strengths and sustainability. The training at the Call Center Campus should also enhance individual leadership skills of attendees. Call center leaders will have the opportunity to interact with their peers, learn how to raise their best practice skills to new levels, participate in discussions to inspire innovative thinking and explore compelling avenues for advancing the call center industry. Participants will walk away with incredible tools that can be immediately applied in their centers.

The Call Center Campus Certification Training will occur Nov. 5-7 and includes certification workshops, access to the two-day symposium to follow, benchmarking survey, networking breakfasts and breaks, and lodging.
- Call Center Management Certification: Nov. 5-7, 2012
- Call Center Workforce Management Certification: Nov. 6-7, 2012
- Call Center Quality Assurance Certification: Nov. 6-7, 2012

The Call Center Campus Symposium on Nov. 8th and 9th involves industry-leading keynote speakers, learning sessions, ‘hot topic’ roundtable discussions, and a networking reception.

About BenchmarkPortal 
BenchmarkPortal’s founders pioneered the first contact center benchmarking study in 1995. Now custodian of the largest database of contact center metrics in the world, BenchmarkPortal is a leader in certification, training, consulting and research for the customer contact industry. Its team of professionals has gained international recognition for expertise and innovation in best practices. BenchmarkPortal’s mission is to help management optimize the performance of their center in terms of both costs and quality, encourage customer loyalty and build enterprise value. For more information on BenchmarkPortal please call 1-800-214-8929 or visithttp://www.BenchmarkPortal.com.

CALL CENTER CAMPUS WEEK in Las Vegas, Nov. 5-9, 2012

BenchmarkPortal’s College of Call Center Excellence will conduct its Call Center Campus Week this November in Las Vegas. This annual, unique call center industry event presents an opportunity for attendees to get on the fast track to upgrade customer service and to drive their call centers’ performance to the top.

Industry experts, along with BenchmarkPortal’s premier team of instructors, will lead and guide classes and group discussions that explore call center challenges and emerging trends in the industry.

“Improving Customer Service & Loyalty” is the theme for this year’s Call Center Campus Symposium. The two-day program - unlike any other - features talks and discussions to inspire innovative thinking and engage participants in exploring compelling avenues for advancing the call center industry.

View The Call Center Campus Web Page  »

View The Call Center Campus Brochure  »

Call Center Campus Training: November 5-7, 2012

• Certification Workshops in Call Center Management, Quality Assurance and Workforce Management will equip you with the skill set that you need to improve your center's performance and lead to your professional certification. Workshops take place on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Access to 2-Day Symposium on Thursday and Friday is included with your participation in our certification workshops.
• Benchmarking: All students participate in our call center benchmarking survey. Results provides your company with a snapshot of your call center vs. industry peers.
• Networking Breakfasts and Breaks: Get to know your peers throughout the week with continental breakfasts, coffee breaks and afternoon snacks.
• Lodging: Registration to the Certification Workshops includes your lodging at the NYNY Hotel in Las Vegas.

Call Center Campus Symposium: November 8-9, 2012

• Industry-Leading Keynote Speakers: Listen to thought-provoking speakers share how their companies implemented successful programs that focus on achieving excellence and improving customer service.
• Learning Sessions: Customer Satisfaction, Agent Satisfaction, Social Media, Metrics, Technology and more
• “Hot Topic” Roundtable Discussions: Share business challenges, approaches and best practices on a number of hot topics with your peers.
• Networking Reception: Enjoy complimentary drinks and hors d’oeuvres while networking.
• Awards Ceremony: 2012 Top 100 Call Center Contest Winners
• Networking Breakfasts and Breaks: Get to know your peers throughout the week with continental and buffet breakfasts, coffee breaks and afternoon snacks.
• Lodging: Registration to the Symposium includes your lodging at the NYNY Hotel in Las Vegas.

Call Center Campus Symposium

The Call Center Campus Symposium offers sessions that provide a hands-on learning environment. Attendees can obtain new skills, reflect critically on their work and learn from other individuals and organizations confronting dilemmas similar to their own. At the same time, call center leaders can learn how to raise their best practice skills to new levels, while sharing their best practices with peers.

BenchmarkPortal intends that attendees gain new and practical insights, as well as strategies that contribute to their organizations’ strengths and sustainability. The training at the Call Center Campus Symposium should also enhance individual leadership skills of attendees. As a Call Center Campus attendee, not only will you benefit from the opportunity to interact with your peers, BenchmarkPortal Experts and other industry leaders, but you will walk away with incredible tools that can be immediately applied in your center. Our mission is to create a compelling networking event for the call center industry - one that focuses on networking and building relationships and that does not require exhibiting or catering to end-users. This is a vendor-neutral event that focuses on the core topics, hands-on learning, increasing one’s knowledge of best practices and driving success in your career and center.

Price:
Call Center Management: $2450
Quality Assurance: $1450
Workforce Management: $1450
Symposium: $475


Preferred Partner Discount: Center of Excellence Members 15% off.

Group Discounts: If you have 2 or more individuals that would like to take the call center training course please contact us for a group discount!
Online Contact Form | 800.214.8929 Ext. 1 

Cannot be combined with other offers or discounts.

CallTalk: Assessing the Competitive Landscape for Market Expansions or Consolidations

Assessing the Competitive Landscape for Market Expansions or Consolidations 

Join host Bruce Belfiore and James Trobaugh, Senior VP, CBRE Labor Analytics Group, and Mark Seeley, Senior Managing Director, CBRE Labor Analytics Group, as they discuss call center expansions and consolidations. Leading with labor, CBRE executives reveal their unique insight and approach when addressing one of the biggest enterprise challenges moving forward - how to successfully implement solutions at the intersection of human capital and real estate.

About CallTalk 

Broadcast monthly, directly over the Internet to your desktop, CallTalk covers informative and educational topics that impact today's call center. This show is hosted by Bruce Belfiore, CEO of BenchmarkPortal. It is aired without the participation of vendors so that topics will be free from their influence and guided by the needs of its listeners.

Guest Host: James Trobaugh, Senior VP, CBRE Labor Analytics Group 

As one of the founding partners and Senior Vice President of the CBRE Labor Analytics Group (LAG), Jim has spent the last 17 years developing a specialized practice within CBRE that has led to over 800 site and market evaluation assignments, touring more than 650 cities. Jim creates value, utilizing his expertise, relationships and broad base knowledge of site selection, transaction services and client advisory solutions for strategic planning, market assessment and portfolio optimization - all focused at the intersection of labor and real estate.

Guest Host: Mark Seeley, Senior Managing Director, CBRE Labor Analytics Group 

As the Senior Managing Director for CBRE’s Labor Analytics Group, Mark leads the Labor Analytics Group consulting practice. Mark has practiced corporate location and labor analysis consulting for over a decade. He specializes in site selection, workforce strategy development, portfolio optimization, on-site labor assessment and economic incentive analysis and negotiations.

E&J Gallo Winery Achieves Its Certification as a Center of Excellence

BenchmarkPortal recognizes the exceptional efficiency and effectiveness of the E&J Gallo Winery Contact Center by awarding it Certification as a Center of Excellence. The granting of certification is based on a company’s operational metrics, customer satisfaction and agent satisfaction.

The E&J Gallo Winery customer contact center has been certified as a Center of Excellence by BenchmarkPortal, a leading contact center research and consulting organization. “Only the top 10 percent of those benchmarked annually achieve this distinction,” said BenchmarkPortal CEO Bruce Belfiore. “Achieving Center of Excellence certification is an acknowledgement of strong management and leadership in the call center industry.”

To achieve certification as a Center of Excellence, a company must undergo a rigorous benchmarking process, which compares the organization’s operational metrics to those of its peers, using the world's largest database of contact center metrics. During this process, BenchmarkPortal experts audit and verify key data from the contact center applying for certification.

Factors (called key performance indicators) such as first call resolution, cost per call, call waiting time, customer satisfaction, agent satisfaction and utilization of human resources are taken into account. BenchmarkPortal is able to scientifically gauge how the contact center being studied compares to other centers in the same industry, and if the performance of the contact center is superior. Customer satisfaction, which relates to customer loyalty and business growth, is the goal, balanced by financial metrics which show that the center is being operated efficiently.

“Center of Excellence certification indicates that the contact center delivers superior customer service within a responsible cost structure,” said Belfiore. "A great contact center operation reflects its management's passion for balancing the demands of high quality and low costs. E&J Gallo Winery has shown its ability to achieve that balance through its objective performance metrics. We have validated its metrics and have certified that E&J Gallo Winery is, indeed, among the best in its industry. I congratulate E&J Gallo Winery on a job well done.”

“Benchmarking delivers a crackerjack profile of a contact center’s operations that can inspire management to move forward aggressively, even in a less-than-robust economy,” added Belfiore, who has been with the company since 2000.

About E&J 

Gallo Winery Established in 1933 in Modesto, California, by Ernest and Julio Gallo, E. & J. Gallo Winery has become the world's largest winery and the foremost winery in the art of grape growing, winemaking, distribution and marketing of wines. With seven wineries strategically located in California’s wine regions and access to grapes from vineyards in all of the premier grape-growing areas of the state, Gallo produces wines in every category, to suit every taste. Gallo imports wines from eight of the major wine growing countries in the world. Some of the brands in Gallo’s wine portfolio include Gallo Family Vineyards, Barefoot Cellars, Louis M. Martini, MacMurray Ranch, Bridlewood, Mirassou Vineyards, Frei Brothers, DaVinci, Martin Codax, Don Miguel Gascon, Ecco Domani, McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate, and William Hill Estate. Recently, the Winery has expanded its portfolio to include distilled spirits with the introduction of New Amsterdam Gin and Familia Camarena Tequila.

Complimentary Webinar: Side-by-Side with Your Customer: Leverage Co-Browsing Technology to Create Customer Intimacy and Success for Your Center

Please join BenchmarkPortal and LiveLook for a complimentary live webinar about leveraging co-browsing technology to create customer intimacy and success for your center.

Technology often separates you from your customer and creates frustration for those anxious for a quick, successful, one-and-done contact.

Find out where technology meets hand-in-hand service. Co-browsing can help you and your customer by creating a "do-it-together" experience that will leave them impressed with your focus on serving them individually.

This webinar explains how co-browsing works and how it can help you to improve your service, increase satisfaction and close more sales.

Date: Wednesday, June 20th, 2012
Time: 10am PT / 11am MT / 12pm CT / 1pm ET
Duration: 1 Hour
Presenters: Bruce Belfiore, CEO, BenchmarkPortal & Dusty Stanford, Sales Director, LiveLook
About LiveLOOK: LiveLOOK is an innovator in visual sharing and real-time online interaction. LiveLOOK’s products enable instant-launch, universally compatible Web collaboration via screen sharing. Companies incorporate LiveLOOK’s solutions into customer experience and online sales strategies in order to guide customers through resolution of service issues and completion of purchases. For more information, visit www.LiveLOOK.com

Sign Up For This Webinar  »

Webinar on Technology Improving Contact Centers - iBenchmark - The First Automated Benchmarking Technology!

Please watch this complimentary webinar about the hottest innovation in benchmarking technology - iBenchmark!

In this webinar, you will learn how iBenchmark will:

• Greatly improve customer service and pinpoint areas of potential cost savings
• Automate the data entry process for benchmarking - leaving you more time to manage and improve
• Provide monthly reports comparing your center's metrics to the industry and averages over a one-year period
• Uncover performance gaps compared with the industry
• Quantify and monetize gaps to show impact
• Point toward issues and insights regarding people, processes, technology
• Provide basis for improvement roadmaps and goal setting
• Help you determine the competitive impact of improvements in metrics before you invest time and money (using the unique interactive "Sandbox Tool")
• Provide hard evidence of value you bring to the enterprise

​...and this all comes with a BenchmarkPortal expert! The low price includes one hour of analysis, tracking and discussion each month with your own expert.

iBenchmark automated benchmarking puts technology and advanced processes to work for contact center managers without the hassle of finding and inputting the metrics manually. Thanks to secure, easy-to-install technology that is hosted and managed by BenchmarkPortal, iBenchmark provides managers with a powerful, actionable tool, operated with our patented benchmarking methodology. View iBenchmark Website

Duration: 1 Hour
Presenters: Bruce Belfiore, CEO, BenchmarkPortal & Chris Rouse, Marketing Director, Symmetrics

Management Certification in Minneapolis, MN. June 19-21, 2012 + Includes a Site Tour of GE!

3 Day Training with a Bonus Site Tour- Located in Minneapolis, MN at the General Electric Center

Date:	June 19-21, 2012
Location:	Minneapolis, MN @ the General Electric Capital Fleet Services Center 3 Capital Drive, Eden Prairie, MN 55344 Link to Map
Hours:	8am - Meet & Greet Continental Breakfast provided each day 8:30am - 5pm, Tuesday, June 19th 8:30am - 5pm, Wednesday, June 20th 8:30am - 5pm, Thursday, June 21st
Price:	$1995 - Includes course, breakfast and snacks (lunch is open), course handbook, site tour of the GE Capital Fleet Services Center and a call center benchmarking survey/report with a follow-up web-ex style presentation of your benchmarking results.

Our Call Center Management Certification course is composed of ten information-rich modules that include learning activity "case studies" that focus on practical problem solving and current call center best practices. The curriculum, which was originally developed by Dr. Jon Anton of Purdue University, has been expanded and updated by Bruce Belfiore, Dean of the College, Dayne Petersen, Lead Instructor, and their staff of industry experts. Typically participants include Call Center Managers, Directors and Vice Presidents. These courses will help you better manage your call center and strengthen relationships with other departments (for example: Marketing, MIS and telecommunications).
Call Center Management Certification Training Workshop Agenda:

• Organizational Leadership
• Human Resources
• Quality Monitoring and Coaching
• Customer Satisfaction
• The Basics of Call Center Workforce Management
• Call Center IT Management
• Knowledge Management
• Caller Self-Service
• Analytics & Reporting
• Benchmarking

Discounts:
$200 Discount to attend theMinneapolis, MN workshopPromo Code: MNJUNE200 | Expires 5/25/12

Return to Management Certification Homepage »

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MAXIMUS Call Centers Achieve Certification as Centers of Excellence

BenchmarkPortal recognizes the exceptional efficiency and effectiveness of the MassHealth and Georgia Families Customer Service Operations Centers by awarding them Certification as  Centers of Excellence.  The granting of certification is based on a company’s operational metrics, customer satisfaction and agent satisfaction.

The MassHealth and Georgia Families customer contact centers of MAXIMUS have been certified as Centers of Excellence by BenchmarkPortal, a leading contact center research and consulting organization. “Only the top 10 percent of those benchmarked annually achieve this distinction,” said BenchmarkPortal CEO Bruce Belfiore. “Achieving Center of Excellence certification is an acknowledgement of strong management and leadership in the call center industry.”

To achieve certification as a Centers of Excellence , a company must undergo a rigorous benchmarking process, which compares the organization’s operational metrics to those of its peers, using the world's largest database of contact center metrics. During this process, BenchmarkPortal experts audit and verify key data from the contact center applying for certification.

Factors (called key performance indicators) such as first call resolution, cost per call, call waiting time, customer satisfaction, agent satisfaction and utilization of human resources are taken into account. BenchmarkPortal is able to scientifically gauge how the contact center being studied compares to other centers in the same industry, and if the performance of the contact center is superior. Customer satisfaction, which relates to customer loyalty and business growth, is the goal, balanced by financial metrics which show that the center is being operated efficiently.

“Center of Excellence certification indicates that the contact center delivers superior customer service within a responsible cost structure,” said Belfiore. "A great contact center operation reflects its management's passion for balancing the demands of high quality and low costs. MAXIMUS has shown its ability to achieve that balance through its objective performance metrics. We have validated its metrics and have certified that MAXIMUS is, indeed, among the best in its industry. I congratulate MAXIMUS on a job well done.”

“Benchmarking delivers a crackerjack profile of a contact center’s operations that can inspire management to move forward aggressively, even in a less-than-robust economy,” added Belfiore, who has been with the company since 2000.

BenchmarkPortal and Symmetrics Presents a Live Webinar on iBenchmark, The Latest Innovation in Call Center Benchmarking Technology

The BenchmarkPortal and Symmetrics live webinar entitled “iBenchmark - Latest Innovation in Call Center Benchmarking Technology” will be available by registering here - iBenchmark Webinar Registratrion.
iBenchmark, is an automated benchmarking product that puts patented technology and advanced processes to work for people who manage contact centers, providing benchmarking reports every month without the aggravation of manually finding and inputting a long list of metrics.
Participating centers receive easy-to-install software that transmits their ACD metrics securely and automatically to BenchmarkPortal's database, the largest in the world of contact center metrics. Managers are then able to access a series of useful, benchmark-related reports via their own, password-protected area of BenchmarkPortal's website.
The service includes time each month with a BenchmarkPortal certified expert, who is trained to help interpret the benchmarking results and guide managers through a process of discernment, decision-making and execution of improvement initiatives. This includes tracking the company’s metrics and calculating improvements in terms of costs, quality and customer satisfaction. In this way, iBenchmark will become a valued management tool on a continuing basis.
In this webinar, you will learn how iBenchmark will:

• Greatly improve customer service and pinpoint areas of potential cost savings
• Provide monthly reports comparing your center's metrics to the industry and averages over a one-year period
• Help you determine the competitive impact of improvements in metrics before you invest time and money (using the interactive "Sandbox Tool")
• Uncover performance gaps compared with the industry
• Point toward issues with people, processes, technology
• Quantify and monetize gaps to show impact
• Assist with decision-making and provide management with insights
• Provide basis for improvement roadmaps and goal setting
• Become a key element in your manager’s toolbox
• Provide hard evidence of value you bring to the enterprise

"iBenchmark represents a major step forward", noted Bruce Belfiore, CEO of BenchmarkPortal. "By automating the data collection process and providing a trained expert to help with interpretation, discernment of gaps and identification of practical solutions, iBenchmark is an exceptional management tool. Also, the ease of installation and monthly payment model makes it user friendly and extremely affordable. We can guarantee a positive ROI for those who use iBenchmark."

Monitoring call center performance on a monthly basis allows managers to make decisions and select improvement initiatives that will have measurable impact on the financial and operational performance of the contact center.

Join the CEO of BenchmarkPortal, Bruce Belfiore, as he explains how automated benchmarking can help you and your center. He will be joined by Chris Rouse of Symmetrics, creator of the secure software that powers iBenchmark. Chris will highlight the benefits of automation and the importance to management of accurate, timely data.

Register here for BenchmarkPortal’s complimentary webinar on Thurs., May 31, 2012 at 10am PT/11am MT/12pm CT/1pm ET.