Customer service

Head of Customer Contact Joris Van Capellen explains: “First and foremost, the virtual contact centre must improve customer satisfaction. Since the transition, customers are connected to the first available member of staff, meaning they no longer need to wait for someone to become available in their region. This approach will prevent lengthy waiting times. Our opening times have also been adjusted to suit the needs of our customers. Through clear procedure diagrams and work instructions, we can make sure that all customers receive the same information, regardless of which member of staff they speak to. We have also made more information available online, so that customers don’t need to call us with every question.”

Of course, our increased focus on customers has had consequences for staff at De Watergroep too. For example, team members will no longer be able to go for lunch at the same time. Flexible working hours have been replaced by fixed shift patterns to increase our capacity during opening hours. “Our staff have certainly needed to make some changes in response to the new rules, but the main advantage is that our workload has been reduced as a result”, Joris Van Capellen explains. “As fewer people are now working before or after our contact hours, more people are available during those hours. This has reduced waiting times, as well as the workload faced by our staff. We have also increased the amount of processing time between two calls and introduced more variety into the role. Our staff now switch between handling calls and non-call tasks, such as responding to questions via e-mail or social media. We're doing everything we can to make sure our staff feel great about what they do.”