Cloud Uncovered A report from the Front Line on Cloud Contact Centre deployments

Alex Noble Richard Atherton

Background & Introduction

Personal Backgrounds • Richard: 12 Years working on global Contact Centre solutions & 5

Years head of BT’s Cloud Contact Centre Platform • Alex: 10 Years working in Global Contact Centres & Collaboration

for Cisco

Talking Points • Cloud Contact Centers - Definition • Feedback from Cloud Deployments

– 21 Engineers in 10 different countries – 4 Program Managers covering 10 global deployments – 25 customer contacts from 4 different continents

• What have we learned – Advice for the future

What is a Cloud Contact Centre ?

FaaS: Functionality rather than HW or SW

Location independent: Any CC Anywhere

Usage based commercial model

Flexible to meet changes in consumer behavior

Scalable to meet changes in market volumes

Minimal footprint on Agent location

Unified Service Model for all locations

Unified Security & Reporting for all locations

Virtualized contact center teams across locations

BT’s Cloud Contact Portfolio Functionality from the Cloud

Email & Chat

Contact Centre

© British Telecommunications plc 4

Overview • Companies are listing platform reliability as their #1

quality they require in a Cloud Platform • Reliability = Proven Track Record

How this trend is managed

• Robust , resilient architecture: A Cloud needs to be engineered and tested rather than just imagined

• PoP’s: Multiple locations either nationally or globally, conforming to RTD parameters

• Connectivity: MPLS, SIP and PRI’s engineered to provide Contact Centre functionality

• Resilience: Geographic, Functional

• Have you done this before?

Feedback #1 Reliability, Reliability, Reliability High Demand for a Proven Track Record

Feedback #2 Concurrency of Agents…??? How Much Capacity Do We Really Need?

Overview • Engineer to meet Peak Capacity • Pay for what you use…not more

How this trend is managed

• How Many Agents

– Total Agent Population

– Concurrency per site

– Total Concurrency

• The Algorithm: How is usage measured

• Active/Non-Active: When is an agent not counted – logged out or not available.

• Current Observation:

– Agent Concurrency lower than expected

– Averaging 40-50% of Total population

Feedback #3 Unify First Then Evolve A Contact Centre Business Must Evolve in a Cloud Model Overview • Customer Service Models must be aligned • Contact Centre Autonomy Changes

How this trend is managed

In Order of Priority

• Produce a universal customer service process

• CRM System Unification across CC sites

• Business Process Modelling:

– e.g. Replacing OOO IVR with geographic overflow to virtual skill-group

• Universal Reporting

• Unification of KPI’s

– AHT / FCR etc

Overview • Who controls the CC platform and how? • How is performance of a cloud platform measured?

How this trend is managed

• Multiple layers of access provided

– Administrators / Managers / Supervisors

• Segregation: Where required to retain autonomy

• SLA Measurement

– Old: Platform Availability

– New: Functional Availability

Feedback #4 Control & Performance Measurement Cloud Control & Functional Service Levels

Predicting the future……..?

22% increase in UK cycle to work rate in 2013

1 in 10 young people spent money on cassettes in March 2014

Fasted Growing European

Economic City

Izmir, Turkey Athens, Greece

Fastest Declining European

Economic City

Overview • The next generation of consumers is difficult to predict • “ Faster than Expected”

– Growth and decline of: – MNC’s – Sectors – Global Markets

How this trend is managed

• Minimal investment to:

– Enter or withdraw from a new geographic market

– Introduce new functionality

• Disaster Recovery: Immediate shocks can be overcome

– Ash Clouds, Floods, Product Recalls

• Growing interest in Knowledge Management……..

Feedback #5 The Future is Unknown? Cloud adoption is fuelled by uncertainty

What Have We learned – Advice for the Future

Build a solid “Cloud” – Network, Data centres, Resiliency

Concurrency is the key to ROI performance

Don’t lose Control – build a solid management portal

Don’t try to predict the future – with Cloud you don’t have to

© British Telecommunications plc 11

Move to Cloud and only then start evolving