Cutting the Customer Hold Time with High Tech & High Touch

No matter how good the music sounds, no one likes to wait “on hold” when calling a company.

If you’re calling METRO, you may be shivering at the bus stop, wondering when the next bus is coming and calling in to our main information number. Or maybe you’re trying to plan a trip from East Houston to The Galleria. Or you’re upset that the bus came early – and you missed it and got to work late.

In 2005, if you were one of those callers, you were probably fuming by the time a customer information specialist got to you. The average wait time to speak to a real person: 4:46.

A year later in 2006, the average wait time for a customer to speak to a rep had shrunk to 1:16.

“When we became better at picking up our phones, we started getting comments, ‘Oh, ya’ll are quick.’ They were in a state of shock,” says Kim Wells, manager of customer services.

What happened?

Wells, who has been at METRO for eight years and worked in customer service at American Express before coming here, credits the reduced wait time to these factors:

• New technology for the call center
• Implementing a Trip Planner system - software that simplifies how reps retrieve route and schedule information for customers
• Starting an Automated Route time point information for riders who can press various numbers on their phone keypad and listen to information without having to speak to a rep.

 “Frank Wilson held us to a challenge,” recalls Wells. “That’s what I like about him. He challenges you to do the impossible, and you have to figure out how to do it. He challenged us and said he would like (hold time) to be under a minute. While we didn’t make it under a minute, we got really close. One reason why we didn’t’ make it was the large increase in calls in 2006.”

METRO reduced the training period of new reps, condensing the same material to to four weeks to get the reps working the phones faster. In 2006, the staff answered an average of 117,200 calls a month. New reps fresh from training took an average of 12 calls an hour. Reps with six months to one year’s experience averaged 22 calls an hour, while reps with one year or more of experience averaged 25 to 35 calls an hour.

As manager, Wells had to change business practices that existed when she took over as manager. She issued a clear message to the reps: It was critical that everyone arrived at work on time and took their two 15-minute scheduled breaks and one-hour lunch on time.

“They’re actually penalized if they’re late. After so many times being tardy, there are written reprimands, suspension and termination,” explains Wells.

“In the beginning, there was a lot of resistance. We lost a lot of people - 60 to 70 percent. They didn’t like change,” says Wells.

At the same time the more professional approach was emphasized, Wells had to build up morale in a high turnover department stressed out by hearing complaints hour after hour.

She started performance and attendance incentives, peer recognition, teams of reps who competed against other teams for prizes like movie tickets or an extra 15 minutes off. 

Employees voluntarily pool their money to celebrate birthdays in the department. There’s a monthly cake - or sometimes ice cream. On each individual’s birthday, his or her cubicle is decorated with colorful balloons. Birthday honorees get a goodie bag stuffed with items they requested – from paperback books to chocolates.  Liza Babineaux, at the right, enjoys the department's camaraderie.

The first week of October during National Customer Service week, Wells goes all out to give her staff red-carpet treatment. “We feed them. We basically pamper them. We do ice cream parties for them, we bring in barbeque. We make the most of the dollars we’ve budgeted, “ says Wells, who loves to plan theme parties. “At the same time, we’re passing out customer service brochures. We send them to classes that week if there are national classes going on.”

While she’s doing these feel-good activities with her staff, Wells emphasizes the biggest element to reducing caller hold time. ”The biggest thing is communicating the expectations - creating performance expectations and communicating them to the staff – and holding them accountable, “says Wells.

The turnover rate at METRO is less than 20 percent, in line with industry standards.

 The call center is staffed Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and on weekends and holidays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The majority of calls are for trip planning help; then questions about when the next bus is arriving; complaints, fares and first-time bus rider help each makes up 10 percent of the calls.

Wells says customers can often get the same information without any hold time if they use the automated option when they call.

METRO has 38 reps. Twelve speak Spanish – and METRO is always looking for more. To the left is Natividad Ortega, a bi-lingual agent who has been with us seven years. Reader boards hanging from the ceiling show stats that look like ticket tape info. It displays the number of calls waiting, the number of minutes the longest call has been waiting, how many reps are staffing the call center; and the service level.

“Customers expect for us to answer the phones. We’ve gotten good at it. It’s just something that we do,” says Wells. “We have fun. You have to laugh. We’re not perfect. We’re working on getting there. If you can make the staff happy at work, it makes it a much better place for everybody to work. I really try to focus on that – while still holding them to high expectations.”

Her formula must be working. In an often thankless job dealing with irate customers all day long, any of the 38 reps will come in after their normal hours when Wells needs them.

“Right now, I can get anybody to work overtime,” says Wells, adding that everyone she called during Hurricane Rita came in to work when she asked.