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Case Studies Here are three good examples of the results our customers can expect from Opus Telecom. These case studies show 4 important things...
Case Study 1:  Mapping Future Freight Forwarding Communication Premier UK freight forwarder, Map Cargo was faced with the dilemma of rapid expansion of its business across five sites that dictated the need for a communication solution to maximise efficiency, reduce costs and evolve in line with growth. From a customer's referral, Map Cargo's Managing Director, Daryl Hill looked to Opus Telecom to deliver a stable, future proofed communications platform, taking full advantage of today's digital features: "I'd heard of the Siemens HiPath range and turned to one of their accredited business partners." Following an initial appointment, noting industry specific requirements, Opus proposed a telecom solution with the Siemens 3550 HiPath platform at its heart, incorporating Direct Dial Internal (DDI), external call transfer, call management software and call recording. Daryl comments: "Communications being paramount to the products and services we sell, I could see customer relations further enhanced through the facility to transfer calls out of the office to mobile phones. Seamless telephony that has formed a universal network between Map Cargo's five sites, with every extension taking incoming/outgoing calls on Direct Dial numbers. Immediately, internal office voice traffic has reached a new level of efficiency and callers go directly through to their desired point of contact. Maintaining a high level of customer attention is paramount. Making the transition from analogue to digital telecommunications was a fundamental building block to aiding and developing our 21st century business strategy." The solution embraced call management and recording software that utilises on-line, real-time 'phone bills' and, accessed securely through Opus Telecom's website, all voice traffic is monitored. Daryl adds: "This particular management tool has recently proven its effectiveness in the field by highlighting unofficial ship-to-ship Inmarsat calls. I picked two up the other week, as they were being made, allowing immediate and decisive action. A significant reduction in personal calls has occurred with the introduction of call recording. This has proved vital for training and resolving customer disputes." By forging an open and constructive dialogue from inception through installation, Map Cargo enjoys the technological benefits of a digital telephone system, which Opus maintains and continues to advise on. Mark Castle, Opus Account Manager to Map Cargo reflects on the requirement: "It's rewarding to see first hand how digital telephony grows and matures within a company to a level they take for granted. Even better when the process is cost justified!" Opus targets the running costs of analogue telephone systems, to save money on calls, lines and maintenance and so affords companies the financial flexibility to go digital. Daryl concludes: "The process has renewed my faith in telecom companies. My system is self-financing and opens new dynamics within customer relations. Going the Opus way is a recommendation I'll make to all freight forwarders wanting to replace their ageing telephony with a stable, adaptable and efficient platform and not a quick fix, attempting to make a racehorse out of a donkey!" Case Study 2:  Implementing Future Proof Communications Premier Holidays is a privately owned, independent tour operator with over 65 years experience in selling holidays. Their independence ensures customers have the widest choice of destinations, grades of accommodation and airlines to match every pocket and every dream. Their approach to tour operating means every aspect to booking a holiday is tailored to suit individual needs and desires. It is this business practice that demanded skill based call routing technology to service a 75 seat call centre. Sue Earnshaw, Operations Director to Premier Holidays comments: "We were working with an old Featureline system that tied us completely to our previous supplier. The system was very limited in reference to what statistics could be provided and there was no flexibility to deal with multi-skilled staff. Agents were designated a group and if calls were queuing in another group, they couldn't be fed to them. To overcome this, we needed to physically move the agent from one group to another and then back again. Consequently this took up a lot of management time!" The brief was to design a solution that enhanced Premier's call centre productivity, deliver real time statistics and a level of agent accountability through the provision of individual 'wallboards'. System flexibility was a key attribute to the solution, so that the randomized nature to high call volumes in the travel industry could be catered for. The challenge was set and as Sue says: "The system we were working with was old technology, which meant our previous supplier was withdrawing its support. We needed to implement new telephony and ensure it was going to be future proofed." Premier Holidays had a very clear vision of what they wanted from the outset. Roland Hopkins, Opus's Technical Director, recounts: "It's refreshing to work with a client who really knows what they're looking for. After the first planning meeting, it became apparent many more would follow due to the complexities involved." Five meetings later, a solution was put on the table. Opus proposed utilising a Siemens HiPath 3750 to drive 120 extensions, including a 75-seat call centre. In partnership with Swan Solutions, the call management element to the requirement was tendered with the suggested use of detailed agent reporting to generate real-time productivity statistics and individual 'wallboards' set up so that the agent can monitor the number of calls queuing, missed and taken. The same software would also tag the caller identity of missed calls and allow these to be actively returned. Auto attendants were included to ensure incoming calls enquiring about specific products were routed to the relevantly qualified agent. During peak call periods the system needed to be flexible enough to force calls from one group to another to ensure holding times are kept to a minimum and qualified agents are available to take the enquiries. With a solution agreed and in an effort to keep staff disruption and downtime to a minimum, Opus scheduled the hardware phase of the installation to be completed overnight and during the run up to Christmas. The next stage was to implement the call management software and as Roland remembers: "The project looked straightforward on paper. We compromised with certain features to keep on budget, but needed to deliver enough telecoms technology that would satisfy the original requirement. However, this was always going to be the one area where things could go wrong!" Opus and the Swan development team were pushing the Siemens switch to its limits and adapting call management software around very specific requirements. The system was up and running by mid December, but as we moved into the New Year, serious problems occurred in respect to calls getting lost in the system. Roland comments: "We could 'see' the error, but weren't sure whether it was the switch or software related. We weren't getting these errors before Christmas and put this down to the low call volume experienced at this time. It quickly became apparent that as soon as January's peak call period started, the errors increased and the reality of Premier losing business was concentrating my mind." After several controlled tests, the problem was isolated to a software error in the switch. This required a rewrite using Siemens resources based in Germany. Sue adds: "We realised that the requirement was going to be a tall order due to the demands we put on a phone system. We had high expectations of the system, but soon realised it was necessary to compromise on some things. However, Opus always listened to what we wanted and their technical department tried to devise workable solutions to keep us communicating until the software rewrite happened. There was a lot of trial and error, which was frustrating for everyone, but Roland remained reassuring that the issues would be resolved." With the new software downloaded onto the switch, the system was fired up and tested. Certain errors were fixed, yet a number of calls were still getting lost. An improvement on the previous setup, yet it was far from being a commercially viable solution. It was to take two further software rewrites and a lot of patience for Premier Holidays to realise the powerful benefits bespoke telephony management software has over call centre productivity. Sue's thoughts after the installation were: "Whilst it took some time to resolve a lot of the problems, we initially went with Opus because we felt we could trust the company and more importantly, the people we were dealing with. Their solution is realising a number of immediate benefits, notably the reduction in call charges, but the very fact we are able to return missed calls means we can quote on a booking which might have otherwise gone to a competitor. Conversely, we can track whether that missed caller tried again later and got through. Most agents and clients are very impressed that we have the facility to do this and it shows that we value our customers enough to get back to them. The overall productivity of the call centre has improved, with targets being set and met through enhanced reporting and 'wallboard' functionalities. Agents are becoming more accountable for their actions and their focus improved with the provision of minute by minute performance statistics." In Premier Holidays, Opus has learned invaluable lessons that's further improving the way it tenders, wins and installs large enterprise deals. The provision and subsequent maintenance of Premier's multi-functional call centre serves as a benchmark to Opus's abilities within the telecoms market place. However, as their Technical Director, Roland Hopkins has the last word: "Success is only guaranteed with the customer on your side!" Case Study 3:  Communications To Balance Time And Resource Pressures Deploying such a diverse range of services and products is vital to sustaining a market leading edge. Most requirements undertaken by Opus Telecom involve complete solutions, meeting exacting standards and offering realistic, tangible benefits to the customer. Enfield's estate agents approached us to tailor a telephony package that would begin to balance time and resource pressures, yet meet ever-increasing levels of customer service. Their requirement was satisfied through the implementation of a Siemens Hipath system across all seven sites. Fully linked and enabled with least cost routing, we built a number of digital features into the final solution. Voicemail accounts for all staff - accessible away from the office, CTI into the client/supplier database, allowing for personalised greetings and enhanced staff productivity, external call transfer - converting Enfield's employees' mobile or home phones into an extension off the main system and an automatic call divert facility that allows calls to be routed to external numbers - this has transformed the management of advert hotlines and ensures a lead is never lost. Rob Mott, Managing Director to Enfields has this to say about their telephony project: The Enfield's requirement serves as a good example of an Opus Telecom installation. Believing that less is more when it comes to proposing a communication solution, it's all about listening to a client's needs and understanding how they conduct business in order to successfully enhance their telephony. By forging an open and constructive dialogue from inception through installation, it's possible to afford any company, whatever sector or size, a communication platform that will maximise efficiency, reduce costs and evolve in line with growth. Opus Telecom is the right partner for you! And if you need any more proof, here's another case study often used by Siemens. what's the next step? If you like what you've read, why don't you contact us to arrange a FREE No Obligation Meeting. There are 3 quick and easy ways to contact us... 1. Phone: 0845 077 0234 now 2. Email: franchise@opustelecom.co.uk 3. Complete the online enquiry form by clicking here But be quick - we're only taking on 60 franchisees in the UK, and we're filling up fast! Alternatively take a moment to sign up to our FREE 2 part mini-course... |
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