Remploy Offiscope’s Aberdeen contact centre is piloting new technology that will enable calls to the 11 80 80 directory enquiries number to be taken by operators local to where the call is made.
The breakthrough has been made possible thanks to a pioneering deal between Simunix, the company behind 11 80 80 and Norwegian telecoms supplier, Consorte. It will result in big benefits for directory enquiry users who have experienced problems with customer service using other directory enquiry lines which route calls through to call centres overseas.
Said Simunix Managing Director, John Lewis: “Crucially, we will now able to see where the calls are coming from which gives us the potential to route them to an operator based in the caller’s particular region, providing the benefits of local knowledge and a more personal service.
“This could go some way towards addressing the public’s negative perception of directory enquiry calls always being answered in India. Telecoms can make the world feel a smaller, friendlier place as well as bigger one.”
Calls to 11 80 80 could be taken by people working from home or anywhere else where the appropriate software has been installed. Individual operators will indicate to Simunix via the software when they are available to take calls.
The technology is currently being piloted at the Aberdeen contact centre of Remploy Offiscope, a leading provider of outsourced front and back office services and a part of Remploy, the UK’s leading provider of employment opportunities for disabled people.
“Being able to provide the 11 80 80 service to our sites enables us to extend our portfolio of services and gives us an inbound call volume which is a sound platform for growth, said Chris Wood, Head of Sales and Marketing, Remploy Offiscope.
“We’re pleased to be working with Simunix on such an exciting project, which is at the cutting edge of telecommunications technology,” he added.
Initially, the contact centre is providing the 11 80 80 service to the other 80 or so factories and other sites within the Remploy Group. However, the plan is for the service to be extended to other Remploy and Simunix clients and then for Remploy to take calls from the public alongside a call centre in Malta which currently fulfils the role.
“We’re delighted for the opportunity to reverse the industry trend and boost call centre business in the UK,” said John Lewis.