Well it is definitely a good idea. I can see how it would certainly increase efficiency.

Webmail.us has one… it’s relatively new and evolved. We basically realized that a point of contact was the right way to go, but someone has to inform account managers, the technical support team, and of course others of interest in the company.

Besides streamlining communication, another big reason was to help the engineers. No matter how understanding team members are, being asked once every ten minutes for an update by ten different people is basically an interruption every sixty seconds… and that adds negative pressure. During an issue, “I think I found the issue” can be misunderstood by someone and three generations down the line that message becomes “it’s fixed” even when it might not be. To prevent this, one contact who knows the vital information to get and what, if any, confirmation questions to ask.

Ben

Thanks for your (detailed) comment! Great points.

You only want to put inexperienced (in the customer service sense) on the frontlines when it is your last resort. If you do put them on the frontlines, then you want to have them do simple tasks or tasks that can be done with a process. That way, a lack of customer service experience won’t make as big as a difference .

I like your idea of cross training employees during quieter times that way they can help out during the busier times if needed. This is a great idea and one that I generally suggest anyways. That way, a bookkeeper could answer a customer question about how to login or a technical support representative could answer the question about how much is due on their most recent invoice.

I like the idea of a crisis manager. I have never heard of such a role. Do you know of any companies that have a person like that? It would be an interesting subject to talk about. I bet that must be a stressful job as well.

Definitely! Basically every aspect can always be improved upon. It is just knowing how and then actually doing it. Thanks again for your comment.

The normal Customer Service reps likely can handle the procedure changes fine, but if you use non-frontline employees like bookkeepers to help, doing things like sorting tickets (if you have a ticketing system that supports that) or helping to just let customers know that you are on it can make a HUGE difference. I am against putting them in the front line, as they are likely don’t know how to handle angry customers, but there are many other areas they can help.

My suggestion is that people that will be called upon to lend such aid in a rush be exposed to the tool during quieter times. If you have a ticketing system, show them how to take and sort a ticket, so that when an issue does happen these team members won’t be seeing the ticketing system interface or using the tools for the very first time.

As a support team or company manager, giving the team a pep talk during such issues is huge I think. Let them know it’s their time to shine. Like Doug mentioned, a bonus is helpful, but if it’s so busy that they can’t take a lunch break, spring for a pizza delivery for the guys and gals facing the front line. High moral is vital, and really not that hard to maintain.

Also, especially if you are in the technical field, having a crisis manager is a good move I think. This person would be responsible for distributing information. Sometimes the technicians working to solve the problem are the best ones for information. The last thing they need is to be interrupted every 30 seconds by people asking the same question. In times of a major issue, the CEO could be clamoring for information, the sales reps getting calls from their customers, account managers, and support managers all ask the same questions. Having one person responsible for getting frequent updates and making sure they’re given to the right people could make sure the information is consistent, accurate, and that the issue gets resolved sooner.

Great post Doug… and one that I think many readers may benefit from more discussions or posts on. After all, so many smaller companies use customer service and technical support as a key differentiator between themselves and their customers, and when there is a rush (or service outage) is when customers are most likely to get peeved and forget the previous fast response times and help you were able to offer. It’s a huge area I think can always be improved upon!