DALBAR Uncovers Best Practices for Remote Contact Centers

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Dec 23, 2020, 11:17 ET

MARLBOROUGH, Mass., Dec. 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- DALBAR, Inc. announced today the release of its biennial study entitled, Trends & Best Practices in Financial Services Contact Centers. The report provides insight into how financial services contact centers successfully transitioned to a predominantly remote workforce in 2020. "With all of the challenges this year has brought to the customer service experience, we are so proud to release this study at a time when Contact Center Managers need it most," said DALBAR Director Brendan Yeager.

The study found that the remote workforce will likely last longer for contact centers than the pandemic itself. Companies utilizing remote phone representatives rose from 15.4% a decade ago to 41.7% at the beginning of 2020. "When companies start returning to the office en masse around the middle of 2021, we will see a much higher number than 42 percent. In fact every company participating in our survey expects to have more remote phone staff post-pandemic than they did going in, with 47.1% expecting to have 'significantly more' remote representatives," explains Yeager.

Due to the growing work-from-home movement, workforce management software (WFM) continues to grow in popularity, with two thirds of firms currently using it, up from 52.9% in 2018. Other technologies are also on the rise such as screen share software and speech analytics. Multi-channel awareness has increased as well in 2020, setting the stage for the implementation of omnichannel contact centers in the near future. This study has been produced every two years since 2008, providing a significant amount of back data from which trends and best practices can be derived.

To get more insight into the state of financial services contact centers, download a complimentary report sample. For additional information please email [email protected].

DALBAR, Inc. is the financial community's leading independent expert for evaluating, auditing and rating business practices, customer performance, product quality and service. Launched in 1976, DALBAR has earned recognition for consistent and unbiased evaluations of investment companies, registered investment advisers, insurance companies, broker/dealers, retirement plan providers and financial professionals. DALBAR awards are recognized as marks of a superior standard of care in the financial community.

SOURCE DALBAR, Inc.