Virtual Contact Center Supports Going Green

The virtual contact center has become important for its ability to provide organizations with significant benefits in not only cost savings but also, as more and more businesses become aware of their environmental impact and responsibilities, the virtual contact is also helping organizations go green. The e-business now prioritize going Green. This will mean decrease in the consumption of power in the data center by switching off the air conditioners at night. The call center industry has no exception. The will start to implement a Green hosted call center environment. A virtual call center allows the organization to participate in the reduction of power consumption. Call center will allow its agents to work in any place where they have access to phone and Web connection. This will result to significant reduction of physical space and vivid change on the expenses of rent and utility.

For instance, a traditional call center allocates 120 square feet of office space per agent. Commercial space rent is from $17 to $28 per square foot per year. If the cost is $21 per square foot rental, the cost per year per agent equates to $2,500, or $250,000 per 100-seat call center. Assuming the utility costs is around $30,000 per year and the possible savings in a hosted environment are extensive. Also, the virtual contact center can allow organizations to extend their service hours and offer improved customer service levels as callers are better able to reach agents and are connected directly to agents who can assist them with their needs quickly and efficiently.

Aside from these abilities, the virtual contact center becomes important to organizations looking to go green as the agents they employ are home, not commuting and releasing more carbon emissions or using electricity, fuel or other costly elements of a brick and mortar establishment. By reducing the organizations carbon footprint, the virtual contact center has huge benefits on the environment including a significantly reduced carbon footprint and removing pollution from the air. The Green concept has been over hyped in a number of industries, and call center industry is now starting to enjoy measurable benefits that go beyond by merely giving satisfaction to the environment. By implementing a hosted platform that eliminates the need for a physical building, the organization will then save funds, will trim down power consumption and will force an improved overall experience for everyone concerned.

Generating and Improving BPO Jobs

Knowing that a huge population of the graduating students are in the field of IT, it seems that there will be another group of overqualified graduates who will be engaged in call center. So at present, the BPO industry is a sure alternative for employment opportunity for the newly grads. Since we have a low-cost labor here, most BPO firms have decided to hire a cheaper workforce than losing a business. It's depressing that we're losing jobs, not just here in our country and we know it also happens worldwide. But due to the strength of the BPO industry, it is not a lost for our employees and graduates.K

Most of the new employment opportunities in BPO industry worldwide were created in the Philippines during the last month. This has, in effect, made the Philippines the fasted emerging BPO service hub globally. Industry expert says that altogether there 25,700 new job opportunities were created in the business process outsourcing sector in the Philippines. Among these new jobs, as many as 72 per cent were based in the Philippines, he added. It may be noted that the BPO industry in the Philippines had created as many as 70,000 new employment opportunities during 2009, with the contact center sector having the maximum number of employees – 280,000 agents. Despite, the worldwide economic slump, the BPO industry in this far eastern nation was successful in spawning revenues to the tune of $7.2 billion during the last fiscal denoting an increase of 19 per cent in comparison to the $6.06 billion generated in revenues.

The rate of call center agents that are being hired isn't enough in the large demand of agents in different call centers. Furthermore, there is an estimated 20,000 new jobs per month and on 2010 it will contribute $13 Billion to the economy. However, there are few qualified job applicants. There is only 4% of applicants are hired of call centers. 40,000 fresh college graduates have sub-standard English skills, because of this; Agents' competence must be enhanced to meet the higher demand for new employees of call centers.

There are three strategies for this shortfall: First, industry lead standards are being developed and shared. TESDA and CHED have signed the memorandum of agreement for a good curriculum about call center in all pilot schools. Second, government is supporting training for new-hires. P350 million worth of scholarship grants have been given by TESDA for the training of would be-agents. Lastly, partnerships between academe and companies are being formed. This strategy must helped schools to modernize the curriculum based on the needs of call center development. Also, on-the-job training is relevant in this strategy. Indeed, the three strategies must be done successfully and effectively to sustain the needs of call center on having enough employees.