AKRON, OH, March 28, 2011 -- Four Ohio agencies have invested in new virtual queuing technology that reduces or eliminates hold time for callers and pays for itself through savings in toll costs and labor. The Ohio Public Employees Retirement System, Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services, State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio and Ohio Health Plans have implemented the solution, which allows callers to receive a callback without waiting on hold or losing their place in the phone queue.

The company providing the solution, Virtual Hold Technology (VHT) of Akron, reports significant growth in its government market segment, adding several new state offices to its growing list of government clients.

"In the past two years, we've seen a lot of growth among state departments of labor in particular," said Eric Camulli, vice president of marketing for Virtual Hold Technology. The company now serves 19 government agencies including the Social Security Administration.

"Our government growth has been fueled by high demand for state services," Camulli said. "For example, high unemployment and questions about unemployment extensions and retirement programs can trigger an overwhelming number of calls to call centers. Mondays and Fridays are especially busy, so hold times during these peak periods can be very frustrating to callers. State agencies know it's important to provide excellent service to taxpayers who are already under stress from job losses and other economic hardships."

One reason the agencies have been able to invest in virtual queuing improvement projects despite state budget cuts is that they meet strict standards for return-on-investment and effectiveness, Camulli said, so the state ends up saving money while providing better service.

"When callers to 1-800 numbers wait on hold, it costs the call center money," he said. "Very often, Virtual Hold systems pay for themselves within a year by reducing toll minutes."

The company estimates it saved the various departments of labor it serves $1.7 million in toll minutes in 2010 and saved callers 162 years of hold time.

Posted by Veronica Silva Cusi, news correspondent
Source: http://www.marketwire.com