New Horizon of Contact Center Career Path

Grace Heny

New Horizon of Contact Center Career Path

(ContactCenterWorld.com session with Mr Ardian  - Work From Home Online Event on Outsourcing Topic)

On Monday 11^th May 2020 shart 13.00 PM Jakarta Time, there is the third wave of ContactCenterWorld Conference Online Series with sub topic on Outsourcing.

On the 4th slot of Agenda, schedule interview Raj with Ardian from IconPlus organization. The IconPlus is a new growing outsourcing BPO for Contact Center and Digital Transformation in Indonesia.

The interview start with the introduction of IconPlus profile of Ardian Chalid himself. Ardian is the Commercial Director and responsible for the BPO Outsourcing Contact Center and also supporting client as the Digital Transformation and support with Big Data Analysis.

IconPLus is owned by Electricity Company which is state owned but as IconPlus itself work and run more like a private company. Lately in Year 2020, IconPlus received the License of BPO Outsourcing and may offer IT Partner services to help the Business Transformation. The competitive value of IconPlus is the insight of the Indonesian market. 

IconPlus previously coming from a exclusive partner of electricity company that managing and running the IT Process for the electricity company.  It has manage and serve more than 50 million electricity user nationwide Indonesia, handling 30,000 payment transaction per day, managing 1,200 Agent contact center distribute in 9 Sites using load balancing scheme, equip with complete digital channel, complete license and internet infrastructure, providing voice and non voice channel solution equip with big data analysis to support our client needs. IconPlus can support client with proper behavior analysis, trend and other specific analysis for Indonesian Population market.  As part of preparing the Digital Economy that support with Sharing Economy concept and collaboration, IconPlus had deploy 5,500 village node spread in Indonesia 17,000 islands.  This will become the key infrastructure to ensure Indonesia ready in entering the Digital Economy especially push by the covid outbreak.

Beside infrastructure, the IconPlus also in managing hundreds Agents in a fast pace contact center ambiance and sometime very harsh  client environment. That is why Ardian pointing out the business process inside IconPlus act more like private company rather than government institution. 

When asked about operational adjustment during the outbreak, Ardian fluently describe few key initiatives within the Contact Center Operational.  They conduct several adjustment including shift arrangement, shift working hour, reduce the number of agents per shift to come to the office and set few team member to set up cluster of Work From Home.  IconPlus also provide the facility like desktop, internet connection and a Non Voice Platform.  As Jakarta area being tighten in social distancing practice, they utilizing the Load Balancing Scheme within the 5 sites.

They implement common standard seating arrangement of 1-0-1 scheme (fill in seat – empty seat and fill in seat again seating arrangement) also deploying new Standard Operating Procedure, especially in term of working environment of our contact center.  Those are:

1. Reinforce few habits and policy: securing personal belonging like headset, glass and utensils.  Regular Handwashing habit
2. Provide online / platform for Morning Briefing and Online Coaching and replacing the face to face discussion.  Announce every information of new items in Knowledge Based through monitor, dashboard and/or WhatsApp Group Channel
3. Disinfectants spray, Hand Sanitizers at every entry point, we provide proper Masks, support supplement like Vitamin C, checking personal health using filling the form to trace everybody day by day, checking personal temperature for every person entering our building, cleansing procedure for every common utilities such as elevator buttons, main door handles, toiler door, handles and other common used of possible virus spread area. Also regular cleaning every hour by our Cleaner Team. 
4. Agent bringing their own cloth and exchange in the office, advice on not to use Mass Public Transportation – avoiding density during the travel and providing pick-up facilities for Agents for Jakarta outskirt area

IconPlus also have their own medical team and own clinic within our office building, so they are ready to support every personnel in the contact center and office tenant. All are equip with adequate health support facilities.

On question about language and the average cost per agent, Ardian describe the English and Bahasa Indonesia language that they serve plus average cost per yearly basis around USD 6,000 per head.

Further discussion, Mr Ardian describe to Raj few reasons why people usually outsource their Contact Center.  

First is Shifting Capex to Opex cost. Reason of huge investment need to provide omni channel.  While on the same time also acquiring new expertise in term of system and platform provide say  omni channel solution with internet and cloud support. Other reason is Economic of scale specially in this digital era, the collaboration and sharing economy is a way to survive with flexibility on scaling up or something also to size down. Last driver is provide a back up plan – as we all know Indonesia is within the Ring of Fire where earthquake, tsunami, disaster sometime took place.

According to Ardian, there are key success factor to be able to work out in an outsourcing concept:

Understand that the engagement is a collaborative and share responsibility when entering an outsourcing concept, so everybody will need to build a good communication, good team work and shared KPI’s.

As far as we can both sides try the best to break down the process and KPI in advance during the agreement discussion – involvement of various stakeholder from the client organization is key also.

In depth discussion about option of charging outsource, Ardian describe three scheme, those are per seat or per agent, this one is very common used. Second is by transaction but not so popular anymore also cant be apply to the non voice channel.  Last is Per Revenue Sharing scheme.  When Raj request to explain further, it is very interesting that Ardian stated they have a win win opportunity business with the agent contact center and work also as enrichment ladder or improvement from Agent Contact Center. If the Agent feel stuck in their current position, they have an option to become partner in building their own home business or as team leader in providing human resource capacity utilizing the 5,500 internet node nationwide. By utilizing these infrastructure, IconPlus feel very confidence they can provide wide opportunity to run the country economy and strengthen the contact center industry.  By describing this, Ardian put a different perspective of how IconPlus will become change maker in term of career path of Agent Contact Center.  It will be very interesting to reveal what is the opportunity provided. 

With that answer the interview between Mr Ardian and Raj have come to an end.  

GH - Written in Jakarta  15^th May 2020