The planning stage of any project is always worth spending extra time on. When it comes to creating or re-designing a call center, planning properly can save the corporation dollars, time, and disappointment. The benefits include higher productivity, improved performance, recruitment and retention as well as increased profits.

KSBA Architects, authored and use the following fifty-question Design Quiz. They invite you to look at it before beginning your next call center project. It contains a variety of thought-provoking, vital questions. The firm's managing partner, Roger Kingsland, encourages call center owners/managers to share this list with whichever architect(s) or developer/landlord they consider using.

1. How do call centers differ from conventional offices?

2. What are the benchmark average size ranges for a call center (in square feet per seat)?

3. What percentage of the total call center space is normally dedicated to the following functions:

4. Identify five different call center workstation configurations and their sizes with and without circulation.

   • Workroom?

   • Administration?

   • Meeting Space?

   • Welfare Support Facilities?

   • Training?

   • Technology?
      

5. What is the best type of artificial lighting for call centers and why?

6. What productivity increases are possible with the use of sound masking?

7. How does the work process in a call center differ from conventional office space relative to training, business communication and social communication?

8. What components of call center technology influence the current and future quantity and nature of the staff and why?

9. What is "wallpaper"?

10. What is the difference between "category" and "level" designations?

11. What is the decibel level of normal human conversation; what is a typical decibel level in a call center?

12. What communications mediums are the trends in call centers and what impact will they have on facility design?

13. What are the optimum footcandle levels and luminance ratios for call center lighting?

14. What is the relationship between sound masking and the "passive acoustic environment" in high density office space?

15. How does the cost to install, and subsequently modify, underfloor modular cabling systems compare with conventional power, data and communications wiring?

16. What company is the only manufacturer of ceiling tile with a UL listing for sound absorption?

17. What do the following acronyms stand for and mean:

    • IVR, TVSS, ADSL, ACD

    • TSR, T-1, 110 Blocks, CSR

    • CTI, ISDN
       

18. What potential savings offset the additional cost of Flat Panel Displays (LCD monitors)?

19. What types of power systems reduce problems with computer harmonics?

20. What are the critical relationships between the major components of a call center?

21. What are the factors used in determining the number, nature and location of common meeting space in call centers?

22. What are typical ranges of the ratio of agents to supervisors and what factors cause the ratio to vary?

23. What methods can be used to "harden" a site for sustained operations?

24. What is the range of optimum keyboard heights from a fifth percentile female to a ninety-fifth percentile male?

25. What are the typical peak times in an inbound center and how do they affect facility planning?

26. How does automation affect workstation size?

27. What is the single most important ergonomic component in a call center?

28. What are normal break periods for call center agents and what do they do during breaks?

29. What are the differences in management practices between inbound and outbound centers?

30. How does sound masking work and to what extent does it improve acoustics in a call center?

31. What are the differences between image quality on a CRT versus an LCD and why?

32. Why are open sight lines between supervisors and agents important?

33. What is the cable length limit for Category 5?

34. What is the difference between actual and nameplate amperage draw on computer equipment and what impact does it have on design?

35. In southeastern United States climates, what is the normal cooling capacity for office buildings (in square feet per ton); what is it for call centers?

36. What are the optimum horizontal and vertical dimensions from the computer monitor to the user's eye?

37. What are the critical facility factors for achieving and maintaining Category 5 certification?

38. What is "convection enhanced ventilation" and what are its advantages / disadvantages in terms of cost, energy and flexibility?

39. What percentage of respondents identify noise as the number one distraction in open office environments?

40. What is the average percentage of total staff to "seats?"

41. What is the average hourly wage of a call center agent in the United States?

42. Research has shown what type of keyboard position is best for prevention of repetitive motion disorders?

43. What is integrated access floor" and how does its use effect capital costs and schedule?

44. What is a typical ratio of breakroom seating capacity to total seats and what factors influence it?

45. What is the range of parking requirements and what factors influence it?

46. What are the advantages and disadvantages of locating call centers in the following:

    • Multi-story Office Buildings?

    • One-story Office Buildings?

    • Big Box (retail warehouse)?

    • Build-to-Suit?
       

47. According to Purdue University, Center for Customer-Driven Quality, what do 68% of call center managers view as "most critical to their success"?

48. What active and passive methods are available to reduce repetitive motion disorders?

49. What are the positive and negative implications of completing call center build-outs on a "fast track" basis?

50. What construction delivery methods dovetail best with fast-track construction?

Having designed more than 80 call centers and counting, KSBA believes this quiz can also serve as an effective means to separate firms with authentic "expertise", those with just some "experience", and worse yet, those who will learn on the job at your expense.