New research from the UK's leading contact centre magazine Call Centre Helper, run in partnership with NewVoiceMedia, reveals that nearly half of industry professionals (44%) name ‘IT issues’ as a key barrier to running an effective contact centre.

The survey, which asked over 600 members of the contact centre industry ‘what barriers stop you from running your dream contact centre?’ also found that budget (67%), the need for new technology (40%) and technology not being joined up (35%), are all responsible for restricting progress in the contact centre.

When asked what they would change, the majority of respondents commented on the need for basic working computer systems and demanded upgrades to the latest technologies. One participant commented, “New solutions are required to remove the need for legacy systems, processes and workarounds”, while another remarked, “I’d like us to adopt better technology, so that advisers have one place to go for a complete customer view and can access all required data in one place”.

Jonty Pearce, Editor of Call Centre Helper, comments, “Customer service has changed beyond recognition in recent years, putting an increasing amount of pressure on agents to handle more complex queries and master digital channels (such as webchat). It is unfair to expect agents to deal with slow computer systems as well. While contact centres are beginning to wake up to the benefits of maintaining good computer systems, there is still some way to go before this becomes industry standard”.

Jonathan Gale, CEO of NewVoiceMedia, a global provider of cloud technology which helps businesses sell more, serve better and grow faster, adds, “It’s surprising that IT issues are a barrier to so many businesses running a great contact centre. Cloud technology offers a cost-effective solution to businesses of all sizes, meaning they can make the most of their CRM investment and serve better to accelerate growth and stay ahead of the competition”.

Sponsored by NewVoiceMedia, The Call Centre Helper Report offers a compelling view of the contact centre; from their fundamental framework, to widely used initiatives and the technologies that have made it on to every manager’s wish list.