Call Center News

Agero to Open 500-Seat Call Center in Clarksville, TN

Clarksville, TN -- Massachusetts-based Agero has settled on Clarksville for an $8.2 million call center, officials announced today. The new location, which the company estimates will create 500 new jobs by 2013, is the result of a 16-month search that included an evaluation of more than 20 other communities. Earlier this year, Agero executives announced they would focus their efforts on Clarksville and Florence, S.C.

Agero is one of the largest providers of roadside assistance in the U.S. and Canada, with a network of more than 30,000 service providers. The company hosted 1,500 applicants at their Clarksville job fair, held in January.

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MAXIMUS Call Centers Recognized for Superior Performance

RESTON, VA -- MAXIMUS, a leading provider of government services worldwide, announced today that its Massachusetts Health Benefits (MassHealth) Customer Service and Georgia Families call center operations have once again been recognized as "Certified Centers of Excellence" by BenchmarkPortal in collaboration with the Center for Customer-Driven Quality (CCDQ) at Purdue Research Park.

Both call centers received the award certification following a rigorous review by BenchmarkPortal. To earn the Center of Excellence designation, the call centers had to meet objective and quantitative criteria, as well as pass audits conducted by BenchmarkPortal researchers. The call centers were evaluated across several key indicators, including operational efficiency, service level standards, process management, customer satisfaction, leadership resources and employee training.

MAXIMUS has provided services for MassHealth participants since 1998. Through its Boston-based call center, the Company enrolls Medicaid participants into managed care health plans, processes provider claims, enrolls and credentials providers, and maintains self-service online options for both providers and participants. The Company has operated the Georgia Families Program for the Georgia Department of Community Health since 2005, facilitating program enrollment for eligible members of Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids, Georgia's Children's Health Insurance Program.

"Efficient and effective call center operations are a critical component to connect consumers to health insurance coverage. Our customer care representatives provide choice counseling to help Medicaid and CHIP participants evaluate and select the health insurance plan that best meets their needs," commented Bruce Caswell, President and General Manager of the MAXIMUS Health Services Segment. "We are pleased to see that our MassHealth and Georgia Families customer service operations are once again recognized for providing a superior level of service to public health insurance program participants."

About MAXIMUS

MAXIMUS is a leading health and human services administrator for governments in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. The Company delivers administrative solutions to improve the cost effectiveness, efficiency and quality of government-sponsored benefit programs, such as Medicaid, Medicare, Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Health Insurance BC (British Columbia), as well as welfare-to-work and child support enforcement programs across the globe. The Company's primary customer base includes federal, provincial, state, county and municipal governments. Operating under its founding mission of Helping Government Serve the People(R), MAXIMUS has more than 8,800 employees located in more than 270 offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.maximus.com .

About BenchmarkPortal, Inc.

BenchmarkPortal is the custodian of the Purdue University Center for Customer-Driven Quality database of contact center metrics, the largest in the world. It provides reports, products and services for contact centers in the areas of operational metrics, customer satisfaction measurement and agent satisfaction measurement. For further research information, visit www.BenchmarkPortal.com .

 

New IBM Delivery Center Opens in Costa Rica

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica and ARMONK, N.Y., May 10, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- IBM IBM -0.31% officially opened today its new Costa Rica Delivery Center, in America Free Zone, Heredia. IBM will invest US$300 million over 10 years, and intends to employ up to 1,000 people by 2014.

The new center will provide high-value services for clients around the world, reaffirming Costa Rica's position as a strategic services hub for IBM. The facility will support clients in the areas of IT security, data storage, business analytics, cloud computing, and other services in demand by IBM clients.

The new center will provide cloud infrastructure support and management, to help clients simplify and enhance operational efficiency. Cloud computing provides clients with the ability to reduce their IT infrastructure costs, have a standardized, virtualized platform, and enhance their process automation. Additionally, the center will provide technology capabilities that can anticipate and help prevent fraud and IT hacker attempts.

IBM IT experts will support global clients with service management, data storage services, automating data backup and providing support for a variety of storage platforms and tools. Business analytics capabilities will help clients analyze complex data and enable smarter decision-making.

"With IBM's state-of-the-art facilities, thousands of Costa Ricans will be able to showcase their talent, pushing Costa Rica further down the path of innovation, knowledge and technology; a path that we have bravely undertaken with courage and commitment, but most of all, with great confidence in the talent of our people," said Costa Rica President Laura Chinchilla.

"This partnership between IBM and Costa Rica, as we engage in this adventure towards a more modern and technological world, is essential to our country. It becomes our driving force while reminding us of the important challenges that lie ahead," added President Chinchilla.

Biggest Gathering of Call Center Professionals Attracts Fortune 500

NEW YORK, May 10, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The 13th edition of industry-defying Call Center Week, taking place June 4-8, 2012 at Caesar's Palace Las Vegas, will not only be the biggest gathering of call center professionals but also the preferred hangout and networking opportunity of corporate America.

A sneak peek of Call Center Week's prominent attendees includes experts from corporations such as Walmart, Bank of America, Verizon, Coca Cola, Best Buy, Amazon, Microsoft, Nike, Oracle, and many more ...In addition to 75+ outstanding thought leaders sharing powerful knowledge and call center inspiration, Call Center Week will feature new learning formats, workshops, roundtable discussions and other networking platforms where like minded peers can share their experience and best practices with the very best of American entrepreneurship.

Don't miss out and register at www.callcenterweek.com

The 13th edition of industry-defining Call Center Week, hailing from Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, NV, June 4-8 2012, will focus on customer experience's rise from a mere "call center challenge" into a organization-wide business objective with solidified support at the C-level. As a result of the new emphasis on maximizing the value of call center interactions, the 13th Annual Call Center Week, expands upon last year's investigation into the rise of the multi-channel contact center, determining how to best drive strategic relationships from all customer touch points.

About IQPC

IQPC ( www.iqpc.com ) provides business executives with tailored practical conferences, large-scale events, topical seminars and in-house training programs. Producing over 1,500 events annually around the world, IQPC continues to grow and has offices in cities across six continents including: Berlin, Dubai, London, New York, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Stockholm, Sydney, and Toronto.

 

TD Bank to Cut 200 Call Center Jobs

SPRINGFIELD, MA -- About 200 people are expected to lose their jobs when TD Bank closes a customer call center in Springfield at the end of the year.

The workers learned at a meeting Tuesday night that the 24/7 customer support center will close in December as part of a decision to consolidate call centers to locations in Maine, New Jersey and South Carolina.

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Afni Closing Call Center in Peoria, IL -- Laying Off 300

Peoria, IL -- A Bloomington-based company plans to close a call center in Peoria and cut about 300 jobs. Afni Inc. said in a news release Thursday that it will shut down its Peoria call center as early as June 12.

Afni spokeswoman Lori Boyce said the company is closing the center because of a drop in call volume. The company said it's trying to help employees find jobs with other local businesses. Afni is a private company with more than 5,000 employees in six states. The Peoria call center opened in 1998.

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Sitel Call Center to Add 200 Jobs in Las Cruces, NM

LAS CRUCES, NM -- More call center jobs are on the way for Las Cruces. Sitel, already one of the top private employers in Doña Ana County, announced that it plans to hire 200 more workers as it expands its Las Cruces call center. The facility provides customer service for retail banking and satellite television clients. This marks the third expansion at the facility in 18 months. An on-site job fair is set for April 19 at 2100 Summit Court.

Candidates can apply in person from 3 to 7 p.m., and can speak to Sitel Human Resources representatives about career opportunities. Candidates can also apply online at Sitel's Careers section at sitel.com While most of the top employers in the area are public — White Sands Missile Range, Las Cruces Public Schools, New Mexico State University etc. — the new hiring will push Sitel's number of employees to the 700 range to put it in the same category as Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino, but behind both hospitals and Walmart.

Call center jobs have been a growth industry for Las Cruces for the better part of a decade. "It doesn't hurt the economy. Given the circumstances we have right now with a very tough economy, any job's a good job," said NMSU economist Chris Erickson. "But the hope is that Las Cruces can transition to higer-paying jobs. The secret to that is a well-educated workforce."

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300+ New Jobs Expected at New Call Center in Hamilton, Ohio

HAMILTON, OH -- A new joint venture between a local company and a Cincinnati-based Fortune 100 corporation could bring up to 300 jobs to the city in the next 12 months. A new company, KoncertIT, and the Kroger Co. are poised to open a call center and an information technology center at the Vora Technology Park on Knightsbridge Drive.

City Manager Joshua Smith said about 45 jobs should be created by the end of May with the balance of the positions coming by spring 2013. City officials said the call center jobs would pay between $11 and $15 an hour.

Smith said city officials have also been working with the state to develop a jobs tax credit for the deal that could be worth up to $430,000 if all of the job creation benchmarks are met. He said the city will also provide $50,000 for capital needs — such as office furniture and equipment — through its economic development revolving loan fund.

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North Carolina Call Center Employees Sue Verizon Wireless for Unpaid Wages

North Carolina -- On April 9, 2012, two former Verizon Wireless call center employees filed a case in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, on behalf of themselves and others similarly situated, to recover overtime pay. The case seeks to include those who worked as call center employees providing customer service or support by telephone and/or internet at Verizon’s call centers in North Carolina.

The Complaint alleges that Verizon Wireless required these employees to perform unpaid work before and/or after their scheduled shift. That work included, but was not limited to; time spent booting up computers, initializing software programs, and reviewing work-related emails and intranet messages. The Complaint asserts that Verizon Wireless expected its employees to be ready to service customers when their scheduled shifts started, but did not pay them for the time they spent performing work-related activities prior to the start of their scheduled shift.

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Delta Airlines to Close Sioux City Call Center, 165 Jobs Lost

Sioux City, IA -- Delta Airlines announced Tuesday the company will close the call center in Sioux City on September 1, 2012.  The closure impacts 165 employees.

The call center opened back in October of 2007, at that time it was owned by Northwest Airlines.  The two airlines have since merged.  The call center is located in downtown Sioux City in the upper level of what used to be JC Penney's department store.

A Delta spokesperson says employees will be given the option to relocate to another Delta call center or they will  have the option of a voluntary furlough and severance. Below is a statement released by Delta.

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