The (road)map to success

The search term 'the road to' produces many different results, including the well-known expression 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions'. After all, good intentions alone do not necessarily lead to successful results. It needs more than that, also when it comes to large-scale projects such as the implementation of a new contact centre solution or the digitisation of the existing infrastructure.

A good roadmap is indispensable for these types of – often complex – processes. A roadmap makes you think and reflect. It provides much-needed structure and at the same time ensures that you don’t get carried away. Look before you leap, right?!

The big picture

At some point, every organisation will reach the point at which it needs to say goodbye to inefficient platforms, legacy systems and manual processes. When the business asks for (further) digitisation of the contact centre or the implementation of another new solution. After all, customer contact needs are subject to change. However, the pitfall is that all too often we are inclined to hit the ground running with specific tools and systems, before having a clear idea of what we want to achieve with them.

So step 1 in drawing up a roadmap is to make a list of goals and intended results, without going into detail on technologies and tools. Emphasise what you want to achieve in terms of the customer and employee experience, because these are ultimately the most important drivers for most organisations. This phase is all about the big picture. The details are worked out in the project plan.

Future-proof

The goals must be scalable as well as realistic. Roadmaps are not meant to be replaced by a new one every year, so make sure it is future-proof, but be realistic in what you can achieve, looking at things like the available budget, the number of employees and the available knowledge and skills.

Also take into account trends that occur in your field or industry. They don’t simply happen for no reason or cause, and can have a major impact on the business. So check which trends you will have to take into account in the roadmap.

Better together

What’s extremely important when compiling a roadmap is to exchange ideas with others within the organisation, especially from different teams, departments and management layers. Don't go full steam ahead on your own, but first broaden your horizons! After all, the best ideas arise from shared knowledge, expertise and passion. You may feel that this approach will take up valuable time and will only delay the project, but it actually results in a much wider perspective and broader consensus within the organisation, and it pays off!

Whatever project you have in mind for your contact centre, be sure to work in a structured manner and do not hesitate to involve an external party that has experience in supervising and executing these types of processes. Together you can turn a complex project into a great success!

Whitepaper 'A change of course in customer contact'

Many organisations are currently undergoing a change of course in the field of customer contact. It is the only way to continue to meet customer needs at a time when working from home, automation and digitisation have become the norm. The IT organisation plays a crucial role in this but is often not set up to efficiently implement innovation with the existing – or fewer – resources.

In our white paper ‘A change of course in customer contact: IT's leading role on the way to the future’ we look at ways to improve operational effectiveness in the organisation, and which aspects to consider when rolling out – usually complex – projects such as a migration to the cloud or the (further) implementation of digitisation and automation in the contact centre.

The IT organisation has a leading role in this because that is where the knowledge and skills are located to determine the best course for the future.