Humberside set to improve contact centre performance

Humberside Police has selected the GMT Planet workforce optimisation solution to improve call handling management and service levels within its 24-hour contact centres.

Through more accurate matching of resources to inbound call demand across its switchboard, two Command Centres and two Customer Service Crime Centres, Humberside Police aims to further enhance public satisfaction with call handling and exceed service levels. GMT Planet will also support the development of a more flexible working initiative for its 370 contact centre staff focused on driving performance through a more balanced work/life ethos.

Katie Powell, WFM & ACD Project Manager for the Crime and Call Handling Programme at Humberside Police explained: “As a public facing, service-led organisation, we’re continually looking at ways to improve efficiency, enhance effectiveness and drive best practice.

“GMT Planet offered not only the best flexibility and functionality for our call handling initiatives but will also allow us to further improve our contact centre performance and service to the public through a better match of resources to demand and therefore a reduction in call waiting times and overtime costs. Management will also be better able to identify potential shortfalls and make decisions about staffing levels based on GMT Planet’s highly accurate forecasting capabilities.”

Humberside Police is also keen to implement more flexible working initiatives and drive performance and lower attrition through empowering staff with visibility to shift availability, call demand, and allowing them to manage annual leave requests online. Ms Katie Powell continued, “We understand the role that real-time visibility to demand and resourcing can deliver. We believe that empowering our staff will improve both performance and attendance.”

A review of call handling management in 2004 led to Humberside Police setting up a Call Handling Project aimed at enhancing service levels and recommended a workforce management system as a key proponent to achieving this goal. Following a review of market solutions, Humberside Police selected GMT Planet via GMT’s partnership with Unisys.

GMT Planet was chosen for its strong functionality, ease of use and reporting capabilities, combined with detailed forecasting which will enable Humberside Police to improve the scheduling of staff based on availability, skills and proficiency.

Simon Angove, CEO of GMT said, “Emergency service operations are 24/7 and they face considerable challenges in accurately resourcing for unpredictable demand. It is vital to forecast for people with the right skills to be in the right place to respond to calls at the right time. The GMT solution offers an affordable enterprise-wide workforce management solution that can support Humberside Police to drive and deliver both high levels of performance and flexible working options.”