In some organizations, you can feel the energy as soon as you walk in the door. It takes many forms: pride of workmanship, a feeling of community, good planning, coordination and the willingness to make the “extra effort.” Everybody knows what the mission is and everybody is pulling in the same direction. The contact center “clicks.”

While there are a myriad of factors that go into creating this sort of environment, I have observed 12 overarching and interrelated characteristics that emerge in contact centers that consistently outperform others.

Characteristic #1: They Produce High Levels of Value

Great contact centers have an incessant focus on creating high levels of value for their organizations and customers. Far too many organizations are still focused primarily on one level or one dimension of value — e.g., to deliver services efficiently, improve revenues, or boost customer satisfaction. While those are fundamental goals, the best have their sites set even higher. They align their resources, strategy and culture to deliver maximum value on all three levels: 1) efficiency, 2) customer satisfaction and loyalty, and 3) strategic value.

By doing so, they create a fourth level of value, one that could never be sufficiently measured, but is as real as any of the others: the ultimate value these services provide to customers. What really happens when customers can access the services they need and want — seamlessly, easily? What is the impact on their economic situation? Their peace of mind? Their families? The economy? The things we value most in our communities? Because they are central to the delivery of services that so many organizations provide, contact centers — and all who are part of them — really can make a difference.

Excerpt from Call Center Management on Fast Forward, Brad Cleveland.