EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:
(0:08 - 0:28)
Hello, I am Jay Ollero, and welcome to the CX Espresso. This micro-cast features leading customer experience experts who share their thoughts on trends, tools, and best practices in customer experience. CX Espresso are single shots of hot CX topics served to you by Acera.
(0:28 - 0:44)
Today's topic centers around vendor selection and the criteria to consider when choosing a BPO to partner with. Joining me today is Aucera's Tom Gleason, Vice President of Customer Experience Solutions. Thank you so much for joining me today, Tom.
(0:44 - 1:06)
Thank you, Jay. So, Tom, jumping right in, the question of the day is, if I am a company looking to partner with a BPO, what criteria should I be considering? Great question, Jay. Every company these days is looking at whether they should look for internal resources or perhaps look outside their organization.
(1:07 - 1:58)
And so, as a business process outsourcing company, Aucera sees a lot of companies today that are looking for additional resources in order to conduct their business. What are the tasks that you're looking to outsource? I think that needs to be clearly defined by the organization. And, you know, what's your objective in outsourcing those? Is it cost reduction or quality improvement, scalability? What are the things that you're looking for? I think some of the things that I want to touch on today are you need to look for industry experience, the reputation of the organization, quality of service, even technological capabilities that are moving so fast today, scalability and flexibility, how you want that organization to flex for you to meet your demands, and geographical location.
(1:58 - 2:26)
If that's U.S. only versus near shore, offshore, or even work from home, those factors are also important to the organizations that you speak with. You listed a lot of factors there. Which two or three would you prioritize on that list? Well, I think first and foremost is to look at an organization that has some experience in your industry, you know, whether it be healthcare, utilities, whatever the case may be.
(2:27 - 2:44)
You probably want somebody who knows your industry or can adapt to it pretty quickly. Just as important is their understanding of industry regulations and compliance requirements. That is significant in utilities, for instance, or healthcare.
(2:44 - 3:13)
Those regulatory organizations will come down hard on an organization and its partners if the rules aren't followed. So it's important that you find a partner that understands those regs and rules. Reputation, just in terms of how long has that organization been around, you know, how are they treating their clients today, are they privately held versus private equity.
(3:13 - 3:42)
We hear stories of organizations that are literally fired by their vendor because they don't meet a certain financial or call volume criteria after a certain amount of time. And so you need to kind of look at the character of the organization, the culture of the organization, and how they serve their clients. You mentioned a BPO's experience and its understanding of industry regulations and its reputation and culture.
(3:42 - 4:29)
To me, that's kind of where we're at now and what got us here. But looking forward, as AI continues to advance, what other factors should be prioritized? Other factors to consider are certainly technological capabilities. Where is the organization today in terms of meeting the client where they are technology-wise? There are a lot of BPO organizations that have a set way of doing things, they're not very flexible, you've got to conform with their technology as opposed to the other way around where, you know, an organization, an outsourcer comes to you and li
