“We wanted to know the everyday joys and frustrations of the contact center manager” says Holger Reisinger Jabra Vice President of Marketing, Products and Alliances and continues “One of the most prevalent issues that seem to play heavily on the contact center managers’ mind is sound disturbances that prevent the ‘good conversation’ between customer and agent from taking place. 91% of contact center managers are working towards reducing the disturbances that increase the length of each call, or more importantly will have a negative influence on customer retention and sales”.

Sound disturbances that break the contact center agent’s concentration are an issue within both outbound as well as inbound contact centers. 91% of the total surveyed contact center managers actively work to reduce the sound disturbances by reducing background noise either by moving noisy coffee machines or copiers and laying carpets on wooden floors, just as importantly, 89% are working on improving the sound quality of the conversations. 

According to the survey it proves especially true for large contact centers with 500 or more agents where 95% of managers were acutely aware of the sound disturbances and have, in addition to reducing the background noise, chosen to implement headsets with noise cancellation features in order to optimize the sound quality of the conversation. For this group of large contact centers, more than half are even considering remote agents to reduce sound disturbances.    

73% of the managers polled; felt that a quality headset was the most important factor in creating a good work environment in the contact center. This was especially true for larger contact centers, 91% of contact center managers concluded that in this type of environment, the importance of a quality headset is key to reduce stress and increase employee satisfaction – and thereby increase productivity.

“We firmly believe that contact centers of all sizes can realize the many benefits that a high-quality headset provides," says Brendan Read, Industry Analyst, Frost & Sullivan. "As our survey shows, the noise cancelation features of a quality headset are top of mind with contact center managers across the world. The added values of call clarity and reduced sound disturbance will eventually lead to improved customer conversations, greater productivity, fewer distractions, and compliance with noise-at-work regulations."

 “we can see a clear preference towards products with noise cancelation and other features that protects the user against high pitch sounds and blocks out background noise on the receiving end of the call” says Holger Reisinger “but we are very pleased to see in the survey results, proof, that attempts to reduce background noise are taken as seriously they are, it is very encouraging and a win/win situation for both customers, agents and contact center.”

As concluded in a 2012 Frost & Sullivan whitepaper; the choice of communications endpoints can have a significant impact on the quality of customer service in contact centers. Sufficient audio quality is paramount in customer interactions utilizing voice. Sales transactions and support calls are highly dependent on contact center staff’s ability to clearly communicate with and receive verbal nuances from customers. Additionally, the quality of communications devices impacts user concentration, enabling them to focus on the task at hand rather than on the device.

For many more details and trends in the global contact center world - please read the Jabra Business Brief on www.Jabra.com. This release and Business Brief  is the first in a series of four throughout the first half of 2012 focusing on global trends in the contact center industry.  

About Jabra
Jabra is the brand of GN Netcom, a subsidiary of GN Store Nord A/S (GN) - listed on NASDAQ OMX. Jabra employs approximately 850 people worldwide and in 2010 produced an annual revenue which amounted to DKK 5,145 million. Jabra is a world leader in the development, manufacturing, and marketing of a broad range of hands-free communications solutions. With a reputation for innovation, reliability, and ease of use that goes back more than two decades, Jabra’s consumer and business divisions produce corded and wireless headsets, plus mobile and in-office speakerphones that empower individuals and businesses through increased freedom of movement, comfort, and functionality. 
 
© 2012 GN Netcom A/S. All rights reserved. Jabra® is a registered trademark of GN Netcom A/S. All other trademarks included herein are the property of their respective owners. (Design and specifications subject to change without notice)