Client’s Shine! with Spotlight in many ways. Given 40+ years of experience, the Spotlight team has been presented a varied set of business and technology challenges. Spotlight would like to provide a set of typical situations where light can be focused on opportunities to Shine!
Business Need: Improve customer service processing metrics
Background: This story begins with a client engaged in a customer service process redesign initiative. One of the more significant challenges identified is customer service representatives (CSR) requiring a significant amount of time to address customer inquires. A second challenge is the CSR frequently providing inaccurate answers to customer inquiries due to out-of-date information available to address inquiries. These challenges are caused by a combination of extensive training required to understand and apply a knowledge base effectively and the lack of up-to-date information from a series of disparate data sources, systems and applications.
Solution: For this situation, Spotlight recommends a web application with support from enterprise content management (ECM), system integration and process efficiency. A web application, coupled with ECM, allows for a single user interface design and a combination of customer data, documents and records to address customer inquiries. There is also a need to connect various systems and data sources to the customer service system. Finally, the automated processing of customer inquiries requires refinement and a better understanding of the entire customer service process and sub-processes to gain the level of efficiency the client is striving toward.
Benefits: What would normally require a CSR 10 minutes and a review of several different screens from three different systems, could be reduced to less than 30 seconds and one consolidate screen of relevant, timely, accurate and contextual information.
Business Need: Human capital management compliance, document and records management
Background: This story begins with a client managing a transitional and seasonal workforce at hundreds of retail outlets in shopping malls across the country. As is typical with big box retail stores, there is a need to hire hundreds, up to thousands, of new personnel annually. With the key goals of efficient recruiting, rapid hiring and training to competence, the retail chain is in need of a personnel system connecting each retail store with corporate operations.
Solution: For this situation, Spotlight recommends process efficiency, enterprise content management (ECM), a web application, system integration and business intelligence. First, understanding the human capital management processes will allow Spotlight to identify efficiency needs. Once the process gaps and automation opportunities are known, a likely technology solution is ECM with a web application connecting the retail stores to corporate systems. Within the corporate systems environment, it is likely a series of system integrations is necessary to facilitate effective information flow. Finally, a business intelligence solution will be highly useful to both corporate operations and the retail store managers to ensure the team clearly understands the business objectives and how they are impacted through effective personnel management.
Benefits: Given the challenge of natural high turnover in the industry, the client is now able to rapidly post job openings, hire, on board and train the new personnel much more efficiently. The typical on boarding process of 2 days is reduced to a few hours. In addition, the client has reduced its risk of compliance violations for required paperwork and processing by implementing a predictable and controlled, automated HR processing system.
Business Need: New marketing and revenue channels
Social networking strategy, web application, enterprise content management (for mobile devices)
Background: This story begins with a client wanting to extend its marketing and revenue channels. To accomplish these two goals, the client wants to understand the opportunities and challenges in offering content and applications via the Internet and mobile devices (iPhone, Blackberry, Android and Windows Mobile). In addition, the client wants to prepare a strategy to leverage social networking to enhance its relationships with existing, potential and newly acquired customers.
Solution: For this situation, Spotlight begins by educating the client regarding Internet commerce (eCommerce), social networking and the mobile device market. With this education, the team can make informed decisions regarding strategy and tactics for implementation. With the strategy defined, Spotlight then provides an integrated implementation plan to leverage common content and existing applications within the business that can be repurposed to the Internet and mobile devices. The client will be able to market, communicate and conduct business through multiple new channels.
Benefits: Mobile devices are expected to be in the hands of over 1 billion people in 2010. The Internet is used by billions of people today to gather information, conduct business and purchase goods and services. Social Networking is an exponentially growing phenomenon joining the Internet and mobile devices into a connected community. Businesses that can effectively leverage this growing and vibrant market are likely to grow sales and revenue.