Amanda Fornal20+ years of management consulting experience
Bio

Technology professional and business strategy consultant with 20+ years of experience leading initiatives that strengthen and optimize processes, expand revenue-generating capabilities and maximize cost savings for companies across industries. Specializing in Technology Transformation, Change Management, CRM Strategy, Process Engineering and Technology Management.


Recent Answers


It depends on how similar the businesses are. For example if you are moving from selling shoes to selling hats versus you are moving from selling shoes to creating web apps – they are very different situations. Since you said that the marketplace model is the same, then it is probable that you can reuse a lot of the code from your current website. Both React and Node.js are up to date tools for building web apps. An experienced developer should be able to do this for you.


Technology (if you have the technology to do so)
- Gather as much caller data upfront prior to CSR interaction
- Pre-populate the data on the screen for the CSR to see as the call comes in

CSR Knowledge
- If you have highly specialized CSRs, they should be very knowledgeable and kept up to date with training
- If you have CSRs that cover a large depth of data, it is especially important to have a knowledgebase that is very easy to navigate and find the most up to date data

Process Improvement
- Reviewing your As-Is process in detail and finding pain points is a great way to see where improvements can be made.
- Using a team of CSRs who can give feedback on their experiences and then act as change agents when you make the adjustments is a helpful way to do this.

If you need more detailed information, please let me know. I have implemented many call center solutions.


A few things that you may want to consider to help you move forward with this:
1. Define your target market in more detail:
a. Nigerian Pidgin speakers vs. English speakers vs. both - and why
b. What platform would this be used on? (e.g. If smartphones: Define the percentage of people in Nigeria that use smartphones (e.g. 13%, 25 million).)
c. If non-English speaking Nigerian Pidgin speakers: Define the percentage of smartphone users within this group.
d. Why will these speakers use this product and how will they benefit from it?

2. What dialect is it based on and how many errors will come up with other dialects? Since there are multiple Nigerian Pidgin dialects and often ethnic groups add additional words, it may help to map out the differences to get a complete picture to help you decide on the best location and way to implement.

3. What are the potential revenue streams with this product? (e.g. product purchase for personal use vs. company use, ads, etc.)


If you choose to hire the Business Manager based on clear business benefit, then the next task to is mitigate the risk of the other employees acting out due to the change.
1.Salary
a. Is it possible to keep the compensation and contract details private?
b. If other employees will be aware of compensation due to the company size or you choosing to tell them, then you may want to take steps to address the issue by first differentiating the role. (e.g. How different is this role from other current roles at the company? What is this person responsible for compared to others? What are the Key Performance Indicators for this role and what is the penalty for not meeting them?)

2. Change Management
a. Change in general can cause people stress. If bringing someone new in will cause issues with current employees, it is important to both try to understand what those challenges may be as well as know what you find as an acceptable loss if people choose to leave.
b. There are many Change Management techniques that can be implemented to help with smooth transitions.

Feel free to give me a call if you would like to discuss in more detail.


In my experience there are a few things that you want to focus on with KPIs, prior to technology - if you have not already.
1. Validate that the calculations are consistent throughout the organization, regions etc.
2. Validate that the selected KPIs are truly indicators that will help drive success.
3. Validate that each KPI and calculation is understood by the people accountable as well as the managers reviewing.
4. Have regular meetings or coaching sessions with staff members and managers to review KPIs.

The display method depends on what technology you have available. If can auto-calculate the data and have it pulled into a dashboard that compares items (by person, over time, locations, groups, etc.) that is great. However, you can do something as simple as a Confluence page or an excel spreadsheet. I find that it is most important to make sure that the data is very clear and concise. People should be held accountable, but they should also have an opportunity to be coached so they can improve. Feel free to give me a call if you would like to discuss in more detail.


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