Setting up a Contact Centre in Kenya - Planning and Preparation

As discussed previously, planning and preparation is key in setting up a call centre or BPO operation among others. The old adage is true as many have discovered lately, fail to plan and you plan to fail.

Because of unrealistic expectations, many people are starting contact centers thinking that they will break even in less than 6 months. In reality, you should expect to break even in 3 to 5 years. As such, when planning, finances should be set aside to manage all costs for the next three years.

I have heard many people say that setting up a call centre is easy. All you have to do is put up work stations, get some second hand PC's and get an internet connection. Never mind that the company you are connected too, though cheap, has lousy service. Before you set up a contact centre, ensure you have done the following.

Business Plan

Put a business plan together. Gather your thoughts. Figure out why you are going into this business. Do your research and come up with facts. Many people look at the dollars to be made, convert that into Kenya Shillings and go for it without counting the cost. The result is that halfway through the project, they realize things were not as easy as they thought. A business plan, with the accompanying financials will help you figure out if this is really the venture you should be going into.

Marketing

I have heard noises made about the BPO society not getting the operators work. How would you trust anyone with the engine of your operation? Marketing is the responsibility of each individual company. Now granted, the society has a role to play in turning the eyes of the world towards us, as well as lobbying government for us, but each one of us must source for work for our own organizations.

• Make sure in planning you have a well defined marketing strategy and work it. Your strategy will only work if you work it.
• Find out how the rest of the world is marketing itself and follow suite.
• Make sure that your website is up to date and create web presence for yourself by raising your rank on search engines using Search Engine Optimization Techniques.

Operations

Operational know-how is crucial in outsourcing. Call Centre culture and operations are a whole other ball game. It is essential to have someone guide you on how to run the day to day operations of your accounts.

• Do you have well defined company policies?
• Have you put together specific account operations manuals?
• What are the supervisor : agent, or Quality Analyst : agent ratios?
• What are your employee retention strategies? How will you implement them?
• How will you motivate your agents on a day to day basis?

Having an experienced management team will make things run much smoother on the ground than they would otherwise.

Security

Employee and data security are a very important aspect of your business. Think in terms of:

• Physical Security - You will need an alarm system installed, security guards, identification badges for your staff etc...
  
• Logical Security - How will you keep your company data safe as well as that of your client.
  

Space

• Will you lease or buy. Do you have extra space you can use? Is there a cheaper location? Must you be in the CBD?
  
• Ensure that work stations are spacious enough and Isles have walking space
• Ensure an airy well lit room with proper ventilation and circulation
• If needed get an AC for your workers. Working in a hot room can be miserable.
• For call centers make sure the roof is high enough for sound not to bounce back. The quality of calls will be affected by noise if this is not taken care of.
• A break area for your staff members where they can relax is also important.
  

Contingencies

• You need a reliable internet connection. That means that you need between 97% and 99% guaranteed up time. In addition to that, you need a redundant link in case your main provider fails. Make sure that your two service providers do not in turn share a service provider, because if their service provider fails you will be down for sure.
• You need a generator in case power fails.
• Data backup - onsite and offsite, onshore and offshore.

Take into account your growth strategy and how many accounts you want to start with, employing how many agents. Then do your math diligently anticipating to break even in year 3 at the earliest. This done, you will be in a better position to make it than most.