Thames Water shores up contact centre IT

A new Thames Water network is expected to improve management of call centre resources

Thames Water has closed a deal with Cable & Wireless to implement an IP contact centre.

The initiative is part of a three-year, multimillion pound managed services deal, which has seen the consolidation of 800 back-office and contact centre staff onto a single network where all customer data can be managed.

The Cable & Wireless platform will replace a legacy system Thames Water decided to scrap following a temporary loss of service caused by flooding in the summer of 2007.

The new system is expected to enable the utility company to generate cost efficiencies via better staff management in demand peaks, connectivity with existing call recording and workforce management applications.

"For the first time, contact centre managers are freed of the commercial constraints traditionally associated with this area, and can now flex their resources as required," said Mike Tempest, customer services director at Thames Water.

"The hosted IP contact centre service monitors, in real time, the status of all users logged on to the platform so customer calls are delivered to the right agent at the right time."

"As the contact centre gets busier, we can bring in additional resources from the wider, one-contact centre team to ensure our high levels of service are maintained."