Remember that old saying, the one about things that sound too good to be true? Sadly, the automated strategic planner simply doesn’t exist. With the pace of change and the proliferation of software tools today, it’s no surprise that we tend to look for the “easy” solution to the tough problems. Increasingly, I’ve seen organization after organization chase the next “magic bullet” solution – only to end up with a collection of disjointed tools that almost work together, but not quite as advertised. Sound familiar?
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”
I’ve heard it a hundred times. So have most executives who are charged with transforming their businesses to keep up with changing customer expectations in the digital age. Why then, do we see history continue to repeat itself? Is it the consistent pressure to show positive results? Perhaps the need to deliver “quick wins” to appease leadership and demonstrate progress? I truly believe these fragmented efforts, however misguided, are almost well-intended.
It doesn’t really matter how we ended up mired in this swamp of misalignment of tools to targets, or why we have three different vendors all doing essentially the same thing – but not quite. The good news is this: it’s never too late to stop spinning our wheels and start making real progress. I see it happen in mid-market companies all the way to the Fortune 50, and everywhere in between. I’ll leave you with three steps to stop the madness:
- Zoom Out: It’s easy to get lost in the details of day-to-day operations. Take a step back to look at the contact center as a whole. Journey maps, holistic experiences, and candid feedback can paint a compelling picture of the current state.
- Focus In: With the pain points and opportunities well understood, set a strategic direction. For example, if caller experience is your most important goal, build the rest of your strategy with that it mind.
- Drive On: Make the strategic vision you selected a guiding force. Using a unified purpose to guide fragmented decision making can bring order to the chaos.
I’m not foolish enough to suggest it will be easy. From my perspective, anything worth doing rarely is. I can promise this much: if you invest the time and effort to get it right, your customers will thank you. If you’d like to talk to us to get pointed in the right direction, please contact us.
