Customer operationsconsultancy.
Advice on how your customer service and operations should run, from people who have run them. We look at where you are today, where you need to get to, and the order to get there.
What it is
Where you are, and what to do next. A clear view of how the operation runs today, and a plan you can act on.
A clear view of today
How the work arrives and gets done, what is working and what isn’t, in plain words, from time spent with the real work.
An order to work in
What to do first, what comes next and what can wait, so the effort goes where it counts.
What we help with.
Advice at whatever stage you're at, from a focused look at your helpdesk to a full plan for the operation.
- NowNextLaterOperational strategy and roadmapsWhere the operation is today, where it needs to get to, and what to put in place at each stage.
- +Organisation designHow the team is structured as it grows, including roles, who owns what, and when specialist roles arrive.
- MonTueWedThuFriDailyWeeklyMonthlyOperating rhythmsThe daily, weekly and monthly reviews that keep an operation on track, and the measures behind them.
- 1!2!3✓4✓Helpdesk health checkA focused look at your helpdesk, ending in a written list of what to fix, in order.
What you end up with
What’s behind it, and what to do first.
From inside an operation, you see the symptoms. We look at the real work to find what is behind them, and put what to do in order. An example.
1
“Replies are slow. We need more people.”
The biggest reason customers get in touch is to ask where their order is. The dispatch email has no tracking link.
Fix the email before hiring anyone.
2
“Customers get a different answer depending on who replies.”
Nothing is wrong with the people. Refunds are decided from memory, and three people remember three policies.
Agree one policy with whoever owns it, then write it down.
3
“Our numbers look fine, and customers still complain.”
The reports measure how fast you reply, not whether the answer was right.
Start checking the answers, before setting any targets for speed.
4
“The AI got things wrong, so we switched it off.”
It was answering from help articles that contradict each other.
Fix the articles. The AI is the last step, not the first.
How it works.
An agreed scope, what we'll look at and what you'll have at the end, all settled before we start.
Book a call- A conversationWhat prompted it, what you want to come out of it, and who we should talk to.
- We look at the real workTime with the team, the queue, your helpdesk and reports, and how a customer actually gets help.
- We write it up and walk you through itWhere you are, where you need to get to, and what to do first, explained in person.
- You decide what's nextAct on it yourselves, have us help you build it, or have us run it. It's your choice.
From operators
Advice from people who have run operations.
We have run large customer operations, so the advice comes from what actually breaks, and what it takes to fix it.
- Time with the team, not just the leadership
- Your real helpdesk, queue and reports, not a questionnaire
- Recommendations in the order they are worth doing
- Help putting it in place, if you'd like it
Where this fits
Three ways we work.
The difference is what you end up with. This page is the first, and they join up.
Plan it · Consultancy
Work out what to change
Where the operation is today, what to fix first, and what good looks like. You end up with a plan.
This page
Build it · Set-up
Put the operation in place
The processes, tools, reporting and training material an operation runs on, set up in your systems. You end up with a working set-up your own people run.
Set-upRun it · Delivery
A team that does the work
Where our teams support your operations, we recruit, manage and run the work. You end up with the work done.
A team that runs it for you
Questions, answered.
The things people ask us first.
Is this only for teams that are struggling?
No. It is as useful for a business getting ahead of growth as for one that has fallen behind, and for a large operation as much as a small one.
We’re small, or just starting. Is it too early?
It’s often the best time. A roadmap is easiest to follow before habits set in, and getting the basics right early saves undoing them later.
Is it only for customer service?
No. Any part of an operation where work arrives and has to be dealt with, such as customer service, a refunds queue, orders, credit control or content review.
How does it start?
With a conversation about what prompted it, and what you want to come out of it. From that we agree what to look at, then spend time with the people who run the work, the people who do it, and the work itself.
Why not just hire a head of customer service?
At some point, you should. Getting the plan right first makes that hire easier. It shapes the role, sets up what they will inherit, and helps you decide when.
Will it undermine the person running our support?
It’s done with them, not around them. They usually know what is wrong already. We help them make the case, and put it in order.
Do we have to buy anything else from you?
No. You can act on it yourselves. If you’d like help building it or running it, we’re here, but the plan stands on its own.
Will you only recommend outsourcing?
No. We’ll recommend what suits you, including keeping the work in-house, or a mix.What an in-house team really costs
Alongside it
After the plan.
A plan is only worth having if something happens next. We can put it in place, and run it, when you want us to.
- Helpdesk set-upWhere the plan says the tools are what’s holding you back.We set it upWe set it up
- Processes and knowledge baseWhere the answer is how the work is done, written down.We set it upWe set it up
- ReportingWhere you can’t yet see what is happening.We set it upWe set it up
- Training materialWhere new starters take too long to get going.We set it upWe set it up
- A team that runs itWhere the plan needs people, the work run for you.We run itWe run it
Let's talk.
Tell us what's going on. If we're not the right fit, we'll point you to someone we trust.
Book a call