10/3 Steven Chavez - Getting our contact centers ready

Speaker: Steven Chavez

Steven Chavez: Hi, everyone. So as many of, you know, 11 is a very important time of year for all of us, particularly in the navigation service delivery space where our health guys, our clinicians or mental health specialists and our billing advocacy folks can see volumes increase by as much as 2 to 3 times their normal volume. So not only is the volume high, but the stakes are also really high because this is a critical time of year because it's our chance to get some of our new relationships off. On a good note that being said, there's some things that we're doing to really prepare ourselves differently this year than we are for next year rather than we did this year. One of those things is we're going through some restructuring of our teams in order to better align different account types um with like-minded accounts so that we can service more effectively and more efficiently. In addition to that, we're also staffing up this year. So last year in 2023 beginning of the year, we went in just a little bit lighter and you know, that that didn't work out so well. So this year, we're very much focused on staffing up and adding incremental head count. In addition to that, we're also looking at different ways that we can funnel some of the work so that we're as efficient as possible. Meaning calls that need to get diverted to carriers and so forth. We're gonna do that in the IVR in other spaces. Um, we might have certain teams or certain people on teams focused on certain workflow so that nothing gets behind. So this year, we're very focused on making sure we have the right structure, the right amount of head count and the right strategy for handling the volume as it comes in.

Steven Chavez: So leading into next year, there's gonna be a few metrics that we're gonna be paying very close attention to. One of them is our turnaround times also known as tats. Uh We, we are paying very, very close attention to those for a few reasons. Number one, it's a measurement of how long it's taking for us to complete a request after a member submits it. Now, we know through NPS data from this year that the longer the wait time, the more likely a member is to be dissatisfied and potentially not engage in our services again. So it's really important that we get to our members in a fast timely, effective and accurate, thorough way. So tats are gonna be one of many measures to help us understand if we're doing that. Another measure we're gonna be paying very close attention to is our TPH, our tickets per hour. Um So if we're keeping pace and doing the right amount of requests per hour, um, that'll help us to really hit our turnaround times which help keeps our satisfaction up. But the reverse is also true. If we're going too fast, we'll be able to see it in the data. Um And we'll be able to address that before we might see a dereg education in quality. So quality is really gonna be shown to us through NPS. And NPS is really an area that now until the beginning of next year, we're gonna be paying very close attention to. So we've done a lot of remediation around areas that we know are problematic in terms of NPS. And we've seen a really nice recovery throughout the year. So what we've done in our planning for 11 is ensure that we're addressing some of those things before it happens again. So watching to see if our plans and the strategies we put in place are holding true and we're keeping our NPS above a certain target will be a really important indicator for us. Lastly, we're gonna have a lot more telephonic customers coming in this year. So paying close attention to handle times to make sure that when members call in, they're getting a fast, accurate and thorough experience.

Steven Chavez: You know, 11 can be such a important time of year and there's just so much that goes into getting the accounts ready. There's so much behind the scenes from what our engineering, our analytics teams, our implementation teams. There are so many folks who are leaning in to make sure that we have a successful launch. You know, the one thing that I think gets lost during this time of year is, you know, you gotta have fun with it. So a lot of this time of year is gonna be really stressful and there's gonna be times when there's, you know, hair on fire moments and, you know, that's part of it. I think my advice to everyone in the organization is lean in during this time, have fun, learn grow, but also never, never, never be afraid to raise your hand. If you see something going wrong, if you think that something is off track, this is the most critical time of year to make sure that you're open, honest and really embracing some of our values around not only redefining what's possible, but also um you know, leaning in and let's let's let's debate and then commit. So when there are times when it feels like something is going wrong, raise your hand, make sure that there's a right level of awareness. You know, everyone in the organization plays a role. And for some of you, you could be the canary in the coal mine that helps us to identify something before it becomes a problem. So I hope you all lean in, enjoy and use this time of year as a great learning experience and an opportunity to really stretch yourself.