Co-op Financial Services has just completed the first phase of a new technology investment at its Manchester and Stockport-based contact centres, covering its debt management, general insurance and retail arms.
The financial services provider has chosen to deploy Aspect Unified IP across over 200 outbound voice seats, and has already reported a saving of
100 hours per month in meeting collections targets.
The three-phase project follows a successful 10-year relationship between Co-op Financial Services and Aspect, during which the customer has used Aspect’s Workforce Management suite across all three services at contact centres in Manchester and Stockport.
Co-op Financial Services’ rollout of Aspect’s Unified IP solution will augment the company’s drive to reduce operational inefficiencies and improve the overall customer experience.

After a competitive tender with four other suppliers, Aspect was chosen by Co-op Financial Services for functionality, price point and support.
“Our previous experience of Aspect was a factor in awarding it the project, but not the decider, as above all else it was a strategic solution, rather than tactical like the other runners,” says contact solutions manager, Resource & Capacity Management at Co-op Financial Services, Dan Condron.
“The functionality met all of our key requirements and importantly, the team was empathetic and professional. The ongoing support model looked strong, and integration with our existing switch and the workforce management software was easy.”

Co-op Financial Services will use Aspect Unified IP on a purely outbound basis, including for customer insurance and deal quotes, collections from unpaid debts and tracking the progress of retail customer accounts.
The first phase, completed this month, means that Aspect Unified IP is now live for over 200 debt management contact centre agents, with phase two for general insurance and phase three for retail being rolled out in the first half of 2013. Phase three will also see a complete migration from Co-op Financial Services’ previous supplier.

“To see such a large and immediate time saving is fantastic, because it is the proof point of why Co-op wanted to improve outbound processes in the first place; to do more with less, and improve debt recuperation,” says senior VP, Europe and Africa at Aspect, Mark King.
“It will also benefit from easier Ofcom compliance with answering machine detection and the ability to align call strategies with business rules, as well as complete compatibility with legacy systems.”