Tripp  Babbitt is currently writing two columns.  The first is for IQPC (International Quality and Productivity Center) at CustomerManagementIQ and the most recent is my new column for Quality Digest.

The IQPC articles have a focus on contact centers and customer service.

Past Columns at CustomerManagementIQ:

  • Working on Average Handle Time and First Call Resolution? Stop It . . . Now!: I know . . . here we go again, but the insanity has to stop at some point. Changing thinking sometimes becomes a redundant… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   systems thinking | average handle time | aht
    06/08/2010  10:23:00 AM EDT

 

  • Command and Control in Governmental Contact Centers: In an attempt to keep in touch with the world I ran across an article in the Wall Street Journal. The article was of interest as it was about… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   contact center | contact centers | government
    05/20/2010  4:35:00 PM EDT

 

  • BP Lessons: Why Cutting Costs Always Increases Costs: Like most of us, I watched in horror as another man-made disaster cost lives and livelihoods, ruined the environment, siphoned away multiple… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   systems thinking | contact center | BP
    05/19/2010  9:08:00 AM EDT

 

  • What Arizona Reminds Us About Contact Center Outsourcing: Like a lot of people I have been watching the recent Arizona Immigration politics play out. My individual thoughts about government have… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   Arizona | immigration | outsourcing
    05/13/2010  9:42:00 AM EDT

 

  • Advice For Contact Centers In The Health Care Overhaul: Large contact center vendors may be licking their chops to provide their services to the wide-open health care market. 32 million more Americans… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   contact center | healthcare | outsourcing
    04/28/2010  10:33:00 AM EDT

 

  • 1 800 Flowers – Undercover Boss Draws Wrong Conclusions: The latest episode of Undercover Boss was for 1-800-Flowers. Jim McCann (founder and CEO) and Chris McCann (President and COO) are brothers and… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   contact center | call center | management
    04/25/2010  4:22:00 PM EDT

 

  • CEO Underperforms in Call Center on Reality Show “Undercover Boss”: Whenever I walk into a call center and start to hear blame placed on the call center representative, I become skeptical. I… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   call center | customer service | failure demand
    04/09/2010  4:10:00 PM EDT

 

  • The Mouse Cages the Customer With Entrapping Call Center Technology: Don’t get me wrong, I visit “the House the Mouse built” at least once every year. I’m a loyal customer…. read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   interactive voice response | Disney IVR | customer
    03/29/2010  11:00:00 AM EDT

 

  • The World Watches As the Toyota Production System Falls On Its Face: A Cautionary Tale For the Call Center: The fall from grace by Toyota marks the end of the Toyota Production System that so… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   manufacturing | customer service | Edward Deming
    03/18/2010  8:49:00 AM EDT

 

  • Six Steps to Service Improvement: Command and control thinkers believe that organizational change management comes from projects and project plans, cost-benefit analysis, deliverables, milestones,… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   call center | management | contact center
    02/18/2010  7:02:00 AM EST

  • Counter-Intuitive Thinking About Absenteeism and Turnover: As I read through my Google search on absenteeism and turnover, I read the usual solutions to these problems. Most are related to some carrot… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   call center | absenteeism | turnover
    01/21/2010  2:23:00 PM EST

 

  • A Call Center Holiday Wish List: How about if this year we give the gift that keeps on giving…and I am not talking about the “Jelly of the Month Club.” A gift that lasts, and not… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   call center | call center management | customer
    12/16/2009  10:53:00 AM EST

 

  • Call Centers and the Zero Sum Game: A Loser’s Mentality: Most of us have connected with the service sector (public or private) through call centers or otherwise and felt like we have been… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   customer service | IVR | call center
    11/24/2009  10:34:00 AM EST

 

  • Information Technology: The Alcatraz of the Customer Experience: Built during the Civil War, Alcatraz, or “The Rock” as it has been nicknamed, was a place that no one was known to escape… read more

    Author: 
    Tags:   call center | IT | call center representative
    09/21/2009  2:32:00 PM EDT

 

  • The Best Place for A Reality Check: Command and control thinking has to manifest itself somewhere, and no where is it more prevalent than the call center. Let’s look at the typical call center:… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   call center | average handle time | knowledge
    08/24/2009  5:07:00 PM EDT

 

 

  • Death By Call Center: I am always fascinated by the actions of call center management efforts to attain cost reductions. Bank management efforts are no exception. At a large customer service (call)… read more

    Author:  Tripp Babbitt
    Tags:   interactive voice response | customers | value creation
    06/24/2009  5:48:00 PM EDT