Identifying reasons of high handle time when connecting a call to Disputes department 

 Challenge :   I am studying a team of customer service agents who assist customers over the phone . Each   call takes 3mins to complete . There are times when a customer has a transaction that he / she does n’t   recognize , and , in this case , a customer service agent would transfer the call to another department ( i.e.   Dispute Department ) . The challenge I have is to understand why it takes for a phone agent additional 3   minutes to connect a call to another department . I am interested to find out what happens during this   time , the behaviors , practices or breaks in process that lead to an additional 3 minutes before customer   service agent can wrap up a call with a customer . 

 Selection : For this challenge , I am using the mind mapping technique , which I normally use to   understand the different steps in a process and where the breaks are . Mind mapping is also effective in   identifying which steps cause waste in the process map , so I can easily identify the problem . Because I   am trying to understand breaks or waste in a process flow , this technique will be most appropriate . 

 Application : Using the mind mapping technique , I gathered a group of 10 phone agents to plot the step   by step process they follow when transferring a call to another department . To make it easier for them   to visualize the flow , I gave them notepads and pens to write down 1 step on each notepad . Once   they 're done writing the steps , I had them post the notepads from first to last step on a whiteboard for   everyone to see . I also asked questions that helped the team talk through the variations of their actions .   I asked open ended and close ended questions that helped the team identify the non - value adding and   value - adding steps in the process , following the principles of LEAN . By doing this , we were be able to   identify clearly which step need to be retained , reduced or removed . Then , using the SIPOC diagram ( Six   Sigma ) , I helped the team look at different factors that may have caused waste : Supplier , Inputs ,   Process , Outputs , Customers and other requirements . 

 Insights 

 Data gathered- 

 Supplier   Input   Process   Output   Customer 

 Agent calling   another   department : 

 -took 2 mins   before dialing the   other   department ’s   number , placed   customer on hold   to do make up or   read an online   book ( NVA , Non   Value Add ) 

 Numbers to be   dialed to call the   other department 

 -agent takes 1min   additional , looking   for the number   -New numbers for   some departments   -no updated phone   book / directory   ( Value Add if made   readily available ) 

 Identified waste   on Step 4 : 

 -Agent must dial   the call right away ,   connect the call   within 30 seconds .   ( Value Add if   followed ) 

 Can save time if   the agent reduces   delay , knows the   phone number / or   has resources   ready , and follows   process . 

 Higher Customer   Satisfaction ,   Better efficiency :   Customer ’s call can   get to appropriate   department   quickly , the   originating agent   can assist another   customer who   comes on the line . 

 It is important to note that for this strategy to work , I had to give the participants a brief orientation on   how SIPOC as a mind mapping diagram works and what its purpose is . What I have learned from   conducting this exercise is that it 's easier for groups to understand where in the current process or work   causes waste when a mind mapping technique is used . It is also helpful if the mind mapping diagram   such as SIPOC is made visually available and interactive for everyone to participate in . After identifying   the waste in their work and process , and ensuring that every team member is involved , it is easier to   then move into analysis and solutioning phase . Because the participants are end users and executors of   the same process , they are taking part in an agile process of improving their efficiency . There is lesser   push back when the participants themselves were made part of the entire process from problem   identification to solutioning . 

 I also observed that with everyone in the room doing the solutioning , it took longer time . This is where   the mind mapping process progressed into becoming a learning launch session . I realized how   intertwined these two approaches are . 

 Approach 

 If there ’s another approach that could ’ve also worked , it would be the learning launch . There are   participants who are more dominant and could therefore influence the groupthink . At this phase a   third - party person , such as someone from quality control would ’ve been a big help in cleaning the   findings and data gathered from the mind mapping session . 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Identifying reasons of high handle time when connecting a call to Disputes department 

 Challenge :   I am studying a team of customer service agents who assist customers over the phone . Each   call takes 3mins to complete . There are times when a customer has a transaction that he / she does n’t   recognize , and , in this case , a customer service agent would transfer the call to another department ( i.e.   Dispute Department ) . The challenge I have is to understand why it takes for a phone agent additional 3   minutes to connect a call to another department . I am interested to find out what happens during this   time , the behaviors , practices or breaks in process that lead to an additional 3 minutes before customer   service agent can wrap up a call with a customer . 

 Selection : For this challenge , I am using the mind mapping technique , which I normally use to   understand the different steps in a process and where the breaks are . Mind mapping is also effective in   identifying which steps cause waste in the process map , so I can easily identify the problem . Because I   am trying to understand breaks or waste in a process flow , this technique will be most appropriate . 

 Application : Using the mind mapping technique , I gathered a group of 10 phone agents to plot the step   by step process they follow when transferring a call to another department . To make it easier for them   to visualize the flow , I gave them notepads and pens to write down 1 step on each notepad . Once   they 're done writing the steps , I had them post the notepads from first to last step on a whiteboard for   everyone to see . I also asked questions that helped the team talk through the variations of their actions .   I asked open ended and close ended questions that helped the team identify the non - value adding and   value - adding steps in the process , following the principles of LEAN . By doing this , we were be able to   identify clearly which step need to be retained , reduced or removed . Then , using the SIPOC diagram ( Six   Sigma ) , I helped the team look at different factors that may have caused waste : Supplier , Inputs ,   Process , Outputs , Customers and other requirements . 

 Insights 

 Data gathered- 

 Supplier   Input   Process   Output   Customer 

 Agent calling   another   department : 

 -took 2 mins   before dialing the   other   department ’s   number , placed   customer on hold   to do make up or   read an online   book ( NVA , Non   Value Add ) 

 Numbers to be   dialed to call the   other department 

 -agent takes 1min   additional , looking   for the number   -New numbers for   some departments   -no updated phone   book / directory   ( Value Add if made   readily available ) 

 Identified waste   on Step 4 : 

 -Agent must dial   the call right away ,   connect the call   within 30 seconds .   ( Value Add if   followed ) 

 Can save time if   the agent reduces   delay , knows the   phone number / or   has resources   ready , and follows   process . 

 Higher Customer   Satisfaction ,   Better efficiency :   Customer ’s call can   get to appropriate   department   quickly , the   originating agent   can assist another   customer who   comes on the line . 

 It is important to note that for this strategy to work , I had to give the participants a brief orientation on   how SIPOC as a mind mapping diagram works and what its purpose is . What I have learned from   conducting this exercise is that it 's easier for groups to understand where in the current process or work   causes waste when a mind mapping technique is used . It is also helpful if the mind mapping diagram   such as SIPOC is made visually available and interactive for everyone to participate in . After identifying   the waste in their work and process , and ensuring that every team member is involved , it is easier to   then move into analysis and solutioning phase . Because the participants are end users and executors of   the same process , they are taking part in an agile process of improving their efficiency . There is lesser   push back when the participants themselves were made part of the entire process from problem   identification to solutioning . 

 I also observed that with everyone in the room doing the solutioning , it took longer time . This is where   the mind mapping process progressed into becoming a learning launch session . I realized how   intertwined these two approaches are . 

 Approach 

 If there ’s another approach that could ’ve also worked , it would be the learning launch . There are   participants who are more dominant and could therefore influence the groupthink . At this phase a   third - party person , such as someone from quality control would ’ve been a big help in cleaning the   findings and data gathered from the mind mapping session .
### Output: 