Nominations are invited from organisations that have successfully deployed new technology within their customer contact environment that supports the customer and/or employee experience.

Nominations should outline the business benefits that have been realised including:

• The impact on the customer and/or colleague experience
• Return on investment achieved
• Quantifiable and qualitative results
• The approach used to implement and integrate the technology

The award is not for the technology solution itself; it is for how the technology has been implemented, deployed and maximised within your organisation. Joint nominations from the organisation and their technology provider will be accepted, however the technology provider cannot nominate on their own.

This category recognises innovative new ideas and developments that have enabled organisations to meet the needs of their customers more effectively. Innovative approaches may apply to any aspect of the customer relationship or methods to improve existing internal systems or processes supporting customer service. Judges will be looking for:

• Evidence of innovative thinking and deployment
• A clear business reason for the deployment
• Demonstration of the benefits to the business, the customer and the colleague
• How the implementation has improved performance of the operation
• The reasons you believe that your idea is innovative and relevant to today’s customer.

Organisations that are successfully transforming the way that they work are invited to enter this category; improving the way they connect with their customers and colleagues enabling them to deliver a unique customer service experience.

Nominations are invited from organisations that can:

• Show a clear strategy for transformation in customer service
• Demonstrate how they are aligning people, process and technology initiatives to their business strategy and vision
• Share an effective transformation programme plan
• Can demonstrate the impact the change has had on customers, colleagues and their business
• Can demonstrate that they have learnt from the transformation process.

This category will recognise organisations that have used business intelligence to make improvements to a customer contact operation. Organisations that have used operational data that delivered actionable insights to enable a change to a process or an approach that has had a positive impact on the customer or employee experience are invited to enter.

Judges will be looking for:

• Evidence of a structured approach to business intelligence
• Insights that delivered a business case for change
• A structured and successful change programme as a result of the intelligence
• Demonstration of the benefits to the business, the customer and the colleague

This category is for teams that have implemented a change in their business processes that delivered improvements in either the customer journey or the customer service operation.

Judges will be looking for:

• A clear understanding of the objectives behind the strategy
• Evidence of how the strategy was planned, executed and monitored
• Effective use of internal communication channels to inform teams across the business about the programme and its aims
• Clear evidence of the impact of the strategy on customers, colleagues and the performance of the operation within the business as a whole (including a demonstrable return on investment)
• What the team has learned from the process and any future plans.

This category recognises one of the key challenges of operating a contact centre – handling extreme peaks in demand. Examples could include seasonal peaks, weather related incidents, a pandemic or emergency situations. Nominations are invited from organisations that can demonstrate:

• Creative and innovative approaches to handling peak demand
• A robust plan that delivers effective results whilst protecting the customer and colleague experience
• Effective use of resources which may include people, third parties and technology solutions
• An effective communications plan for both colleagues and customers
• An understanding of performance impacts and associated recovery plans.

Nominations are invited from organisations that have a great partnership with their outsourcing partner and can demonstrate results that show how the customer and employee is benefitting from the partnership. Both the outsourcer and the client are expected to submit a joint entry. Nominations should outline:

• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the business aims and challenges and how the partnership has helped to meet them
• Open, two-way communication channels between the outsourcing frontline and the client decision makers
• Evidence of effective integration and ongoing investment in the relationship
• Demonstrable progression or achievement of the original business objectives
• The value-add, outside of cost, that the outsourcer has brought to the relationship.

This category acknowledges that the most successful customer contact teams work closely with other functions of an organisation in order to do the right thing for the customer. This could be customer experience, marketing, IT, back office, complaints, business change etc.

Nominations are invited from organisations that have demonstrated collaboration to create a great customer experience, and the judges are looking for:

• The business drivers behind the collaboration and the challenges that had to be overcome
• The overall objectives of the initiative
• The approach that was taken and what controls and measures were put in place
• Key benefits that were realised across the customer experience
• How the initiative was measured and what results were achieved.

This category is open to internal facing teams that provide operational day-to-day support to the contact centre or customer service operation. This could include supporting teams from HR, management information, marketing, planning, IT etc.

Judges will be looking for:

• An overview of the operating model and how the team support the operation on a day-to-day basis
• A true partnership culture and how this is evidenced
• Examples of when the team has delivered above and beyond in order to provide high standards of customer service
• Innovation and initiative when trouble shooting or problem solving
• Evidence of how the team’s work has improved the performance of the business areas they support
• Metrics that evidence the results achieved.

Nominations are invited from those organisations that can demonstrate that they have an effective approach to managing a crisis. Judges will be looking for the approach taken and the positive impact it had on the customer, employee and the business.

The nomination should include information on the following:

• The impact the crisis had on the business
• The approach deployed in response
• Quantifiable and qualitative results achieved
• Feedback from customers and colleagues
• The long-term impact on the business of the approach taken

Nominations are invited from organisations that have successfully implemented a robust model for collecting, analysing and acting on customer insight. Judges will be looking for:

• The overall business and associated objectives of your customer insight programme
• Evidence of a structured framework deployed
• The approach to collating customer insight data, including methodologies used
• Examples of how the insight has been used to improve the customer experience
• How the programme is measured and the benefits realised, including impact on KPIs and business performance
• How the model is evolving.

Nominations are invited from organisations that are delivering initiatives across digital channels and touchpoints that complement or enhance existing customer journeys. Nominees will be able to demonstrate:

• Strategic alignment of their brand, customer experience, channel and digital strategy
• Delivery of a consistent, personal and responsive customer experience
• Innovative and effective use of technology within the customer journey such as online/mobile/connected device technologies/apps/messaging
• Alignment with delivery of wider omni-channel experience
• Improvements in performance which may include operational efficiencies, customer satisfaction, customer loyalty or other positive business results.

This category recognises organisations that engage well with their customers either in their ongoing relationship or in a one-off initiative. Judges are looking for initiatives that create a positive customer experience that maintains or increases loyalty

Examples could include customer awareness initiatives, promoting channel shift, working closely with customers during a period of change, educating customers on products/services/risks, or creating positive experiences that ensure a strong emotional connection with the brand. Nominees should outline:

• The opportunity/challenge that drove the initiative or the approach
• Evidence of a structured approach and outline of the deliverables
• The benefits that have been achieved for the business and the customer.

This category will recognise organisations that can demonstrate that they have successfully redesigned a customer experience, across one or more channels that has had a positive impact on the customer, the colleague and the contact centre operation.

Judges will be looking for organisations to demonstrate:

• Evidence of the need to redesign the customer experience
• The objectives of the redesign
• A structured approach to change
• Delivery of a consistent, personal and responsive customer experience
• Innovative and effective use of technology within the customer journey
• Impact of the redesign on the contact centre and overall business performance, as well as on customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, customer effort or other positive results.

This award is open to any customer service team that interacts with their customers via any channel. Nominations should outline:

• Evidence of a true customer-centric culture
• How the team works together in order to deliver for the customer
• What improvements have been implemented to ensure that the customer experience is the best it can be
• How the team’s performance has impacted the organisation overall
• A recent initiative that the team has implemented that has delivered a great experience for customers
• Demonstrate how the team has listened and responded to customer needs
• Evidence of customer engagement/satisfaction results.

This category is open to any contact centre or customer service operation that has delivered a structured learning and development initiative. Nominations should outline:

• The overall framework and objectives of the initiative
• How the initiative links to the organisation’s culture
• The impact of the initiative on the operation
• How the success of the initiative has been measured and what results are being realised
• What methods have been used to develop and deploy the initiative
• How the initiative has been embedded.

This category recognises the tremendous work that the customer contact industry does in supporting others – including national events like Comic Relief, charity donations, pro bono work and local community initiatives. This category recognises those organisations that encourage and support their people to give something back.

Nominations should demonstrate:

• The initiatives and approach deployed to support the community
• How the contact centre or customer service teams are involved in shaping and delivering the initiatives
• Feedback from the community, customers and colleagues
• The impact that the initiatives have had
• The sustainability of the activity
• Balancing the initiatives against colleague engagement and business priorities.

Whether operating a remote working, homeworking, hybrid or flexible working approach, the category will recognise organisations that have successfully embedded the model into their operation. Nominations are invited from organisations that have implemented a robust programme either internally or with an outsourcing partner.

The nomination should include:

• Evidence of the strategic driver for the model chosen
• An overview of the working approach and how it fits into the overall operating model
• Evidence of supporting leaders to manage colleagues
• How mental health and wellbeing is supported through the approach
• How learning and development is delivered and its effectiveness
• Quantifiable and qualitative impact on the employee, customers and the business

This category is open to organisations that have implemented an effective framework in their customer contact operation that enables people’s voices to be heard and uses their feedback to create a better employee experience. Nominations should outline:

• A description of the employee feedback approach evidencing how people’s voices are heard
• Examples of how this insight is used to create a better overall employee experience
• How the programme has improved culture, staff turnover, and increased quality and performance
• Evidence of how employee engagement is measured and the results achieved
• How key stakeholders are engaged in the programme
• How the programme retains integrity and is trusted by employees
• Impact on the customer experience delivered.

Nominations are invited from organisations that strive to be an employer of choice for customer service professionals. Judges are looking for evidence of a supporting culture that enables people to grow and develop. Nominations should outline:

• How employee engagement is measured and what results you are achieving
• What learning and development opportunities exist for people
• The approach to inclusion and diversity in the workplace
• How the organisation enables people to support community activities
• Health and wellbeing initiatives that are in place
• How people are recognised and rewarded for doing a good job
• Any flexible working initiatives that are in place or being piloted
• How employees have a voice in the business

This category is for organisations that place employee wellbeing centre stage within the customer contact operation and have embedded a strong culture of workplace wellbeing.

Judges will be looking for:

• A comprehensive wellbeing programme including activities that are embedded in day-to-day operations
• Evidence of proactive promotion of employee wellbeing
• Alignment of the programme to strategic objectives
• The impact on employees and the organisation
• Sustainability of the programme

Nominations are invited from new contact centre operations during their first 18 months of operation. Nominations can include relocations, centralisation of sites, new satellite sites or site transformations as well as brand new contact centre start-ups.

Judges are looking for:

• Progress against the implementation plan
• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the role of the contact centre within the business at all levels, with appropriate resources and systems in place to ensure ongoing success
• Robust people processes including recruitment, learning and development and colleague engagement
• Appropriate reward and recognition schemes
• Clear targets and measures and your performance against each of these.

Nominations are invited from contact centres based in Europe that provide services in two or more languages. Judges are looking for:

• An overview of the different languages and channels provided
• Examples of how the organisation embraces the different cultures in the contact centre
• An overview of the quality management programme in place
• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the contact centre’s role within the business at all levels, with appropriate resources and systems in place to ensure ongoing success
• Robust people processes including recruitment, learning and development and employee engagement
• Clear targets and measures and your performance against each of these
• Evidence of how the centre has contributed to the wider business.

Delivery of the best outsourced operation for clients and their customers is what the judges will be looking for in this category, wherever the operation is based in Europe. Nominations should outline:

• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the contact centre’s role within their own and their clients’ businesses at all levels, with appropriate resources and systems in place to ensure ongoing success
• Robust people processes including recruitment, learning and development and colleague engagement
• A people-centric environment with effective communication vehicles
• Appropriate reward and recognition schemes
• Evidence that the frontline is involved in decisions that impact them
• Evidence of the positive impact of the centre on their own company and their clients as a whole
• Clear targets and measures and performance against them.

Nominations are invited from all sized contact centres based in Europe. This category will recognise the best small, medium and large contact centre operations based on number of seats. Judges will be looking for:

• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the contact centres role within the business at all levels, with appropriate resources and systems in place to ensure ongoing success
• Robust people processes including recruitment, learning and development and colleague engagement
• A people-centric environment with effective communication vehicles
• Appropriate reward and recognition schemes
• Evidence that the frontline is involved in decisions that impact them
• Evidence of the positive impact of the centre on the company as a whole
• Clear targets and measures and performance against them.

Nominations are invited from organisations that have two or more contact centres located in two different European countries. Judges will be looking for:

• An overview of how the contact centres collaborate with each other to best serve the customer
• Evidence of an efficient and effective customer and colleague focused operation
• A clear understanding of the contact centres role within the business at all levels, with appropriate resources and systems in place to ensure ongoing success
• Robust people processes including recruitment, learning and development and colleague engagement
• A people-centric environment with effective communication vehicles
• Appropriate reward and recognition schemes
• Evidence that frontline teams are involved in decisions that impact them
• Evidence of the positive impact of the centre on the company as a whole
• Clear targets and measures and performance against them.