Contact Centre Sector employs almost 30,000 people
New research by the CCMA highlights the important role of the industry
Dublin, Thursday 8th September 2011:
New research carried out by the Contact Centre Management Association of Ireland (CCMA) into the role of contact centres throughout the country has revealed that the sector employs more than 29,000 people, with a spread of over 100 contact centre operations nationwide. Carried out in the 2nd quarter of 2011 with the support of the IDA and Enterprise Ireland, the research provides key insights into the industry sector, including its capacity for growth, competitiveness, skill levels and the challenges which it is currently facing.
The contact centre sector is highly valuable to the Irish economy, and is in a significant period of growth, 52% of respondents grew in absolute revenue terms in 2010 and encouragingly, 73% of companies who completed the survey stated that they expected to grow in terms of revenue over the next 2-3 years, 13% expected no change, These figures show very positive results against the backdrop of a challenging economic climate, and emphasise a focus on growth and business retention within the sector.
The CCMA research also revealed the high volume of communications which are taking place within the sector, with over 150 million customer interactions in 2010 alone. 90 million or 59% of these interactions were telephone calls, with inbound calls accounting for double that of outbound calls, while electronic communications (SMS and email) accounted for a relatively low 16% of all communications, significant growth is forecast for these channels in the next 12 months.
Commenting on the research, Tracy Kennedy, Board member of the CCMA and Head of Customer Operations for Bord Gáis Energy said: “These figures outline the crucial role the contact centre sector plays in the Irish economy, and the high level of service which is provided by skilled professionals throughout the country. However, it also highlights issues such as achieving and supporting new business, management of costs and competitiveness and economy related issues which need to be tackled in order for us to continue to grow.”
With 37% of respondent companies requiring multi-lingual skills, languages are crucial for industry growth.
Speaking at the launch of the research Maurice Whelan Chairperson CCMA and Head of Customer Experience Sage Ireland spoke of the importance of this piece of research to the Irish contact centre industry. “This is the first time that this level of research has been undertaken in our industry sector. It provides valuable firmographic data highlighting the size and value of the sector to the Irish economy and showing strong forecasts of future growth. Based on the findings and the challenges highlighted by respondents, the CCMA hopes to work with various Government bodies to continue to promote investment in our sector in the area of skills development, funding for research and development and IT infrastructure”.
The research also showed that the contact centre sector has started to move away from traditional means of customer support, by utilising the internet, apps and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) to provide a suite of communications tools for the customer.
Information technology also remains a driving force towards the continuing advancement of the contact centre sector, and it is essential that cost competitiveness and investment into information technology and broadband continues so as to ensure the industry’s future needs are met.
Commenting on the research, Emmanuel Dowdall, Global Department Manager; Content, Consumer & Business Services Division of IDA Ireland, said: “The customer contact industry continues to be an invaluable source of employment creation from multinational companies locating in Ireland across a range of industry sectors including finance, IT, life sciences and e-commerce. As an increasingly important component in the way companies differentiate themselves, the customer contact centre has evolved into a multi-functional, multi-lingual environment, an early adaptor of new digital technologies and servicing a global customer base. This valuable research will help to inform the continued evolution and growth of this important sector in Ireland.”
Joe Breslin, Manager Financial Services & Business Process Outsourcing, Enterprise Ireland in welcoming this comprehensive research from the CCMA said “Enterprise Ireland recognises the growth potential in this sector which is particularly important due to its ability to deliver strong job creation on a regional basis in Ireland. Continuous focus on efficiency, internationalisation and innovation in areas such as social media utilisation will be essential for the industry to maximise its potential”.
A planned phase two of research on this sector will begin shortly. This second phase will look at the area of performance metrics and will provide vital benchmarking data to industry participants.
Notes to the Editor:
- Dorothy O’ Byrne, Managing Director of the CCMA is available for interview.
- The CCMA is the leading industry association for the promotion and development of the contact centre industry in Ireland. With over 750 members the CCMA promotes best practice within the industry sector
- The contact centre research was carried out by Amárach Research in Quarter 2 2011 on behalf of CCMA Ireland and sponsored by IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland. It involved 52 participants in the contact centre, BPO and shared service market, achieving a 53% response rate from 98 targeted companies and signalling strong interest from the sector.
- Currently CCMA Ireland receives funding from the Department of Training and Skills through the Skillnets initiative. To date over 103 member companies have participated in training with over 4498 training days completed in 2010. Over 90% of the training delivered is mapped to the National Framework of Qualifications.
- The CCMA Ireland Skillnet offers free places to job seekers on many of our programs and have successfully over the past six month period placed over 50 job seekers in permanent positions with our members through the Skillnet JSSP fund and supported a further 70 job seekers work placements.
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