News
My New Year prediction
By Peter Graddon, Director.
It’s a new year and time for both retrospection and looking to the future.
Omfax has been in business for 20 years and we have seen many changes in that time. When we started with the first Jobfax repairs diagnostic manuals, (pre-PCs !) most housing organisations operated with a receptionist taking messages from tenants about repairs and passing everything on to technical officers. The almost universal premise was 100% pre-inspection. Essentially, there was no confidence that front-line staff could handle the matter; it was claimed that it was too complex; but fundamentally technical officers were reluctant to let go.
How times have changed. Now the almost universal premise is 100% direct ordering by front-line staff. What brought about this change? Technology certainly helped but fundamentally it was the recognition that over-burdening the service with visits was not cost effective and that technical staff were better employed on post-inspections and real technical issues. It certainly helped that front-line staff were given the tools to work with – diagnostic tools, better-defined policies on priorities and tenant responsibilities, and (in some cases) simplified Schedule of Rates.
Omfax was part of this change, working with clients who then set the standard for others. Essentially, there is now the confidence and expectation that front-line staff can handle the calls
The question I want to ask is – why is housing management so far behind?
Most housing organisations have set up some form of contact centre for repairs. Far fewer less have extended this to handling housing enquiries (rents, tenancies, allocations, etc) and even then, they often simply refer calls to a housing officer. We still have an almost universal premise that housing enquiries need to be handled by housing officers. It seems that housing officers do not want to let go, claiming that the issues are too complex. Now where have I heard that before?
What is needed is better understanding of the role of contact centres, and for these centres to be given the tools to do the job - CRM, enquiry scripting systems and knowledge databases. These are areas in which Omfax specialises, where we have particular insight and where we can provide the assistance. We helped make a difference with the maintenance service. I therefore predict that the next two years will see similar changes in the housing service. For those wanting to be in the fore-front, Omfax offers both the systems and the support service.
To find out how we can help, call me now on 01869 242967 or email me at peter@omfax.co.uk.
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