* The worldwide call center services market totaled $23 billion in revenues in 1998, and is projected to double to $58.6 billion by 2003. Outsourcing is the largest segment, with $17 billion in 1998, or 74% of the total market, headed for $42 billion in 2003. (IDC) * In 1998, financial services companies spent $167 million on call center software, amounting to 23% of their call center technology budgets. That's projected to increase to $364 million - or 39% of those budgets - by 2003. (Datamonitor) * The call center operations market is expected to grow annually, from $7 billion in 1998 to $18 billion in 2003. (Input) * 3% or 1.55 million positions of the U.S. working population is currently employed in call centers. That figure is predicted to increase to 1.979 million by 2002. (Datamonitor) * According to a study, "Learning and Development Best Practices for Call Centers," a study focusing on call centers in financial services and insurance, call center training is primarily given in an instructor-led setting, despite tremendous advances in technology. Eighty-four percent of the participants in the study cited stand-up instruction as their main delivery method; only 3% said they used computer-based training. (Deloitte & Touche) * The rate of growth in the number of call centers is declining, from 4% in 1999 to an estimated 0.8% in 2003. This is due to the maturation and consolidation in the call center industry. (Datamonitor) * There are 69,500 call centers in the U.S. By 2003, the estimated number will be 78,000. (Datamonitor) * More than 70% of business transactions take place over the telephone. (Harvard Business Review) * More than 90% of call centers have Web sites. (Benchmarking Study) * Monitoring is a critical part of the process of teaching a new call center representative how to take calls, handle a difficult situations, even simply how to follow a script and read a screen full of complex information. Feedback is also important. Even reps that have been on the phones for some time need constant skills assessment and further training. (Call Center News Service) -
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