SWP1011 Self Service Customer Care for Next Generation Networks

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    Abstract

    Smartphone devices have dramatically changed the way consumers consume data. The need to

    be connected anywhere and anytime is driving service providers to put focus into customer

    experience to grow customers, build loyalty and drive profits through new services. As a result,

    the expectations of service experience from the end-user are heightened and cannot beunderestimated. For end-users, customer care expectation and solutions have a real impact on

    their customer experience with less time struggling to resolve connection problems and more time

    using the service.

    Service providers are under pressure to deliver customer experience that separates them from the

    competition, while at the same time trying to delicately balance their revenues and managing costs

    for near term gain and longer term success. In this paper, we outline the scale of issues faced in

    mobile device and service care that impacts both service providers and end-users beyond

    connectivity. With a broad range of services and wide variety of applications, the smartphone

    requires more complexity to handle a multitude of firmware and software configurations which legacy

    CRM systems are inadequate to deal with todays customers.

    Remote device support and service care is a key component to tackle the demands of escalating

    costs in customer care. Service providers are seeking integration onto backend systems without

    incurring heavy infrastructure changes and ensure the best fit into the existing operations through

    automated and proactive customer care mechanisms to ensure service excellence and thus prevent

    service quality degradation.

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    Contents

    Overview 01

    Conventional CRM Revisited 03

    Driving New Generation of Self-Care Customer Service 04

    Revenue

    Churn

    Cost

    Where is the Cost Savings 06

    Step by Step Problem Resolution 07

    An Integrated Approach Instinq Self Healing Diagnostic System 09

    Legacy CRM versus Instinq SDS

    Conclusion 11

    Service Uninterrupted 24/7 12

    References 13

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    Overview

    The smartphone is becoming common as it replaces handsets into multi-purpose devices to meet business and social

    needs of everyday lifestyle. In a report by analyst firm Juniper Research1, the number of global smartphone shipments

    will reach 1 billion per annum in 2016, up from 302 million in 2010 and it is not showing signs of slowing down, as these

    devices become available at lower price points over the years.

    Smartphones can create a number of challenges of their own, including higher device-related support costs and longer

    call handling times which leads to an increased need for support, particularly with the configuration of new applications

    and services. These support costs can possibly threaten the already thinning profits of services.

    Service providers are becoming aware that customer care can play a strategic role and thus are under pressure to ensure

    outstanding user experience. The shift of service provider to customer-centric focus has been challenging if not

    frustrating to the end-users. Typically, customers who experience Internet connection trouble will call their service

    provider and speak to a customer service representative for help with troubleshooting.

    Customer complaints due to fault and inability to connect exceed 30%2

    on average as illustrated in Figure 1. Most often,users will give up trying to connect to a service after one or two attempts. Similarly, user complaints point towards

    grouses of inability to connect, slow connection and inability to access the Internet.

    Figure 1: Categories of Customer Complaints

    1 Source : Smartphone Evolution Strategies: Premium , Standard and Economy Markets 2011-2016,Juniper Research

    2

    Source : P1 Customer complaints, Sept 2009

    General Enquiry

    Fault / Network Trouble Issue

    Request on Credit

    Change of Service

    Complaint Bill ChargeEnquiry on Bill Charges

    Follow Up / Complaints

    Activation

    Error Cals (Prank)8%7%

    2%

    2%

    9%

    7%

    6%

    18%

    33%

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    In a separate study, consulting firm Bain & Company concluded that it is six times costlier to acquire a new customer

    than retain an existing one. Looking after subscribers is a key differentiator as reputation for good customer care is harder

    to emulate compared to bringing to market new services or price plans, as consumers are quick to switch service

    provider in this fiercely competitive market.

    Instead of relying on a customer service representative, a customer can enjoy the same assurance of quick and effective

    troubleshooting through an intelligent self-care platform. The self-care platform has diagnostic and intelligent analytics

    ability that is automated and service provider can achieve savings in its customer care investments in the longer term.

    The self-care platform is a based on closed-loop architecture (eg: aggregation of expert knowledge with reduced learning

    cycle or staff training over time). This paper will discuss the use of self-care, diagnostics and analytics, challenges and

    approaches to address the burgeoning need of service providers to optimize costs and deliver excellent service.

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    Conventional CRM Revisited

    To date, there are many channels through which service providers reach out to their subscribers; this includes call

    centers, website, webchat, email, fax, service centers and of late through social networking sites. Among these

    channels, call center is most preferred for the simple reason that there is a fellow human to interact with and most of the

    time, the issue is resolved immediately, as opposed to sending an email and waiting for a response within 48 hours

    two key elements here are personal touch and instant resolution.

    However, traditional CRM systems are labor intensive and demands extensive retention and training that are costly.

    Generally, level 1 technical support agents at the service call center are not able to deal with the query which requires

    data retrieval and synchronization from many siloed or fragmented sources within the network. Information such as

    firmware updates, applications and subscription profiles that are invariably stored in other databases are closely

    administered, with restricted access across the business. Most often, escalation to level 3 technical support with calls

    transferred four or five times before reaching the correct support agent to resolve issues.

    Adding to the challenge, multiple device types, different operating platforms and a myriad of menu selection makes both

    using and supporting the new generation of smart devices increasingly complicated such as configuration options acrossmultiple access network technologies including WiFi, GSM, GPRS, UMTS, HSPA, LTE. As multiple variables ranging from

    network bearers, 3rd party software, firmware etc. must be taken into consideration, the call duration also increases.

    Technical support calls across the smartphone sector are typically longer in duration as a result of product and service

    complexity, ultimately extending a technical support agents diagnosis and resolution times. At worst, the technical

    support agent is unable to fix the problem all the while subjecting the customer to spend more time and money, when

    they are not consuming any data services. Finally, it will lead to customer frustration and churn.

    Many service providers are transforming to solve these and other problems that can cause customer dissatisfaction.

    Having an acceptable performance is no longer good enough. To be successful, providers will need to earn their

    customers loyalty.

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    Driving New Generation of Self-Care Customer Service

    The introduction of new products and services that are designed to increase revenue can actually have a negative impact

    on profitability in the short to medium term. This is due to the increased support burden often encountered as consumers

    (and carriers supporting infrastructures) look to navigate new and complex features and functions.

    Customer experience transformation is key differentiator in a battle to retain customers. New generation of smartself-care device management can provide advanced device care functionality to mobile devices including device

    detection and monitoring, diagnostics and over-the-air firmware and application updates previously administered

    through CRM systems. Revenues, churn and costs are the principal driving factors for service providers to stay ahead of

    the game. Staying competitive and relevant plays a role in reducing churn. Ideally, self-care implementation should give

    service providers the opportunity to proactively diagnose and troubleshoot device issues, monitoring of services and

    analyze predictive churn models.

    Benefits of smart self-care include self sufficiency and on the end users part to aid adoption of new and existing

    applications and services without relying on call centers and walk-in visits to resolve issues. Ultimately, end users derive

    greater value from the services their providers offer, resulting in overall increased satisfaction and a better customerexperience. Meanwhile, service providers see a direct cost savings to their business and growth in average revenue per

    user (ARPU).

    Revenue

    With reduced reliance on call centers, service providers can potentially protect revenues by taking the pressure off on

    escalating support cost. The flexibility of the client-server architecture allows for scalable and modular modules to be built

    into the smart self-care system through a diagnostic manager allowing concurrent, multiuser access as well as remoteuser access to the diagnostic server and diagnostic tools. It provides external interface to integrate into provisioning

    server, easing installation, support, administration, and upgrade whenever necessary. Customers continue to have easy

    access to applications and generate immediate desire to pursue the value added services. Ultimately, giving rise to better

    revenue opportunity.

    Churn

    The ability to remotely detect configuration settings on devices, monitoring of devices, resolve firmware conflicts, SWinstallation, updates and various settings immediately is a powerful tool. The result is a significant savings in reducing call

    handling times, as customers do not need to contact their service provider. Through built-in intelligence and proactive

    troubleshooting feature, connectivity issues can be queried and detected right up to the users devices. Next, either

    corrective action can be taken immediately (if possible) or customer service agents can be informed of the situation and

    advised on how to counsel users regarding problem solving steps. The smart self-care system can gracefully coordinate

    the various statistical reporting, analytics within a centralized server for easy data management.

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    Cost

    By introducing a smart self-care mechanism to address connectivity issues, reliance on customer support is

    reduced. As a result, customer care OPEX costs can be lessened. Meanwhile, customer support efforts are reserved

    for more critical issues and a healthy support turnaround time is maintained. Additionally, with built-in knowledge

    models, common connectivity issues can be healed automatically without going through manual troubleshooting

    efforts. Automated technical support for the entire network is further improved via continuous updates of new

    knowledge models.

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    Step by Step Problem Resolution

    The implementation of CRM-based solutions are time consuming and tactical to retain customers within a network to

    extend the average customer lifetime. In order to manage the continued costs that include maintaining customer care,

    network maintenance, operations and etc, it is not uncommon for service providers to wait more than 12 months to see

    the signs of breakeven and ultimately impacting the subscriber margins. To combat these issues, problem resolution and

    troubleshooting can be made more efficiently through business rules driven processes. As demonstrated in the followingpictorial representation in Figure 2.

    By means of measurable parameters, the smart self-care system can proactively and accurately respond to device

    specific technical support and build knowledge models for predictive analysis - eliminating the need to extensively incur

    staff training and business process improvement, brings savings of up to $1.4 million as illustrated in Table 1.

    The platform independent smart self-care system can also be integrated into the carriers billing systems and thus

    minimize the existence of distributed communication. The classic siloed data structures spread across separate

    databases, inter-business departments that are unconsolidated results in the inefficiency of information processing which

    can create redundant, overlapping and uncoordinated systems. The lack of consolidated data and access to data

    undermines the CRM efforts and will likely to result in incorrect diagnosis and resolution, slow response times and

    dissatisfactory performance. Consequently leading to inefficiencies at the call centers, less effective marketing and

    missed revenue opportunities as a result of poor customer experience.

    Figure 2: Problem Resolution with Instinq Self-Healing & Diagnostic System

    Smart Device and Service Monitoring

    Proactive problem reporting

    Connectivity Monitoring

    Step 2

    Diagnose and Fix

    Corrective Actions Online Diagnostic and Troubleshooting

    Timely Problem Resolution

    Step 3

    Predictive analysis

    Usage Patterns Knowledge Models

    Step 4

    Over the air Automatic Configuration

    Application install/uninstall

    Firmware Update

    Software Update

    Step 1

    SERVICE MANAGEMENT AND

    OPERATIONS PLATFORM

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    The Instinq smart self-care platform, being business-rules driven, determines what the next best action should be, what

    to present, when to guide and when to deliver guidance with greater appreciation that all technical support agents are

    not created equal.

    Instinq refers to the next generation of a help desk system. In traditional help desk systems, subscribers would relate their

    ordeal to an agent who mans the help desk system. Issues encountered are diagnosed by the agent to identify a solution

    for the subscriber. This time and effort consuming effort will only be useful if the subscriber narrates the problems and

    symptoms accurately to the agent. Failing which, zero resolution will only aggravate the subscriber and the only option is

    to locate the nearest customer service center or retailer in person. This is even more obvious and desperate in countries,

    where geographical distances are far and wide mobilization of technical support is challenging, if not near impossible.

    Typically, Opex constitutes about 60% of the network costs, of which there is only between 5-10% being invested in

    customer care service. In contrast, the escalating costs of retaining a customer has risen by two-fold. In one of the

    studies conducted by Wireless Operator Strategies4 (WOS) research, it tracked the average cost to retain a customer

    has increased for T-Mobile in several countries: Germany (26%), Austria (57%) and the Netherlands (12%). Orange

    customer retention costs have increased in France (11%) and Spain (14%). With more smartphone sales, upgrades and

    subsidies together with a relentless data traffic growth, carriers must find ways to reverse the falling revenues through

    major focus on optimization of pricing, service revenues and costs.

    Figure 3: Typical Problem Resolution Scenario without Instinq

    4 Note: Wireless Operator Strategies (WOS) in a report Western Europes Market Still Searching for Growth,

    OPEX Management a Concern 2010 studied operational and financial performance of over

    200 mobile operators with over 77 percent of global subscribers.

    Step 6Corrective Actions

    Step 1

    Technical Support

    Step 2

    Trouble Ticket

    Step 3

    Escalation

    Step 4

    Synchronization of

    Multiple Databases

    Step 5

    Diagnosis

    Multiple Customer

    Service Touch Points

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    Step 1Diagnostic Manager

    starts diagnosing modem

    or dongles after

    detecting symptoms.

    Step 2

    Based on the preloaded

    corrective actions stored

    in Diagnostic client, it is

    able to determine the

    potential root cause,

    try to self-heal or

    suggest solutions.

    Step 3

    Diagnostic client sends

    symptoms, device

    information, connection

    status and usage

    information to the server

    over the internet,

    at scheduled interval.

    Step 5With the updated

    knowledge model.

    Diagnostic Knowledge

    Server propagates new

    models to other

    Diagnostic Managers on

    the network via

    automatic updates.

    Step 4

    Diagnostic Knowledge

    Server collects various

    client data, analyze,

    update and train the

    knowledge engine to

    learn about device

    behavior.

    Diagnostic Manager Diagnostic

    Knowledge Server

    An Integrated Approach

    Instinq Self Healing Diagnostic System

    Greenpackets Instinq Self-Healing Diagnostic System (Instinq SDS) is an intelligent solution that proactively diagnoses

    and automatically resolves connectivity issues in offline and online mode, making support efforts easier than ever.

    By incorporating artificial intelligence (AI), it provides a spur-of-the-moment troubleshooting and problem resolution

    without the intervention of customer support personnel. This is done through built-in knowledge models that contain

    intelligence to identify and solve connectivity glitches. Though there are several factors that contribute to connectivity

    problems, a significant fraction can be attributed to devices, particularly in wireless broadband. For example, due to high

    frequencies used, radio waves (in wireless connectivity) have poor indoor penetration. If subscribers are guided on how

    to place their modems for optimum signal strength, connectivity can be improved.

    With this in mind, Greenpackets Instinq SDS, which can be installed on subscribers PCs, laptops and handheld

    devices, is able to automatically scan the current environment to diagnose and solve connectivity issues. If required,

    subscribers will be prompted with instructional messages to help in the problem-solving process. Instinq SDS is

    designed to take self-care beyond profile updates to help operators handle technical hitches at the last mile level without

    burdening customer support.

    Figure 4: Components of Instinq SDS

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    Instinq SDS consists of two components Self-Healing Diagnostic Manager (client component) and Diagnostic

    Knowledge Server (server component). Self-Healing Diagnostic Manager can be installed on PCs, laptops and handheld

    devices to perform auto-diagnosis, online troubleshooting and self-healing on device specific problems in an easy and

    Instinqive manner. Possible connectivity issues and corrective actions (called knowledge base) are pre-engineered into

    the client component.

    On the other hand, the Diagnostic Knowledge Server can reside on the Operators core network or engaged through a

    hosted business model. It is an artificial intelligence expert system that hosts the central knowledge models of the

    system, based on Bayesian network. This server components aggregates and shares new or unknown connectivity

    issues between client components within the network. It facilitates rule updates and generates predictive reports that aid

    in churn management efforts. The following table below illustrates the differences and impacts between legacy CRM

    system and Instinq Self-Healing & Diagnostics System.

    Legacy CRM versus Instinq SDS

    Two key things about legacy CRM systemsare that it is designed to be reactive andmanual.

    The operator-subscriber relationship here isinitiated when subscriber stumbles upon aproblem (reactive) and the operatorresponds through a CRM system managedby a human resource (manual).

    Instinq advocates automation and proactivehelp. This CRM system automates problemidentification for proactive troubleshooting.

    Subscribers are also encouraged to helpthemselves through provided channels.

    The objectives of this system areautomation, proactiveness and self-help.

    Telephone/Fax

    (Customer Service Hotline)

    Email

    Physical visit to

    CRM centers

    Social Media

    Web-based channels

    such as live chat

    Digital assistants/software

    (installed on subscribersdevice)

    Often a connectivity issue

    is not resolved at firstcontact leading tosubscriber frustration

    Labour intensive

    High cost labour,

    training efforts

    Risks losing knowledge

    when agents leave

    Encourages subscribers

    to help themselves

    Knowledge is stored

    in a system

    Knowledge models

    proactively andautomatically provideintelligent solutionsanytime, anywhere

    Analytics for decision

    making and churnmanagement

    Improves customer

    loyalty and retention

    Definition/Scope Channels Impact

    LegacyCRMSystem

    InstinqSelf-Healing&

    DiagnosticsSystem

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    Conclusion

    Many operators are faced with the issues of truly effective end to end (E2E) service platform that consolidates the

    components for service support, operations, maintenance and customer care. The merging of all these components can

    be achieved with a client-server based diagnostic system pushing for greater degree of self-management. The focus

    should change and encourage self-help methods that are assisted by systems-oriented proactive troubleshooting.

    Another impediment faced over network operation lies in the backend system. A host of separate network entit ies and

    platforms lacks coherent information processing, sharing and storing mechanism which prevents timely problem

    resolution by technical support agent which is not empowered to deal with the query. By collapsing the multiple entities

    into a unified operation, optimization, planning and management system, operators have greater visibility and clarity in

    delivering service and target problem resolution wherever it fits. Knowledge-based modeling is designed to analyze the

    learned diagnostic relationships over a period of time. Updates can be automated to the diagnostic server,

    upon discovering new diagnostic relationship as a direct result from changes in usage patterns of the network.

    The increased attention on self-care is mainly driven by cost-savings but it also gives subscribers control at his/her

    convenience, making life easier for both operators and subscribers. To date, self-care tools are confined to querychoices, profile updates and subscription information (such as bonus points, package details etc). Through Instinq SDS,

    service providers can extend their self-care options to include assistance on connectivity issues and reporting capabilities

    on the overview of the health of users devices, causes for breakdown and the right solution. This allows service provider

    to stay in control of their device and being informed of possible connectivity issues for necessary remedial actions and

    thus reduce device-related connectivity disruptions for enhanced user experience.

    Additionally, Instinq SDS provides predictive statistics that help operators gain deeper understanding of subscribers

    usage patterns and preferences for the development of effective customer retention strategies and a more focused

    marketing campaign. Through specially tailored programs, subscribers stay loyal and the positive user experience aids

    in attracting new subscribers.

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    Service Uninterrupted 24/7

    All around the world, operators are looking for better and more creative ways to support their subscribers better and

    reduce costs at the same time. At Greenpacket, we understand the demands placed on operators. That is why,

    we empower you to offer subscribers more than just high-speed connectivity, our innovation will provide you with endless

    ways to engage with subscribers and enhance relationships.

    With Greenpacket, limitless freedom begins now!

    Free Consultation

    If you would like a free consultation on how you can implement Instinq, feel free to contact us at

    [email protected] (kindly quote the reference code SWP1011 when you contact us).

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    References

    1. Western Europes Mobile Market Still Searching for Growth, OPEX Management a Concern, Q4 2010 Wireless

    Operator Strategies (WOS) of Strategy Analytics.

    2. http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110412006677/en/Strategy-Analytics-Western-European-Mobile-

    Operator-EBITDA

    3. Can communications service providers earn their customers love? - Domenico Azzarello and Mark Kovac;Bain & Company

    4. Smartphones: Building profitability and loyalty in the mass-market WDS Global

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    About Green Packet

    Greenpacket is the international arm of the Green Packet Berhad group of companies which is listed on the Main Board

    of the Malaysian Bourse. Founded in San Franciscos Silicon Valley in 2000 and now headquartered in Kuala Lumpur,

    Malaysia, Greenpacket has a presence in 9 countries and is continuously expanding to be near its customers and in

    readiness for new markets.

    We are a leading developer of Next Generation Mobile Broadband and Networking Solutions for Telecommunications

    Operators across the globe. Our mission is to provide seamless and unified platforms for the delivery of user-centric

    multimedia communications services regardless of the nature and availability of backbone infrastructures.

    At Greenpacket, we pride ourselves on being constantly at the forefront of technology. Our leading carrier-grade

    solutions and award-winning consumer devices help Telecommunications Operators open new avenues, meet new

    demands, and enrich the lifestyles of their subscribers, while forging new relationships. We see a future of limitless

    freedom in wireless communications and continuously commit to meeting the needs of our customers with leading

    edge solutions.

    With product development centers in USA, Shanghai, and Taiwan, we are on the cutting edge of new developments in

    4G (particularly WiMAX and LTE), as well as in software advancement. Our leadership position in the Telco industry is

    further enhanced by our strategic alliances with leading industry players.

    Additionally, our award-winning WiMAX modems have successfully completed interoperability tests with major WiMAX

    players and are being used by the worlds largest WiMAX Operators. We are also the leading carrier solutions provider

    in APAC catering to both 4G and 3G networks.

    For more information, visit: www.greenpacket.com.

    San Francisco Kual a Lumpur Singapore Shanghai Taiwan Sydney Bahra in Bangkok Hong Kong

    Associate

    Member