A salesperson saying “no”? It might sound surprising, but after nine years in the healthcare contact center industry, I’ve come to realize that true success and earning customers’ respect isn’t always about always just saying yes.
One frequent question we encounter is if RelateCare can handle call volumes when internal staff struggles with peaks, high absenteeism, or unforeseen challenges? Whether it’s Monday mornings or lunch breaks, offloading excess calls might seem like a straightforward solution to meet key performance indicators (KPIs), but it often comes with unrealistic expectations.
Some organizations tend to assume that external teams will maintain a 95% answer rate, ensure accuracy in workflows, and manage many of the same tasks as their in-house team. Sounds ideal, doesn’t it? But, the reality is far more complex. My response usually invites reflection: Is there a more effective approach?
Why Pure Overflow Work Alone Can Be Problematic
At first glance, you might think all work is good work, but overflow support can create significant challenges for both health systems and their chosen partners:
- Volume Fluctuations: Overflow support by nature means erratic work volumes. While health systems may perceive a need only during high-volume periods, contact center partners face the full brunt of these peaks. These unpredictable swings make it difficult to maintain consistent quality of service, forecast staffing, and plan effectively.
- Team Morale Suffers: Imagine being a patient service representative, and every call you take is from a patient who has already waited longer than acceptable. Patients aren’t starting the conversation with, “Wow, you picked up fast!” Instead, they’re frustrated from the outset. This constant exposure to dissatisfaction wears down the team, leading to frustration and burnout, especially when workloads are unpredictable.
- Suboptimal Efficiency: When a contact center doesn’t receive a steady flow of work, it becomes difficult to optimize processes or help representatives reach proficiency. Repetition is key in contact centers, and the stop-start nature of overflow work limits opportunities for reps to consistently apply new knowledge. This increases the risk of errors and slows the learning curve.
Simply put, taking on overflow work doesn’t always make sense, especially when it hinders an organization’s ability to perform at its best.
Why Pure Overflow Work Can Be Bad for Health Systems
- Access to Top Suppliers: Many top-tier contact center providers are increasingly turning down overflow work unless it’s tied to a broader, strategic partnership. Purely transactional, problem-solving arrangements aren’t always appealing. This can make it challenging for clients to secure high-quality partners for overflow projects.
- Missed Opportunities for Continuous Improvement: Engaging a partner only during specific intervals or sporadic moments can result in missed opportunities to enhance efficiency and adopt best practices. Contact center providers invest heavily in process optimization, but these benefits are harder to realize with limited, reactive engagements.
- Inconsistent Service Levels and Costs: Without predictable volumes, it’s difficult for partners to guarantee consistent service levels. Response times may suffer—both within internal queues and when overflow volumes are routed externally. Additionally, fluctuating workloads often lead to higher costs, as partners must cover risks like increased staff attrition, off-phone training time, and quality assurance efforts.
- Inconsistent Standards: Aligning internal processes with an external supplier’s becomes more difficult when they’re only involved during overflow periods. Repetition and standardization are essential for quality—without ongoing, consistent engagement, it’s challenging to integrate processes fully. Contact centers that engage only intermittently struggle to match the proficiency and consistency of in-house teams or long-term partners, especially when working across different specialties. Organizations relying on “answering service” models may end up duplicating outreach to patients, further straining internal resources and leading to inefficiencies.
Smartsourcing with a virtual and Co-Sourcing approach:
A Better Approach as an alternative Handling Overflow
Instead of relying solely on overflow solutions, healthcare organizations should consider more sustainable strategies that foster long-term partnerships and operational improvements. Here are a few alternatives:
- Strategic Partnerships: Engage with contact center providers as true partners, not just backup resources. By forming deeper, collaborative relationships, your partner can gain a thorough understanding of your workflows, goals, and operational needs. This results in seamless integration and more consistent service delivery. In times of peak demand, high absenteeism, or seasonal spikes, these partnerships can still offer flexible support while maintaining broader, strategic engagement. High-quality contact centers, like RelateCare, complement and enhance a hospital’s existing infrastructure, aligning more closely with internal processes and driving sustained performance improvements.
- Dedicated Support for Specific Functions: Instead of using external providers solely for overflow, consider assigning them responsibility for specific functions—such as appointment scheduling for particular specialties, new patient registration, or general inquiries. This provides the partner with sufficient volume to optimize their performance, while freeing your in-house team to focus on other tasks. A virtual co-sourcing approach allows healthcare organizations to enhance efficiency, meet objectives, and deliver consistent services over time.
- Training and Development: Deeper integration with a contact center provider unlocks opportunities for ongoing training and development, ensuring that the external team is always aligned with your internal standards. This approach helps them stay up to date on your organization’s specific processes, culture, and best practices, ultimately enhancing the quality of service delivered.
- Embracing Technical Solutions: Leverage cutting-edge technology across workforce optimization, communication management, telephony, and automation to enable a more efficient operating model. Embracing these innovations can streamline processes, reduce costs, and improve overall operational performance.
In the end, saying “no” to overflow work isn’t about avoiding the hard path—it’s about making the right decisions for long-term success. By fostering strategic partnerships and focusing on integrated, scalable solutions, healthcare organizations can optimize both patient experience and operational efficiency.