Telstra's National Telemarketing Centre

1. Telstra's National
Telemarketing Centre
Case Study Analysis by:
Djadja Achmad Sardjana
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2. Abstracts
• Telstra - previously Australia's only
telecommunications carrier.
• In 1990, the Australian Government
announced that it would end Telstra's
monopoly .
• In 1991-1992, a private carrier - Optus
Communications - became Telstra's first
competitor in the Australian market-place.
• The shift in emphasis from engineering to
marketing is clearly reflected by the
establishment of Telstra's National
Telemarketing Centre (NTC).
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3. Case Facts : Strength and Weakness
• Robert Holland got rare opportunity for
Telstra to forge a close relationship with an
important customer TeleMarketing
• Following telecommunications deregulation
in July 1997 the NTC was free to compete in
the local telemarketing industry.
• Resistances from internal NTC:
• Various restrictions (especially on personnel
numbers) prevented them from increasing capacity.
• Previously, NTC is cost centre and not a profit
centre.
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4. Case Facts : Competition
• In 1991—1992 a competitive duopoly was
established.
• In 1993—1994,Telstra faced its first full year
of competition but revenues increased:
• By 5 percent on the previous year to A$13.4B
• Three years later, Telstra’s revenue was A$16.B
• Telstra is one of the largest contributors to
Australia’s with contribution of A$1O.8B in the
financial year 1996—1997 24 percent of
Australia’s GDP
• On July I 1997 the Australian
telecommunications market as opened.
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5. Case Facts: Organization Structure
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6. Case Facts : Vision and Strategy
• Telstra is shift from a technically focused
organization to one with a strong customer
focus.
• Telstra’s Vision and Strategy of key success
factors:
• Competitive customer services.
• Best practice financial performance.
• Retain market leadership.
• Efficient and effective investment and
infrastructure. Growth and business development
• Employee satisfaction.
• Corporate integrity.
• Political regulatory environment.
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7. Case Facts : Call Centre Business
• Call centers are not an entirely new idea.
• Call centers are a labor-intensive business
65 percent budget.
• The call centre industry in Australia is on
rapid expansion and growing at 10 percent
to 25 percent (per annum).
• The growth in call centers reflects an
increasing recognition in business.
• Australia has very little in the way of
government regulation of telemarketing.
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8. Case Facts : National Telemarketing Center (NTC)
• Established May-1992 as:
• Direct response to deregulation and the arrival of its first
competitor— Optus Telecommunications
• Reflected an important underlying change from being an
“engineering-oriented” organization to one with more emphasis
on the customer.
• NTC Initial Task:
• To contact customers prior to create a positive experience with
Telstra.
• Set up a “free pre-selection hotline” to answer any questions a
customer may have had about choosing a long distance
provider.
• Gave a representative the opportunity to optimize the
customer’s account and offer other Telstra services and
products.
• When the National Telemarketing Centre was established
during deregulation, it became one of several marketing
channels available.
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9. Case Facts : NTC Clients
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10. Case Facts : NTC Organizational Structure
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11. Case Facts : NTC Business Process
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12. Case Facts : NTC IT/ATLAS
The business drivers for ATLAS were:
• A fast mechanism of setting up campaigns, including setting
up lists, defining call guides, arranging staff and physical
resources, defining reporting requirements, and arranging
order entry.
• An automated, adaptable, efficient, and effective set of
information systems to support the sales representative
including: access to accurate and up-to-date customer
infonnation and screen procedures that are friendly and
fast.
• Automatic production of the byproducts or results of sales
activity, especially order fulfillments and statistics.
• flexible, timely, and lucid performance and management
reporting with minimum intervention by information
systems personnel.
• Systems to support efficient and effective centre
management.
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13. Case Facts : NTC Information Technology
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14. Case Facts : NTC IT/ATLAS Statistic
• NTC Telemarketing operates 7:00 A.M. to
12:00 A.M. 6.5 days per week.
• In the financial year 1996—1997, the NTC
ran a total of 290 campaigns.
• One new campaign and two changes to
existing campaigns are implemented in
ATLAS each week.
• Up to 320 people use ATLAS at any one time.
• ATLAS is used for an average of 70,000
contacts per week.
• On average, one in four contacts results in a
sale.
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15. Problems : Management Issues
• Telemarketing is very much a people business.
• Staff Performance.
• Working on inbound campaigns is far more popular.
• Union restrictions of the proportion of casual labor
the NTC can use >< corporate limits on the
headcount.
• NTC has stringent occupational health and safety
guidelines that translate into high property costs.
• Telstra is taking a serious look at identifying its
core business and those areas that could be
outsourced.
• Senior management doesn’t realize the power of
Call Centre Lack of understanding of what call
centers can contribute to the organization.
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16. Problems : NTC Cost per-contact
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17. Core Problems
• Fierce Competition.
• Need Significant Cost
Reduction.
• Government regulation of
telemarketing
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18. NTC Solutions Alternative
• Only serve internal clients.
• Serve major corporate
customer.
• Telstra outsource its
telemarketing.
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19. Appendix-A
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