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For dental offices and subscribers, our Customer Service agents are the voice of Delta Dental. "We're often the first contact people have with Delta Dental," says Lori Acker, assistant vice president, Customer Service. "We want it to be a great experience."
Thousands of calls come into Delta Dental's call center each weekday. Despite the volume, agents work hard to treat each call as if it were the day's first and only one. "We believe it's more important to make sure people get the attention and information they need than to rush them off the phone," says Acker.
Most Customer Service agents join Delta Dental with previous call center and insurance experience. During their five-week training, they learn about dental benefits, and Delta Dental's philosophy of customer service.
"Our role is to be here to answer customer questions," says Acker. "We've got to make sure our agents have the right stuff and the right training so callers don't wait to get their questions answered."
New-agent training includes "double-jacking," where trainer-trainee pairs answer customer calls together. Trainees test their skills in real-life situations, while having experienced agents ready to jump in if necessary. Once Customer Service agents start
in the department, a veteran agent buddy shadows them to help them navigate around stumbling blocks.
Training is ongoing. After six months, every agent receives another 25 hours of side-by-side training. Agents also receive training in claims processing and adjustments, which minimizes the need to transfer callers to other departments.
The department recently restructured to make it easier to provide professional development. Several team leaders now provide ongoing
agent coaching, to help agents achieve higher levels on key performance indicators (KPIs). KPIs are skills on which agents are routinely measured and impact customer performance. They include customer service skills, schedule adherence (the amount of time an agent is available to take calls), and claims accuracy, among others. Agents who receive one-on-one coaching have boosted their KPI scores significantly, says Acker.
Delta Dental's retention rate for Customer Service agents is higher than the industry average. The agents combine their training knowledge with experience to help customers. In Delta Dental's annual surveys of benefits administrators and subscribers, Customer Service receives consistently high satisfaction scores. Acker says agents constantly strive to improve their scores. One important measurement is the average speed of answer (ASA). The department has exceeded its ASA goal of 45 seconds in 2004. Year to date through mid July the department achieved 36 seconds.
Another measure is the abandon rate-the percentage of callers that hang up before an agent can answer. Delta Dental's goal is to keep the abandon rate less than 3% of call volume. Year to date through mid July, Customer Service achieved a 1.8% abandon rate.
Acker often receives letters from subscribers who describe how Customer Service agents helped them. Agents take responsibility for finding a solution for callers. It's not unusual for agents to walk over to the Enrollment area, call a dentist's office, or make a special check request to help resolve an issue.
"We go the extra mile for customers," says Acker. "Our agents care about what they do."
How Delta Dental Provides 24/7 Service
Delta Dental's Customer Service agents answer calls Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday. In addition, our Voice Response System (VRS) and online Benefits Connection provide self-service answers to most questions 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The VRS, which is accessed by calling Customer Service, provides automated answers to many subscriber and dentist questions, including claims payment information such as deductible, payment made by subscriber, Delta Dental payment, check number, coordination of benefits and whether the maximum has been reached. The online Benefits Connection, which is accessed through out Web site at www.deltadentalnj.com, has everything that the VRS includes, plus tooth number, approved amount, allowed amount, co-pay percentage and processing policies used.
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