CALL CENTERS (CENTRES) - Faculty of Industrial Engineering and ...

Abstract. This paper attempts to reflect critically on the role which telephone call centers might
play in the economic development of rural places in the “information age”, drawing mainly on a
case study of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. It argues that although call center employment
tends mainly to be urban-based, the growth of this form of work does present opportunities
for some rural areas. The paper considers the locational factors rural areas would have to possess
or develop in order to attract such work. It suggests call centers can make a valuable though
limited contribution towards rural economic development, principally through the creation of
additional employment opportunities and the stimulation of new skills and competencies. It also
suggests that call centers do not represent a panacea for rural areas and that, indeed, it would
be dangerous for rural areas to become over-reliant on employment in this sector.
Keywords: Telecommunications, Urban, rural and regional economics, Regional migration, Regional
labor markets, Population, Information and Internet services, Computer software, Telephone,
Other production and pricing analysis (spatial analysis)
85. Sewell-Staples, Warren J., John F. Dalrymple and Katherine Phipps. Auditing excellence in call
centres: Access is a corporate responsibility, Managerial Auditing Journal, 18 (1/2), 2003, 68.
Abstract. The call centre industry is one of the most rapidly growing industries in the developed
world. This paper examines how the Australian Quality Council and the European Foundation
for Quality Management address issues of access and corporate responsibility through
their respective devices, namely the Australian Business Excellence Framework and the EFQM
Excellence Model. The Australian Business Excellence Framework was introduced to help Australian
companies meet the challenges of the global environment. The study then examines the
impact of the UK and Australian Disability Discrimination Legislation in light of UK and Australian
studies on the provision of services for the hearing impaired by call centres.
Keywords: Studies, Models, Corporate responsibility, Call centers, Handicapped people, Discrimination,
Auditing
86. Silvestro, R., C. Silvestro. New service design in the NHS: An evaluation of the strategic alignment
of NHS Direct, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 23 (4),
2003, 401–417.
Abstract. Awareness of inconsistencies and variability in the delivery of health services across
the UK has heightened in recent years, leading to general acknowledgement that a move away
from “health care by post code” is a strategic priority for the National Health Service (NHS).
NHS Direct, a call centre service for patients and their carers, is unique in the NHS in that it
represents an entirely new service concept, with a rare opportunity to design a single nation-wide
service from scratch, and to manage and coordinate a delivery system consistently throughout
the country. Evaluates the strategic alignment of NHS Direct during the first three years of implementation
through an analysis of its service concept, its operational objectives, the design of
its delivery systems and its volume and variety characteristics. The evaluation reveals an absence
of a central design specification which has resulted in wide variation in the call centres’ service
portfolios, resource bases, competencies, telephony and clinical expert systems. Contends that
variation and variability in the design of the call centres has severely compromised NHS Direct’s
ability to meet its strategic and operational objectives, resulting in strategic misalignment. Also
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