CFO Magazine - January 26, 2005

“Home-Sourcing” vs. Offshoring

“Judging by turnover, home agents appear to very happy with their situations. According to the Booz Allen study, the annual turnover rate for operations that use home workers is around 10 percent, compared with 50 percent or more for the call-center industry as a whole. Inconvenient schedules and dull work account for much of the difference, says John Bowden, chief operating officer of Willow, a Miramar, Florida-based company that provides what it calls ‘virtual contact center services.’ Explains Bowden, ‘Our agents choose their own hours and who they work for, so I don't have two of the biggest dissatisfiers for agents.’”