Modeling Designs after Successful Call Center Interactions

1. Modeling Designs after Successful Call Center Interactions Mary Constance Parks Senior Voice User Interface Designer

2. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Introduction • Why analyze caller/representative conversations • How to “gather” conversations • What to look for • How to apply what you learn

3. Why analyze caller/representative conversations Interacting with a speech system is not the same as talking with a person, but… • The best agents in the call center usually know how to • Maintain caller satisfaction • Work together with callers to get tasks done efficiently • The Voice User Interface (VUI) can model elements of the best caller/representative interactions so that • Callers can interact more comfortably • Interaction can be more efficient

4. Why analyze caller/representative conversations Many elements combine to create successful caller/representative interactions • Focus here today is on linguistic elements that contribute to success • The way the conversations sound • Word choice • Discourse structure

5. How to “gather” conversations Three common ways • In the call center • Remote listening with permission to record call • Digital or taped recordings of calls

6. How to “gather” conversations In the call center • Ask to observe most effective representatives • Sit next to representative and listen in • Take notes, with particular attention to • Patterns in conversations • Vocabulary • Ways questions are asked or information is provided • Advantages • Observing “the best” • Possible opportunity to interview representatives afterwards • Disadvantages • Conversations are too fast to take accurate notes • Memory of what was spoken could be wrong • Time constraints of call center visit (smaller sample)

7. How to “gather” conversations Remote listening with permission to record call • Record calls • Can use THAT-1 http://jkaudio.com/that-1.htm or QuickTAP http://jkaudio.com/quicktap.htm • Take notes while listening; analyze recordings • Advantages • Can transcribe whole conversations or snippets • Allows for more accurate discovery of patterns • Disadvantages • May not be “best” representatives • May not be able to interview representatives • Time constraints of listening in real time (smaller sample) • If no permission to record call, then same disadvantages as with call center visit

8. How to “gather” conversations Digital or taped recordings of calls • Ask for recordings of most effective representatives • Analyze recordings • Advantages • Can transcribe whole conversations or snippets • Allows for more accurate discovery of patterns • Larger sample of conversations • Getting a sample of the “best” • Disadvantages • May not be able to interview representatives • Sometimes recordings may be random sample of calls

9. What to look for At a linguistic level, can look for a wide range of things, including • The way the conversations sound • Word choice • Discourse structure

10. What to look for The way the conversations sound, for example • Relationship between the speakers • How age, gender, socio-economic status of speakers impact the conversations • Pronunciation and dialects • Levels of formality • Rate of speech • Examples from Healthcare • Call 1 • Call 2

11. What to look for: Transcript of Healthcare Call 1 A: Thanks so much for holding for me. Your name and date of birth? B: --. -- ’81. A: How can I help you --? B: I got this thing in the mail from you guys. Umm, I'm new on insurance, like I just got my own insurance from my work... A: Okay. B: This is all new to me. If you could help me. Umm, I got this…I went to the doctor on the 30th, just for…you know to…establish...you know…new...patient. A: Right. Who's your doctor. B: Got it. A: Right. B: There you go. And they sent me...I got this letter in the mail. And it says Provider -- Diagnostics. And it has like a claim number, and everything, and a letter. A: And that was on the 30th of September? B: Yes, that's when I went to the doctor. A: One moment. B: Thank you. [9.5 seconds] A: Okay…so that came from a -- Diagnostics, right? B: Yeah...and I don't reme...I don't know...if that's probably the people that did like the blood work? A: Yeah, that's the...the lab. B: [inaudible] A: Yeah, that's the lab provider there. Let me just take a look at that claim. Give me a second here. B: Thanks a lot. A: …here...uh huh. B: Thank you.

12. What to look for: Transcript of Healthcare Call 2 A: Thank you for calling. My name is --. May I have the member's ID number? B: Hello --. This is -- --. I just spoke with you. A: Yes you did. B: How are you? A: Good thank you. Thank you. B: Umm...there was actually a couple of claims I forgot to ask you about with -- --. Let me give you her social again. It's uh...---...--...--. And her date of birth is...eleven, sixteen, nineteen-sixty. A: Okay... [15 seconds] Okay, how can I help you? B: Alright. Date of service...is... February third, two-thousand four. [4 seconds] And that should be…Associates in -- Healthcare. Charge was a-hundred and twenty dollars. [11 seconds] Doctor was...--. [6 seconds] A: Mm, I don't…alright…uh…the date of service of two, three, oh four? B: Right. A: There is nothing in the system for two, three, oh four. B: You’re kidding me. A: No...I'm in the right spot too. How much was it for? B: A hundred n’ twenty dollars. A: ‘kay, we don’t even have anything in the system for A hundred n’ twenty dollars… B: Huh. A: …for um…the month of February at all. B: Alright.

13. What to look for Word choice • Words vary depending on who the participants in the conversation are • Novices • Experts • Effective communication requires knowing when to use • Jargon and domain-specific vocabulary • Or alternate explanations or vocabulary

14. What to look for Word choice • Healthcare examples • Member caller unfamiliar with “claim,” “explanation of benefits,” “date of service” • Have to talk about “letter from --,” “bill,” “when I went to the doctor” • Provider caller very familiar with domain • Uses the synonym “date of service” for “claim” • Game industry example A: And could you verify for me please the account holder's first and last name..and the gamer tag? • Assumption at start of call--all callers know “gamer tag.” • Worked on all calls listened to

15. What to look for Discourse structure • May find consistent patterns across a hefty number of conversations, for example in • Orders of questions • Ways information is provided • Cohesive devices

16. What to look for: Order of questions in Healthcare Call 3 A: This is – speaking. May I have your name please? B: --. A: Hi --. How are you today? B: I’m good. How are you? A: Ok thank you. B: What’s your name again? A: --. B: Thank you. A: You’re welcome. Can I get your call back number? B: -- A: And your Provider ID number? B: -- A: [Name of Provider]? B: Yes. A: Thank you. And the subscriber ID number? B: -- A: And the patient’s first name? B: --. A: And is this regarding benefits or claims? B: Benefits. A: Ok, and what benefits do you need today?

17. What to look for Order of questions in Healthcare Call 3 • Name of caller • Call back number • Provider ID • Confirm provider name • Subscriber (i.e. member) ID • Patient first name • Reason for call • Follow-up questions • Note: • Each company tends to have different requirements and different “scripts” for interaction

18. What to look for: Way information is provided in Healthcare Call 4 C: Okay great. That’s all the information I need for this patient. But I do have one more patient. A: Same provider? C: Yes, Dr. --. A: Okay, new id number? C: It’s …. A: And the patient’s name? C: It’s for …. A: And what were you needing for this patient? C: uh…office visit and office surgery please. A: This policy cancelled on four one of oh six.

19. What to look for Cohesive devices used by representative in Healthcare Call 3 • Use of “and” in next question • Used 4 times • Reduced clauses with successive questions • 4 out of 8 questions requesting information do not have overt verbs • Overt politeness phrases. • “Thank you” used twice • “Please” used once • “You’re welcome” used once • Note • “And” and “reduced clauses” typical of healthcare conversations in other call centers, but more polite than norm

20. How to apply what you learn Model the “sound” of the best call center interactions • Define calling population based on typical callers you heard • Define persona to have characteristics of best representatives • Define tone of interaction based on most successful interactions, for example • Peer to peer conversation vs. expert to novice conversation • Respectfulness • Coach voice talent to speak at rate that matches successful call center interactions • Coach voice talent to not read prompts, but instead to say them as if they’re in a conversation with a real caller

21. How to apply what you learn Model word choices of the most successful representatives • If most callers are expert, use the jargon they use with experts • If novice • Avoid jargon and go for simpler word choices they use • Or just explain concepts in language used by effective representatives • If fairly equal mix of novice to expert • May have to design separate applications • Or choose to bias toward one group over another with alternate solutions that one group will have to learn to use • Or use alternate prompts, which may have tricky implications for grammars

22. How to apply what you learn Model the discourse structure of the most successful interactions • Use the order of questions found in the call center as a starting point for the order of questions in the call flow • May be constrained by functional or business requirements • Model the wording of questions and the way information is provided after the most effective communication observed in representatives’ conversations • Copy what they say; imitation is the best form of flattery • Follow the way representatives create cohesiveness in their conversations • Use the same discourse markers they use • Use simplified clause structures as they do • Consider how they overtly mark politeness (usually very little)

23. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Conclusion • Modeling designs after the most successful representative/caller conversations can result in comfortable and efficient caller interaction

24. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Conclusion… • The most accurate way to discover reusable patterns in representative/caller conversations is to have a large set of recordings to analyze

25. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Conclusion… • At a linguistic level, look at • The way the conversations sound • Word choice • Discourse structure

26. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Conclusion… • To apply what you learn, imitate he “sound,” word choices, and discourse structures found in the most successful call center interactions

27. Modeling designs after successful call center interactions Thank you! Contact: mary.parks@nuance.com