In a wired world, the need for a company to house all of its staff members, contractors, etc., under one roof is no longer necessary—or even necessarily advisable. In fact, at least one study points to not only cost savings, but productivity boosts, when work goes virtual and implements the use of auto attendant systems.
New Study Proves Work from Home Effectiveness
The study, reported in Harvard Business Review and conducted by Nicholas Bloom and James Liang, a graduate student and cofounder of Ctrip, a Chinese travel web site, offered Ctrip staffers the chance to work from home for nine months. Bloom and Liang measured productivity, and other, differences between virtual and on-site staff. Their findings?
- Those working from home completed 13.5 percent more calls than their colleagues back in the office
- Potential savings on furniture and space were estimated at $1900, per employee, per month—numbers that can add up quickly
- Staff loved the opportunity, resulting in a drop in turnover
- Customers didn’t notice a difference
These results don’t surprise us, of course. We’ve been hearing the same thing from our clients for years. And, in the article, Bloom and Liang also point to other studies showing similar results. That’s heartening news for our clients as well who use our service to distribute calls to employees no matter where they are, providing significant benefits to them—and their employees—yet conveying a cohesive company presence through one main phone number that provides access to an automated attendant.
Virtual PBX Connects Team Members
Today, technology like a hosted PBX, can connect widely dispersed team members, easily, inexpensively and seamlessly. In our case, the need for someone to fill the gatekeeper receptionist role is replaced through a virtual PBX, auto attendant system. Callers receive a pre-recorded outgoing greeting with options to transfer to various staff members—regardless of where they are physically located!
A virtual auto attendant system, or virtual receptionist, services provide even the smallest operations the ability to convey a big company presence and ensure that when customers call their calls will be answered. That’s a big boon for independent professionals in all types of industries—from consultants, to real estate agents, insurance providers, and others.
As the masses move online to purchase goods and services there has been a corresponding shift from bricks and mortar operations to virtual operations. No longer is a physical space a prerequisite for running a business. In fact, a growing numbers of businesses domestically, and globally, are virtual businesses—their staff members are dispersed literally around the globe with no discernable negative impact on productivity, customer service or profits. In fact, just the reverse may be true as studies like Ctrip—and our clients’ experiences—suggest.
AccessDirect offers a variety of these virtual PBX services, and all of them include professionally recorded automated attendant greetings.
