Poor comms cost UK firms almost £ 8bn a year

Thursday 04 August 2005

UK businesses could save billions each year in lost revenue if they used the latest IT-based telephone management products.

That's the view of industry experts following recent surveys showing companies are losing a fortune due to unproductive communication.

Max Atkinson (pictured below), professor at Henley Management College and author of new book 'Lend Me Your Ears' estimates that unproductive communication costs UK businesses £ 7.8 billion each year.

Research shows that:

• Businesses are losing vital revenue opportunities because calls do not reach the right people at the right time;
• 68% of firms receive important messages late more than once a week. These calls include business leads, customer enquiries and meeting requests;
• 30% of businesses have lost money because employees cannot contact people when they want to.
• 49% of workers say they send emails to chase voicemails or make a phone call to draw attention to an email that they had sent;
• 78% of workers said that inefficient, unreliable communication is a major problem.
• A third of workers wish they could prioritise incoming calls so that only the most important get through immediately.

This suggests that businesses need to take control and unify their communication. Use of Computer/Telephony Integration (CTI) products, such as call management and call logging, can improve efficiency, boost productivity and increase profits, says leading CTI company Tri-Line (that's us).

In a survey of 1,500 workers by the UK Economist Intelligence Unit, 81% said that using CTI made them more productive. 73% said electronic communications tools greatly improve their level of workplace satisfaction. 45% said electronic communications decrease the likelihood of workplace miscommunication.

And in a recent survey conducted by The Bathwick Group, 75% of small business executives said productivity has increased in their company as a result of using latest IT and CTI technologies; 74% of companies believe the use of CTI gives them a competitive edge; 76% said cost cutting (as a result of using CTI) has not had a negative effect on worker output at their business.