UPMC Health Plan - Innovation in Customer Service
Company: UPMC Health Plan, Pittsburgh, PA
Company Description: UPMC Health Plan, the second-largest health insurer in western Pennsylvania, is owned by UPMC , an integrated global health enterprise. Our products and services are utilized by nearly 2.3 million members. Our local provider network includes UPMC as well as community providers, totaling more than 125 hospitals and more than 11,500 physicians throughout Pennsylvania.
Nomination Category: Customer Service & Call Center Awards Achievement Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Award for Innovation in Customer Service - Other Service Industries
Nomination Title: UPMC Health Plan Award for Innovation in Customer Service
Starting in 2019, the System Integration Project, renamed the Contact Center Dashboard, was created with the support of Health Care Concierges, Consumer Innovation, and Call Center Strategy teams. 48 health care concierges were interviewed by the Consumer Innovation team across all product lines to start the research and development of the Contact Center Dashboard (CCD). Consumer Innovation spent 60 hours shadowing, listening to calls, and observing the navigation amongst systems to share with the Call Center Strategy team.
Call Center Strategy Team to the rescue! This team went right to work to develop the CCD that would provide the concierge with a desktop-overlay system of the most used and hardest to navigate systems and information. Development began in June 2019 and in less than one year, the system was created! The Call Center Strategy team worked closely with a pilot team of concierges across all products to gather additional ideas, feedback, and testing for months prior to launching the system. In May 2020, the pilot team started using the CCD in place of our previous core system and continued to meet weekly to make CCD the absolute best. The Call Center Strategy team released CCD enhancements monthly, and thanks to their quick turnaround time for improvements, all concierges in our contact center were trained and started to use the CCD as of August 2020!
Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
At UPMC Health Plan, delivering world-class service is our goal. As we continued to grow and add services, this became more complex. Health care concierges were required to access multiple systems on every call, and often were taking calls for multiple lines of business. Is the member calling to get a new ID card? Do they need to confirm their coverage? Each system required a different login ID and password, and each system timed out. This caused frustration to not only our employees, but also the member on the phone waiting for the concierge to log in to yet another system to assist. Our team was creating miracles on every call, accessing multiple systems while still creating a strong member experience. As our business expanded and additional responsibilities were added to the health care concierge role, we knew we needed a new solution. As a leadership team, we went right to work on making a better experience for our team and our members. In 2019, we solicited their ideas and feedback and officially launched the System Integration Project. This project would revolutionize and completely change how we train, assist members, and deliver world-class service.
Outline the nominated achievement since July 1 2019 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
-The CCD has reduced new hire training class by 20% or 88 hours, saving $2,126 per new hire ($227,282 annually).
-With the CCD, we are more efficient and have reduced overtime cost by $112,108.69. With this significant decrease in overtime, employees are more satisfied and less fatigued even during our busiest time of year
Explain why the achievement you have highlighted is unique or significant. If possible compare the achievement to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
The achievements that have come from the Contact Center Dashboard in such a short amount of time have been significant for employee and member satisfaction. In the previous core system, concierges used 10-15 additional systems per call. Concierges can now focus their time on the member, leading to increased efficiency, employee satisfaction, and increased member satisfaction, as concierges can easily resolve the reason for their call. Since launching the CCD, our contact center satisfaction scores are: Overall Satisfaction 4.9/5, Agent Helpfulness 98.4%, and First Call Resolution 96%.
The CCD includes customer-service friendly features that make their jobs so much easier. Some of the features available in CCD that were not available previously include:
Additional Member Search Options
Easily View and Order ID Cards
Embedded links to plan documents
Cost-Estimate Medical Procedures to Drive Cost Transparency
Identify Members with Multiple ID numbers
View Invoices and Balances Due
In the past, calls were more difficult to service, resulting in mandatory overtime just to keep up with our workload. With the CCD, we are more efficient and have reduced overtime cost by $112,108.69. With this significant decrease in overtime, employees are more satisfied and less fatigued even during our busiest time of year.
The CCD has revolutionized the way we train and service our membrs. For us, this is a "game changer" and the "system all employees have been waiting for"!
Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Attached you will find a supporting PowerPoint outlining the Contact Center Dashboard (CCD) features and how it has evolved into the system it is today. When the Call Center Strategy team jumped into action, they quickly developed a system that was not only easier to read, and navigate, but also a system that pulled data and resources to the concierges to support their job duties. Concierges LOVE it! Single sign-on features and clickable member documents streamline the customer service we provide to members, and we are already hearing about increased satisfaction. As an example, member requests such as ordering a new ID card went from a 7-step process per family member to a 3-step process all done by clicking one link. Concierges are empowered to perform their job duties, calls are handled more efficiently, and members regularly provide feedback on how easy it was to resolve their call.
The partnership amongst the teams to develop this robust system will drive satisfaction and loyalty across our membership for years to come.The CCD has revolutionized how we operate in the contact center, and our goal of delivering World-Class Service has never been easier!