CHICAGO — Call center operations have seen a dramatic shift for Hyatt Hotels Corp. in recent years as both the reasons for guests' calls and the methods for staffing have dynamically changed over the course of the pandemic.
Speaking with Hotel News Now at Hyatt's Chicago headquarters, Jessica White, the company's senior vice president of global contact centers and guest experience, said even before the pandemic, "call center" was increasingly a misnomer, but the last two years have drastically accelerated a shift to remote work.
"We were 60% remote in the Americas pre-COVID, and we were not remote at all in any of our other locations," she said. "We are now in the U.S. 95% remote, and there are very few people that want to come to the office on a regular basis for the centers."
She said call center operations are now scattered across 23 states, which she sees as a positive "because it's given us access to all sorts of different talent."
"Remote work is the most popular search on a job engine these days, so it's given us an advantage in being able to hire and find awesome people," she said.
White said that in transitioning to almost entirely remote work, Hyatt has been focused primarily on results for those call center employees rather than finding ways to monitor them during the workday. She said Hyatt is a company that is focused on empathy both for its employees and guests, and that standard of care has to carry through all interactions.
She said she takes pride in having a customer care team that lives up to its name.
"I think for a lot of the team, they get up and talk to these guests every day because they do feel that travel makes people better. It provides them opportunities. It provides them joy to take care of people in the good and the bad times," she said.
Changing Needs
In addition to the work environment, White said another big shift in recent years has been the occasions in which people will reach out to call centers, either by voice or text. She said it's now less about booking and more about finding help when it's most needed. And the profile of guests they've talked to has changed as well.
"We went from a normal mix of business and leisure, then nothing for awhile, then all leisure," she said. "And there was a huge focus on people just being able to go on those trips that are so important to them."
In terms of booking, White said people increasingly "want to do things on their own," meaning the customer care employees have been more tasked with communicating via chat and for calls to focus more on "detailed questions."
"I think [calls are now about] people that want an extra level of care," she said. "I also think it's the people that are having disruptions in their travel ... so we're helping people that are having to change their plans or having to alter their dates. The people are calling us for the help they couldn't give themselves, really."
What that also means is many of those callers come in with a "heightened level of emotion," which isn't always the easiest thing to deal with, White said.
"That's when you have to remember that purpose of care. This is why we're here," she said.
She said customer service and guest experience, especially in an era of exceptionally high rates, is often about being as transparent as possible through every communication channel. That includes being clear about what amenities are available online and being able to clearly and concisely answer questions through the calling center.
"There's a level of significance emotionally for these trips, so it's important that people know what they're going to get," she said. "So, I think that's about respecting the reasons people are traveling and making sure we're addressing that and catering to their needs."
As the role of call center jobs has evolved, so has the skill set required for them, White said. Now it's about being more emotionally intelligent and less about the transactional nature of dealing with bookings.
"The transactions have gone online," she said. "What was left to be handled by a person in the center was the more complex, so they need complex problem-solving skills. They need the tools to take care of guests' needs and the empowerment to resolve issues directly. I think that will continue to evolve."