Team Leader Summit: ($550 + GST)  Brought to you by Rapid Results and CRM Consulting. The summit is an opportunity for team leaders to network and learn new ways to lead their teams and have more of a decision making role in their centre. Register: Click here

Rapid Remedies Workshop: (FREE) 90 minutes and 7 topics for you to take back and implement immediately (24 Feb): Click here

LEGO Serious Play Introduction: ($99+GST) 2 hour session on understanding the basics of LEGO Serious Play methodology (24 Feb): Click here

ROI Workshop: ($195+GST) ½ day session on how to put a business case together and measure ROI (28 Feb): Click here    

Team Leader Workshop: ($1295+GST) 2 day workshop on leadership, coaching and conflict resolution (23/24 Feb): Click here   

Contact Centre Manager’s Course: ($2950+GST) Now in its 2nd year, the definitive course for senior Team Leaders / Managers of contact centres (Starts 23 Mar): Click here

Who has the best Contact Centre in New Zealand? Well it seems like if you’re calling the ANZ or Sovereign you should be in capable hands.

They were the big winners last Friday night with the largest ever turn out at the annual CRM Contact Centre awards where over 670 guests packed into SKYCITY.

After eight intense weeks of mystery shopping, the director of CRM Consulting Laurie Smith said “Despite it being a tough one financially for many companies, it’s great to see such a passionate commitment to service excellence in these winning operations. Tonight’s Contact Centres have done their companies proud. But even more so we’re confident that their customers are happy”

The premiere industry event for New Zealand’s Contact Centres has been running for 14 years and assesses the answer times, friendliness, and ability to resolve enquiries by agents on the phone as well as email.

It also recognises the skills of outbound calling staff where again this year Telecom’s teams featured strongly, placing first and second in their sections. Not to be outdone by their inbound counterparts, the ANZ’s outbound crew formed one team with their National Bank colleagues and walked away as number one for Business to Consumer calling.

New in 2011 was the recognition of skilled collections agents on the phone. It’s been a challenging year chasing the debt dollar and an almighty battle saw GE Money pip Westpac’s Customer Care team to win the inaugural Award recognising the Credit Management industry.

With the advent of Social Media as another key channel of contact, director Laurie Smith sees possibilities “It’s exciting to see so many options now for customers to engage, but it’s still so wide open in regards to their expectations and how companies should be meeting them. It’s a very fast-moving target for the industry and one we think not enough have hit square-on.”

Keeping it free to enter, thanks to kiwi-owned companies Agile Integration and Rapid Results combined with global providers Randstad and Avaya who were the sponsors for this year’s Awards.