91¾«Æ·

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Published January 19, 2017 in Operations

Research Director Field Studies – Day 1: In the details


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In the first part of this three-part series, 91¾«Æ·’s Research Director Michael Cooke discusses key takeaways from his trip to visit field teams and recipients in Kenya.

and customer service: two of many things that have been said to be in the details. What I saw today was 91¾«Æ·â€™s call center team in Kisumu, Kenya striving for both.

91¾«Æ· sign by roadside


Let’s face it, call centers are where an awful lot of the work gets done when your customers are remote (as 91¾«Æ·â€™s are), and how these centers operate makes the difference between satisfaction and frustration for end users.

The details definitely matter. One team I sat with manages a “hotlineâ€� that participants in 91¾«Æ·â€™s programs can call if they have any problems.

Another team I sat with deal with “adverse events�, the things that we do our utmost to avoid, but that inevitably happen from time-to-time. These events include conflict in a household (rare), requests for bribes, and theft of transfers. Getting to the bottom of these issues requires the investigatory powers of a Private Investigator (getting to the bottom of what has happened the rare cases of theft), combined with the guile and people-reading of a top social worker (when couples are having a conflict). It is also an essential source of learning for our operations, informing how we support vulnerable participants with cash transfers, for example through nominated trustees.

Tomorrow I have the privilege of going out with some of 91¾«Æ·â€™s field officers to meet potential 91¾«Æ· participants. I can’t wait.