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Call centre support
THE council has defended its relationship with Vertex, the company in charge of its customer services, despite increased costs of £44 million.
The council in 2002 awarded the £422-million call-centre contract to the private firm as part of its customer service initiative (CSI).
Westminster’s call centres were moved 450 miles north to the Scottish Highlands as part of the measure that was supposed to make life easier for people calling the council after a series of complaints.
An independent audit last week found the original cost would rise by £44 million.
Councillor Mark Page, on the Overview and Scrutiny Commission, said the report from PA Consulting Group showed the council would save £52 million on the overall project.
Cllr Page said: “The reality is when we hired Vertex we got the best people working for us. As things were going so well they put lesser people on the project. Then as things began to turn we waded in and now we have the best people back on it again. That’s the reality.
“Whilst there are undoubtedly lessons to be learned with a project of this scale, this report has shown that it was absolutely the right thing to do and has provided a step change in customer services.” |
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