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Live Chats, Online Payments Boost CCCS' Services |
In August, hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused massive physical damage and left a wake of financial destruction -- homes destroyed, jobs lost, bankruptcy looming and an influx of people seeking the services of the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Inc. (CCCS).
In October, when changes in federal bankruptcy laws required individuals to complete a counseling session prior to filing for bankruptcy and to obtain education before being discharged, the volume of people seeking financial help via CCCS rose substantially.
All totaled in 2005, CCCS served 132,000 people. Clients received budget counseling, financial education, debt management, bankruptcy counseling and education as well as housing counseling. That figure constituted a 30 percent increase over the previous year, but the organization handled the hike in volume without incident.
CCCS of Greater Atlanta is one of three finalists for the fifth annual Technology Innovation Award. "Improvements we were able to put in last summer really positioned us for the challenges that came in the fall," said Suzanne Boas, president of CCCS of Greater Atlanta.
Mark Cole, chief operating officer, said the organization can now pull a client's credit report in real time and compare it to what the client tells counselors. "It gives us a better assessment of the client's situation so we can give better advice," Coles said.
Technology became a huge part of CCCS when the organization added a call-center switch in 2000. Besides allowing the use of voice-over-Internet protocol, the switch allowed CCCS to route calls to appropriate people. It also gave the organization the ability to monitor calls in real time, record calls for quality assurance and improve productivity by routing calls to branch locations when employees were available.
"It's not technology for technology's sake," Cole said. "It lowers cost, increases productivity and improves the client experience."
This past year, CCCS added live chat as "an experiment."
"If you're in some sort of crisis that you find terrifically embarrassing for you, there are materials online," Boas said.
In an age where people 'Google' just about anything, Cole realizes information about CCCS has to be easily accessible. "Without an online source available at a moment's notice, you won't be able to be relevant," he said.
CCCS also operates a Spanish- language version of its site.
Describing CCCS as a "financial emergency room," Boas added, "we really need to be here for people when people have financial difficulty. We don't want to put impediments in their way when they need us."
A few years ago, CCCS instituted online bill payment. The client makes a payment to CCCS and CCCS pays the client's creditors electronically. Today, 94 percent of CCCS' bill-paying clients use the service. Last year, clients of CCCS represented $12 billion in debt.
"I can't imagine the staff size with all the paper checks [that would be necessary]," said Boas.
In order to stay current in terms of technology, Coles and four of CCCS' 195 employees devote their time to the technology side of the organization. When necessary, CCCS also uses consultants and outside firms.
A nonprofit, community service agency, CCCS provides free, confidential budget counseling, as well as communitywide education programs in money management, debt management and comprehensive housing counseling. CCCS has 18 offices throughout
The organization was established in
