Employees plead: Don’t keep us in the dark

Employees’ greatest single concern is that they are not being told enough by their employers, according to a survey by Ascot Systems. This was particularly true of employees in call centres and other services operations but ‘providing insufficient information for employees’ was also the major concern of employees in the manufacturing sector.

“Apparently, the issue is not only that employees feel they are missing out on vital information that will help them do their jobs more efficiently and effectively but also that they have no knowledge of their organisation’s strategy or how it plans to meet its objectives,” said Ascot Systems’ Bob Eades.

“These findings identify two main problems,” he continued. “Many organisations supply ‘information’ on their intranet but this is not an effective form of communication for this information because it can be switched off and it only gets to workers who have regular access to a computer.

“The answer – as at Autoglass®’ Customer Contact Centre at Cardington, near Bedford – is to install a revolutionary, eye-catching Lumin screen which delivers a wide range of vital information to all operatives simultaneously.”

Sven Hill, Customer Contact Centre Telecoms and Systems Manager at Autoglass® commented: “Running a 24/7 operation, it is vital we have an easy method of keeping all our staff up-to-date with our latest offers, call statistics, incentive schemes and so on.

“We realised that we needed solutions that did not merely present information but actually involved these advisors and so made them want to view and interact with the information. So, we looked at all aspects of communicating with our advisers – from the content of the information to the way in which that content was presented.”

Ascot Systems’ solution was to supply a Lumin screen – with the high definition of its projected images making it visible from a long distance – supported by two plasma screens at either end of the centre.

“The beauty of using a Lumin screen is that it can be cut into any shape and the information it carries can be front, back or even ‘special’ projected,” Eades pointed out. “A Lumin screen can be placed in a call centre, in restaurant and coffee areas, as well as in offices and even on the ‘shop floor’ in a factory or warehouse.

“This ensures that everyone in the organisation has access to information at the same time and so helps to allay any fears and scotch rumours. It is even possible for an employer to give an amount of time on this information channel to a trade union to put over its own messages to staff – and thus cement positive relationships between the management and unions.”

As a ‘professional partner’ of Lumin in the UK and distributors of TargetVision software, Ascot Systems are well placed to supply both the screens and the systems that determine the dissemination of information – and have worked with, among others, call centres for organisations including Autoglass®, BT and Yellow Pages.

Autoglass®‘ Hill explained: “All the information on the screen supports our business. This includes new product knowledge, regular news updates, performance figures and weather updates as well as staff development materials and messages – along with staff notices, recipes, birthday and other congratulatory messages.”

End

Notes for Editors:

About Lumin

Founded in 2001 and based in Zorneding, near Munich, in Germany, Lumin makes and processes highly-developed optical polymers and specialises in enhancing existing display technologies with the development and production of hand-made, innovative, unique, pin-sharp, extremely bright projection displays and presentation solutions.

Lumin’s unique polymer technology, with its structure of optically active particles, allows the screens to take on projected light without loss, giving an even picture distribution, a wide viewing angle and no ‘hot spots’. The screens are weatherproof and can be shaped into two or three dimensional projection displays.

About Symons’ TargetVision

Founded in 1996 and now a division of Symon Communications, TargetVision allows users to create eye-catching content - robust, colourful graphic-and-text messages that can be integrated with full-motion video - and distribute it for display on televisions, desktops and kiosks.

Each day, all over the world, in all types of industries, more than 2m people receive time-sensitive, workplace critical information through televisions, large-screen plasma monitors, desktop PCs and interactive kiosks strategically integrated with the power of TargetVision. Symons’ TargetVision products are proving increasingly popular in the fields of corporate communications and call centres as well as in the education sector.

Employees are bombarded with company information everyday from different sources. Individuals receive company information in different forms – and not necessarily in a timely manner. TargetVision solves this by becoming the main and common source of information throughout the enterprise.

About Ascot Systems

Founded nearly 30 years ago, Ascot Systems is one of the leading designers and manufacturers of highly innovative products supplying the Government, defence, commercial, educational and call centre sectors. Its unique solutions include screen-to-screen training delivery, applications assistance and monitoring systems, online synchronous distance learning and information display systems. Ascot Systems also provides full project management, installation and service support facilities.

Further information from:

Bob Eades/Rachel Clark, Ascot Systems, 01903 503041

Bob Little, Bob Little Press & PR, 01727 860405

www.ascot-systems.co.uk