# How communication technology can help relieve pressure on staff in the financial services sector  Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2022-10-31 Category: TECHNOLOGY Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/technology Meta Title: Combat Financial Burnout with Communication Outsourcing Meta Description: Discover how outsourcing your customer service and eliminating distractions with technology can alleviate pressure on staff and improve customer accessibility. URL: https://financedigest.com/how-communication-technology-can-help-relieve-pressure-on-staff-in-the-financial-services-sectorhtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/img7433-16-1736814950528-compressed.jpg) ![](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/tim-morris-450x449-1736814950453-compressed.jpg) _By_ **_Tim Morris,_** _MD of Cymphony_ _Despite [financial services](https://www.financedigest.com/can-financial-services-brands-ever-be-credible-on-social.html "Can financial services brands ever be credible on social? ") adapting quickly to the pandemic and resulting lockdowns, it seems the sector is suffering its own form of ’long COVID’ that could lead to burnout if business do not act now._ A recent survey suggests that large numbers of [financial services](https://www.financedigest.com/how-crowdsourcing-can-help-drive-the-benefits-of-advanced-analytics-in-financial-services.html "HOW CROWDSOURCING CAN HELP DRIVE THE BENEFITS OF ADVANCED ANALYTICS IN FINANCIAL SERVICES") professionals are planning to leave the industry due to high pressure1. _Tim Morris, the MD of Cymphony, a [communications provider specialising in enquiry handling with a personal](https://www.financedigest.com/51-of-brits-support-teresa-may-and-would-grant-access-to-their-personal-communication-and-internet-browsing-history-as-part-of-the-snoopers-charter.html "51%* of Brits support Teresa May and would grant access to their personal communication and internet browsing history as part of the Snooper’s Charter ") touch, believes technology can play a significant role in alleviating the pressure on staff and preventing exhaustion._ **Logging off after work** A recent HSE study found that over seventeen million of the UK’s working days were lost because of workplace stress. So, one [way your business](https://www.financedigest.com/7-ways-cloud-technology-can-transform-business-finances.html "7 ways cloud technology can transform business finances") can combat this is by helping your employees switch off after work. However, this is often easier said than done, particularly at the moment with economic headwinds and [rising rates causing financial businesses to be busier and therefore asking staff](https://www.financedigest.com/uk-firms-plan-biggest-pay-rises-since-2012-to-fill-staff-gaps.html "UK firms plan biggest pay rises since 2012 to fill staff gaps") to work longer hours than they should. Do a quick internet search for “how to switch off after work” and 99 per cent of the articles you come across will recommend having a detox from [technology](https://www.financedigest.com/what-is-5g-technology-and-how-it-works.html "What is 5G technology and how it works"). However, leaving the phone lines and email inbox unmanned can potentially [cost you thousands of pounds’ worth of business](https://www.financedigest.com/cutting-business-costs-pros-of-using-commercial-heat-pumps-in-2016.html "Cutting business costs: Pros of using commercial heat pumps in 2016"). So, what is the answer? To allow you and your workforce a much-needed detox, I suggest outsourcing your [customer service](https://www.financedigest.com/revolutionising-customer-service-three-sectors-that-are-leading-the-way.html "Revolutionising Customer Service: Three sectors that are leading the way…") to someone qualified as an inbound communication specialist to answer calls and messages out of hours. These services are available 24/7 and will massively [boost](https://www.financedigest.com/britain-seeks-to-boost-banking-services-from-fintechs.html "Britain seeks to boost banking services from fintechs") your customer service ratings because they make your business more accessible to your customers. **Help your fee earners to focus on their work** Organisational [skills and excellent administration are the hallmarks of any successful business](https://www.financedigest.com/5-essential-leadership-skills-for-family-owned-businesses.html "5 essential leadership skills for family-owned businesses"). However, if you want to get the best out of your team and reduce the chances of burning them out, I strongly suggest decreasing your fee earners admin to allow them to focus solely on bringing in money. One use of [technology to reduce](https://www.financedigest.com/latam-airlines-reduces-cost-per-user-by-83-thanks-to-innovative-ad-technology.html "LATAM Airlines reduces Cost Per User by 83% thanks to innovative ad technology") distractions is to eliminate cold callers. After such a long and welcome lull of cold callers during the pandemic, these uninvited interruptions often feel more annoying than they should. You could buy a call blocker to plug into your [office](https://www.financedigest.com/international-law-firm-calls-in-viato-connect-uk-and-us-offices.html "INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM CALLS IN VIATO CONNECT UK AND US OFFICES") landline to help brokers avoid nuisance calls. These usually work in the same way as the call blockers built into phones, in that they have a ‘blacklist’ of numbers or number types and prevent any incoming calls from them. If your business uses smartphones, you will have the option to block specific callers. Android and iPhone handsets let you add numbers to a blocked list, reject unknown callers altogether or set a ‘do not disturb’ mode that only allows calls from certain numbers. There is of course, always the danger that important calls are missed this way. Outsourcing your inbound [communications is the best solution to ensure you avoid cold callers altogether and still capture valuable customer](https://www.financedigest.com/talk-to-me-the-changing-face-of-customer-communications.html "TALK TO ME :THE CHANGING FACE OF CUSTOMER COMMUNICATIONS") enquiries. This way, your [fee earner’s calls will be handled by a customer service](https://www.financedigest.com/20-billion-in-bank-service-fees-are-you-overpaying.html " Billion in Bank Service Fees: Are You Overpaying?") professional on their behalf, allowing them to get on with other activities. [Reducing email admin is also a great way to help employees](https://www.financedigest.com/four-tips-to-help-reduce-employee-ghosting-in-financial-services.html "Four tips to help reduce employee ghosting in financial services") be more productive throughout the day. On average, 28% of work time is spent on emailing21. To remove this distraction, I suggest using email autoresponders. This allows your staff to schedule [time into their day](https://www.financedigest.com/love-in-a-time-of-inflation-how-much-will-valentines-day-set-you-back.html "Love in a time of inflation: how much will Valentine’s Day set you back?") where they can address customer service issues instead of jumping in and out of them. A customer wants to know that their email has been received and that help is on the way. When customers’ concerns, problems or complaints go ignored, additional frustrations can emerge, affecting your long-term relationship with them. By using email autoresponders, you instantly let a [customer know their email has been received and that they should expect action](https://www.financedigest.com/the-fca-is-taking-immediate-action-on-customer-vulnerability-but-how-does-this-impact-advisers.html "The FCA is taking immediate action on customer vulnerability; but how does this impact advisers?") to be taken soon. Most importantly, ensure you respond in the [time frame you have committed to and meet the expectations you have set](https://www.financedigest.com/oneweb-eutelsat-set-for-secondary-london-listing-the-times.html "OneWeb-Eutelsat set for secondary London listing – The Times") for your customer. **Smaller independents will benefit from offering a** [digital journey](https://www.financedigest.com/the-journey-towards-a-digital-bank-five-major-stages-to-successful-banking-digitalisation.html "THE JOURNEY TOWARDS A DIGITAL BANK – FIVE MAJOR STAGES TO SUCCESSFUL BANKING DIGITALISATION") Smaller independent [financial businesses must](https://www.financedigest.com/the-financial-sector-must-act-to-tackle-internal-data-security.html "THE FINANCIAL SECTOR MUST ACT TO TACKLE INTERNAL DATA SECURITY") adopt the use of digital tools into their process to compete with bigger brands. However, not having the [financial resources to bring in and utilise tech as part of the customer journey is often a big](https://www.financedigest.com/big-data-analytics-fraud-prevention-in-the-financial-sector.html "BIG DATA, ANALYTICS & FRAUD PREVENTION IN THE FINANCIAL SECTOR") problem. Unfortunately, businesses that rely on paper, manual tasks and legacy tech cannot compete in an ever-evolving digital landscape. The first thing any [financial provider should do is ensure they have a great website to convey their brand and help their company](https://www.financedigest.com/disconnected-customers-are-one-of-the-biggest-problems-facing-financial-companies.html "Disconnected customers are one of the biggest problems facing financial companies") to stand out. Not only will this help their business look the part, but it will also generate new enquiries. When designing a new website, it is important to ensure the [site has the capability to convert visits into enquiries by placing calls](https://www.financedigest.com/ford-to-make-call-on-europe-job-cuts-by-mid-feb-as-buyers-circle-german-site.html "Ford to make call on Europe job cuts by mid-Feb as buyers circle German site") to action throughout to encourage visitors to email or pick up the phone. The next step is to provide a great digital journey to ensure it offers multiple channels for interacting with customers. This is because home buyers now want to communicate with brokers through their ‘channel of choice’ – for example, web chat, form fills, [social media](https://www.financedigest.com/ai-and-social-media-are-revolutionizing-personal-finance-in-2023.html "AI and Social Media Are Revolutionizing Personal Finance in 2023") posts, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, SMS, email and, of course, the phone. When given their ‘channel of choice’ prospects are more likely to convert into customers. So, linking all these touchpoints to [create an omnichannel customer experience can improve a business’s](https://www.financedigest.com/6-ways-how-to-create-great-tiktok-videos-for-your-business.html "6 Ways How to Create Great TikTok Videos For Your Business") interaction rates and increase sales. As customers interact with a financial business across multiple channels, they must [provide an omnichannel customer support](https://www.financedigest.com/keysource-to-provide-critical-facilitiesmanagement-support-for-leeds-city-council.html "KEYSOURCE TO PROVIDE CRITICAL FACILITIESMANAGEMENT SUPPORT FOR LEEDS CITY COUNCIL") strategy to run alongside it. It should [ensure their customers can communicate](https://www.financedigest.com/strategic-budgeting-ensures-success-of-community-support-programs.html "Strategic Budgeting Ensures Success of Community Support Programs") directly with an agent on the channel or platform they choose. Inbound communications tools such as live web chat, for example, are popular contact channels for companies and customers to use. Web chat enables [businesses to keep consumers](https://www.financedigest.com/citigroup-says-will-close-russian-consumer-commercial-business.html "Citigroup says will close Russian consumer, commercial business") on their site, allowing them to ask questions, gain insights and even make purchases. Now more than ever, [businesses must embrace technology](https://www.financedigest.com/2016-the-year-of-technology-financing-the-year-of-business-growth.html "2016 – THE YEAR OF TECHNOLOGY FINANCING, THE YEAR OF BUSINESS GROWTH"), understanding that it can play a significant role in helping staff to focus on their work and ease the stresses they face. In turn, this will lead to better business performance and a happier and more productive workforce. **_About the author_** _Tim Morris is the MD of Cymphony, a communications provider helping thousands of [clients to build customer relationships from the first interaction](https://www.financedigest.com/new-global-relationship-between-reckon-software-and-myfirmsapp-delivers-closer-interaction-between-accountants-and-their-clients.html "NEW GLOBAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RECKON SOFTWARE AND MYFIRMSAPP DELIVERS CLOSER INTERACTION BETWEEN ACCOUNTANTS AND THEIR CLIENTS"). Cymphony’s vision is to provide an exceptional inbound customer experience for all businesses in the UK._ # _1_ _Lemon Edge, 2022_ **_,_** _Burnout mounts as a third of banking and financial services plan to leave the industry due to high pressure_ _2_ _According to the McKinsey Global Institute analysis,_ --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---