Specifications include, but are not limited to: 1. Contractor must be fully staffed with live operators. 2. Contractor shall ensure good customer service; for example, maintain a friendly, pleasant, and helpful demeanor throughout contact with the caller. 3. Calls shall be answered within three (3) rings; and in no more than five (5) rings. 4. Contractor shall have software that tracks the number of rings and will provide a report with call information to DHS on a monthly basis. 5. Contractor shall have a telephonic interpretation service available for callers who speak a foreign language. 6. Contractor shall have a way to communicate with deaf or hard of hearing callers. 7. Contractor shall have electronic records of call activity that records time of calls, action taken by answering service operators, and the time of this action. 8. Contractor must be capable of handling high volume call periods with a low error rate. The following method will be used to determine low error rate: a. Each month five-to-ten percent (5-10%) of calls will be sampled for quality control. A low error rate is defined as less than five percent (5%) of the sample being deemed as failed calls. Note: DHS will focus on these factors: a. Appropriate greeting/use of scripts. b. Upholding the culture and values of DHS. c. Accurately capturing data from the Basic Script (see Section 2.5). d. Grammar and spelling in written communication. Each factor will be scored for each sampled call on a scale of 1-5. A score of less than 16 will result in a “fail,” a score of 16 or greater will result in a “pass.” 9. Equipment shall be up to date and programmable to indicate on-duty staff member. 10. Contractor will not “outsource” receipt of calls.
